Archive for the ‘State Legislature News’ Category
VA GOP picks their State Senate Candidate
Last Updated on Wednesday, 24 November 2010 10:57 Written by rslcpol Wednesday, 24 November 2010 10:57
From Roanoke.com:
Bill Stanley, a Franklin County attorney and Republican activist, won his party’s nomination Tuesday for the state Senate seat that will be vacated by U.S. representative-elect Robert Hurt, R-Chatham.
Stanley topped five GOP candidates to win a districtwide canvass and will be on the ballot for the Jan. 11 special election. Hank Davis, chairman of the Pittsylvania County Board of Supervisors, is the Democratic nominee. The winner of the special election will complete the remaining year of Hurt’s Senate term.
Hurt was elected to Congress on Nov. 2, defeating incumbent Democrat Tom Perriello of Albemarle County.
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New Oklahoma House Speaker Ready to Lead
Last Updated on Tuesday, 23 November 2010 02:38 Written by rslcpol Tuesday, 23 November 2010 02:38
The next House Speaker Kris Steele won’t be following the Washington DC model.
He helped bring credibility back to the speaker’s office after the short tenure of Lance Cargill, whose ambition was evident from the start and, for many, was off-putting. Tax troubles ultimately short-circuited Cargill’s speakership shortly before the 2008 session, but his fundraising practices and other issues contributed to his fall.
Benge brought valuable experience on the fiscal side, having served as chairman of the House Appropriations and Budget Committee for three sessions before becoming speaker. He also made it known right away that he would entertain Democrats’ ideas — something that had not happened much during the first three years of GOP control in the House.
“I always felt like he had an open door,” said Rep. Danny Morgan, D-Prague, leader of House Democrats during Benge’s time as speaker. “If you had an issue, you could certainly request time to visit with him about it.”
Steele, R-Shawnee, who will have an even greater GOP majority, has indicated he will give Democrats a fair shake and he should. Lack of respect for the other side is one of the real problems today in Washington, D.C. A little civility and cooperation can go a long way, particularly given the fiscal challenges that continue in our state.
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Kansas House Leader will fill Senate Term
Last Updated on Tuesday, 23 November 2010 02:06 Written by rslcpol Tuesday, 23 November 2010 02:06
From kansascitystar.com:
Ray Merrick, one of the top Republican leaders of the Kansas House, will head to the state Senate to fill an open seat.
Republicans in southern Johnson County on Monday night picked Merrick to fill out the term of state Sen. Jeff Colyer that expires in 2012. Colyer, an Overland Park Republican, represented the 37th Senate District. He resigned this month after being elected lieutenant governor.
Merrick, of Stilwell, served as House Majority Leader for four years. Republican leaders in his House district will appoint a new representative. It will be up to House Republican lawmakers to select a new Majority Leader. The leader is the No. 2 House lawmaker after the Speaker and helps controls the flow of bills, committee assignments and the legislative agenda.
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At Least 11 Democrats have Flipped to Republican Since Election Day
Last Updated on Tuesday, 23 November 2010 10:14 Written by rslcpol Tuesday, 23 November 2010 10:14
Democrats’ woes continue. So far, they’ve lost lawmakers in Georgia, Maine, Alabama, and Louisiana.
From National Review Online:
In Georgia: “The final shoes from the Nov. 2 election in Georgia may have just dropped. This has arrived from the office of House Speaker David Ralston, R-Blue Ridge: State Representatives Ellis Black and Amy Carter today announced that they are joining the House Republican Caucus and resigning from the House Democratic Caucus.” Earlier, “In the past week, Reps. Alan Powell of Hartwell, Bob Hanner of Parrott and Gerald Greene of Cuthbert have all left the Democrats for the Republicans.”
In Maine: “A Democratic legislator from Aroostook County has announced that he has switched his affiliation to the Republican Party. Michael Willette of Presque Isle, who was elected to a second term in the Legislature on Nov. 2 as a Democrat, told the Bangor Daily News on Friday that he has labored over his decision to switch since he couldn’t convince himself to support a tax reform proposal earlier this year that was supported almost exclusively by Democrats.”
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TN: GOP House Speaker Nominee to Focus on Jobs
Last Updated on Monday, 22 November 2010 05:12 Written by rslcpol Monday, 22 November 2010 02:53
The Republican nominee for House Speaker, Representative Beth Harwell, talks Jobs.
From Knoxnews.com:
The Republican nominee for Tennessee House speaker said today that job creation tops her agenda and that she has full support from incoming freshmen with strong conservative views.
Beth Harwell of Nashville met with reporters and fielded questions about her expectations for the upcoming session.
The 53-year-old would become Tennessee’s first female speaker if elected by full membership of the lower chamber in January, which appears all but certain given the GOP’s 64-34 advantage and state party bylaws that allow for the expulsion of Republican members who don’t support the nominee.
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AL: Party Switchers give Republicans Super Majority in House
Last Updated on Monday, 22 November 2010 02:52 Written by rslcpol Monday, 22 November 2010 02:52
From DecaturDaily.com:
When four Democrats announced Monday they were switching to the Republican Party, the move also signaled that Republicans can pass any bill they want and Democrats can’t stop them.
The reason is that the party switch means the House has 66 Republicans, a “supermajority” that gives them the votes needed to pass or block any legislation they want. With Democratic Party ranks reduced to 39 in the House, their numbers are too small to block bills or pass their own if all Republicans vote together.
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GOP Won More than Seats in Congress
Last Updated on Monday, 22 November 2010 02:43 Written by rslcpol Monday, 22 November 2010 02:43
From SunSentinel.com:
Media attention has focused mainly on the slam-dunk GOP congressional victories, but the more important results in the long run may involve what happened in state races.
The GOP registered a net gain of 680 legislative seats nationwide, with seven of them coming in Florida. Before Nov. 2, Democrats controlled 27 legislatures to 14 for Republicans. The remainder were split between the two parties, save for nonpartisan Nebraska, which has a unicameral legislature. The election nearly flipped those totals, with Republicans now in complete control of 25 legislatures and Democrats, 16.
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Iowa State Senate Recount to Resume
Last Updated on Monday, 22 November 2010 01:50 Written by rslcpol Monday, 22 November 2010 01:50
From DesMoinesRegister.com:
A recount in the race between Republican Andrew Naeve and Democrat Tod Bowman will resume Wednesday in one of the three counties in the Iowa Senate district after it was delayed this week by 11 misplaced absentee ballots.
The incident in Dubuque County happened after the recount board this week found they were 11 ballots short, said Tom O’Neill, deputy commissioner. The 11 ballots were found. The board will reconvene on Wednesday, he said.
Counts in Jackson County will resume tomorrow while a count in Clinton will be Monday, said Ben Foecke, communications director for the Iowa Senate Majority Fund.
The total vote total on election night was 9,960 for Bowman and 9,922 for Naeve.
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VA GOP Set to make State Senate Nominee Pick
Last Updated on Monday, 22 November 2010 01:49 Written by rslcpol Monday, 22 November 2010 01:49
From Richmond Times-Dispatch:
Just three weeks after state Sen. Robert Hurt, R-Pittsylvania, was elected to Congress, Republicans will nominate a candidate to replace him in the General Assembly.
But it’s unclear how many people are paying attention to the truncated campaign and how many will vote in tomorrow’s 19th District-wide canvass, or firehouse primary, to choose the Republican nominee. The winner will face Democrat Hank Davis of Pittsylvania County in a Jan. 11 special election.
With the congressional election barely in the rearview mirror and with the Thanksgiving holiday approaching, some of the six Republican candidates for Hurt’s seat have had difficulty persuading prospective voters to participate in the canvass.
“It really is disappointing because a lot of people are going to be away,” said Brenda Bowman of Pittsylvania, who is running for Hurt’s seat. “It’s just a matter of who can get the most people to come out.”
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California Begins New Era in Redistricting
Last Updated on Friday, 19 November 2010 02:12 Written by rslcpol Friday, 19 November 2010 02:12
From the LA Times:
Reporting from Sacramento — A handful of everyday Californians were chosen Thursday to tackle the politically incendiary task of redrawing the state’s voting districts — a job that voters decided to take away from political insiders.
A bookstore owner from Yolo County, a retired engineer from Claremont, an insurance agent from San Gabriel and an attorney from Norco are among those who will determine how legislative districts are drawn as part of an experiment that promises to drastically change the state’s political landscape.
Until now, the boundaries of legislative and congressional districts were drawn every 10 years by state legislators in a process that critics said was often skewed for partisan advantage or to protect incumbents. Many officeholders have been able to skate from election to election without much in the way of serious competition.
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