Two primaries and one election for Alabama legislative races had been set for January 28, but all three were postponed on January 27, due to bad weather. See this story, which says that new dates for the elections have not yet been set. According to the Secretary of State’s web page, the elections have been re-set and will be held February 4.
The daily newspaper of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, the Intelligencer Journal, has this letter to the editor. It chides State Senator Lloyd Smucker, who represents Lancaster, for repeatedly refusing to hold a hearing on SB 195, the bill to improve ballot access for minor party and independent candidates. The bill has been introduced in three sessions of the legislature, but it has never had a hearing. It is in the Senate State Government Committee, chaired by Senator Smucker. Senator Smucker has twice scheduled meetings with supporters of the bill, and then in each case canceled the meeting.
According to this story, Oregon Republican Party leaders will try to persuade the legislature to move the primary from mid-May to an earlier date. Thanks to FrontloadingHQ for the link.
On January 29, Congressman Henry Waxman, a veteran Democrat from southwest Los Angeles County, made a surprise announcement that he won’t run for re-election this year. This news is probably good news for Marianne Williamson, a well-known author who is running in the 33rd district as an independent candidate. Thanks to PoliticalWire for the news.
The Nebraska Senate has been debating how the state should elect presidential electors intermittently, starting on January 27. Currently each of Nebraska’s three U.S. House districts elects its own presidential elector. LB 382, introduced over a year ago, provides for winner-take-all elections for presidential elector, similar to the laws of 48 other states. The bill is sponsored by Senator Charlie Janssen, a Republican.
Senator Ken Haar, a Democrat, has proposed two amendments, which are being debated on January 29. One says that each of Nebraska’s five Public Service Commissioner districts should elect its own presidential elector. This would eliminate the current provision that the two at-large electors be chosen by the statewide vote.
The other Haar amendment provides that the presidential electors should be elected, based on the percentage of the popular vote received by each presidential candidate. If this idea had been in effect in 1992, Ross Perot would have received one electoral vote from Nebraska, Bill Clinton would have received one, and George H. W. Bush would have received three. Thanks to Rick Hasen for the news about the debate on LB 382.
