The Kansas legislature, meeting over the weekend of April 28-29, dropped the appropriation for a presidential primary in 2008, so the major parties will use caucuses instead of a primary. The outcome is a disappointment to U.S. Senator Sam Brownback, who is from Kansas and who is seeking the Republican presidential nomination. If Kansas had decided to hold a presidential primary, it would have been on February 5.
The Kansas legislature, meeting over the weekend of April 28-29, dropped the appropriation for a presidential primary in 2008, so the major parties will use caucuses instead of a primary. The outcome is a disappointment to U.S. Senator Sam Brownback, who is from Kansas and who is seeking the Republican presidential nomination. If Kansas had decided to hold a presidential primary, it would have been on February 5.
On April 26, New York Governor Eliot Spitzer announced a package of bills to improve election laws. Included in the package are proposals to “reduce the number of signatures required for designating and nominating petitions, provide automatic ballot access for presidential candidates in primaries who qualify for federal matching funds, and eliminate restrictive and unnecessary petition requirements.”
The proposal covers access for the general election as well as the primary. The proposal for presidential primaries is already policy in New York for the Republican presidential primary, but not the Democratic presidential primary. Thanks to Bill Van Allen for this news.
On Sunday, April 29, the State Central Committee of the Democratic Party of Washington state voted to use a caucus to choose delegates to the national convention. The caucus will be on February 9, 2008. This means that Washington state’s presidential primary, at least for the Democrats, will be just a “beauty contest” with no real power. That primary is now set for May, although a committee of state officials has the power to move the date.
The Democratic Party’s decision makes it likely that the Washington Republicans will now also opt for caucuses. Washington Republicans worry that if the Democratic presidential primary is meaningless, large numbers of Democrats would vote in the Republican presidential primary, possibly to make mischief. Washington state does not have registration by party.
The Montana legislature adjourned for the year without passing any bill to reform who pays, when a recount is held. In 2004, the official election returns showed that Constitution Party nominee Rick Jore had tied with the Democratic nominee for a seat in the State House of Representatives. Under Montana law, a tie meant that the Governor could appoint someone, and he appointed Jore. But Jore’s Democratic opponent asked for a recount. That meant a court got involved. The lower court upheld the tie vote, but the State Supreme Court reversed and said Jore had lost the election. Under the law, Jore then had to pay for his opponent’s lawyers. He was billed $18,000, even though he had never sued anyone. SB 117, to place the burden of a recount on the government, did not pass this year. Now part of Jore’s legislative salary has been garnished, although most of the bill remains unpaid. Jore has refused contributions from his friends and supporters to help pay the bill, and he won’t cooperate in paying off the remainder, because he feels the bill is unjust.
