TennesseeTicket.com

August 19, 2008

So it's Hillary?

A commenter on abcnews.com's Political Radar, after U.S. Sen. Joe Biden tells media stalkers that he's "not the guy":

Why would Obama agree to let HRC have a roll call vote that would derail his convention? He wouldn't. He knows it will never happen. Why not? [...] It's looking pretty obvious now, isn't it? Maybe he's a bit more savvy, and has a bit more killer instinct, than we thought! My prediction: Bill speaks on Tuesday night, and HRC goes on Wednesday.

I can't say that the part in bold has not crossed my mind.

But wait -- it's Kaine, isn't it? Clinton? Biden? Bayh? Reed? Sebelius? Richardson? Someone we're forgetting? Wasn't it supposed to be Obama/Bredesen at some point?

How's this for an idea? Let's all (including me) just settle down and wait for the campaign's announcement.

(HT: Instapundit)

Posted by joe lance in Presidential Elections at 8:37 PM | Comments (0)

August 18, 2008

Insider update on VP pick

A fairly well-placed source seemed to indicate tonight that recent buzz surrounding U.S. Senator Joe Biden of Delaware as a potential choice for Barack Obama's Veep nominee may, in fact, mean something.

Of course, everyone's got an opinion about whom will be chosen as each candidate's running-mate.

What's your prediction?

Posted by joe lance in Political News & Presidential Elections at 11:20 PM | Comments (2)

Election qualifying deadline notice

The November 4, 2008 general election has been in sight for a very, very long time for a few candidates for President and their associates. This week marks a milestone in the process for down-ticket races being decided on that same day.

So far there are three declared candidates for the Chattanooga City Council seat vacated earlier this year. Russell Gilbert has qualified already. Election Commission member Joe Rowe has resigned his post this morning and announced his intention to run; and District 5 County School Board member Jeffrey Wilson has also picked up papers. Those papers are due by Thursday, August 21, at noon: each candidate must present a completed qualifying petition bearing the signatures of twenty-five (25) registered voters who reside in the district, plus a campaign treasurer declaration. Municipal elections are nonpartisan, so there will be no primary round.

While the state's Democrats and Republicans held their primary elections on August 7, independent candidates for the state House and Senate also have until noon on Thursday to complete and return qualifying forms. Just a reminder: to my knowledge, Representatives Gerald McCormick (R-26), Richard Floyd (R-27), Tommie Brown (D-28), Vince Dean (R-30), and Jim Cobb (R-31) have no opposition on the November ballot at this point. If you live in one of these districts and feel that you or someone you know could offer voters a viable alternative to the incumbent, then there are still a few days left to make that happen--but you'd better hurry!

I'm not certain whether the August 21 deadline includes independent candidates for Congress as well. I confirmed the deadline for the state legislative races with elections administrator Bud Knowles a couple of weeks ago, but we didn't have a lot of time to chat. Clarification from readers is most welcome.

In any case, we will know the full slate of candidates for the District 5 city council election by Friday.

Posted by joe lance in Chattanooga City Elections & State House Elections & State Senate Elections at 12:10 PM | Comments (1)

August 14, 2008

Cross-dressing at the polling place

There's been a lot of talk lately in the state blogosphere about so-called "crossover voting." Here's why: U.S. Rep. David Davis, of Tennessee's 1st Congressional District, narrowly lost last Thursday to former Johnson City mayor Phil Roe in the GOP primary; and Davis and his supporters are alleging that a number of Democrats engaged in a concerted effort to cause Roe to win.

Tennessee is among several states where voters do not register with a party affiliation, and where primary elections are open to any registered voter who shows up and declares, at the polling place, an affinity for a particular party. Therefore, it is possible for a person, who might have voted for Democrats in the past, to vote in a Republican primary; and vice-versa. And it happens all the time, for a variety of reasons.

Read more..

Posted by joe lance in Elections at 11:22 PM | Comments (1)

August 12, 2008

Bulletin: Tennessee Politics Blog going offline

Someone is taking a chainsaw to the "Groves of comprehensibility":*

After more than two years of reporting daily on Tennessee politics, I will be closing Tennessee Politics Blog.[...]

This venture has been both a fun and sobering exercise at times. I want to thank you my readers, especially the great people I have met over the years because of this venture. I thank you for taking the time to read this blog over the past two years and I thank you for your friendship.

TPB's daily handpicked nuggets of the best political news for our state will be sorely missed. Yes, there are plenty of other good bloggers out there covering the same stories, but no one does it exactly like he has.

All the best in whatever comes next for you, Adam.

*The source of that phrase cannot be located via Google search, though I remember seeing it at A.C. Kleinheider's old place. I don't recall where he got it, though.

Posted by joe lance in About Blogs at 10:22 AM | Comments (0)