Category Archives: Tennessee Federal Elections

Going through withdrawals

Posted on by
Reply

I’ve been filling out the voter guide pages, and have noticed that some names that were expected to show up on the list of qualified candidates for August ended up not being there. Here are a few of them:

Fall of the Marceauxviet Union

The more famous Basil Marceaux’s scion had pulled a petition in the newly combined 28th House District, after having run against Rep. JoAnne Favors in what was the 29th a couple of cycles ago. However, his name was not in the final list. Rest assured: Basil the Elder is in the race, and will face incumbent Rep. Richard Floyd in the Republican primary in District 27.

Over the hills and far away

Rep. Gary Moore decided rather at the last minute not to seek re-election to the 50th House District seat. Nashville-Davidson Metro Councilmember Bo Mitchell is in as a Democratic Party pinch hitter. Three Republicans will vie for their party’s nomination.

Breeding grounds

The only Democratic Party candidate to file for the new 89th House District has had her residency questioned, and some view this with suspicion.

What is love?

Rep. G.A. Hardaway, whose 92nd District was moved to Marshall County (et al.), actually qualified as a primary challenger to Rep. Mike Kernell in the 93rd. But he had pulled petitions for several districts, so we were kind of hoping he’d show up more than once in the list. Which district is Roxbury Street in, anyway?

The indomitable Lady J

Jean Howard-Hill not only failed to return her qualifying petition for the U.S. House 3rd District seat, she sent a defiant press release stating her intent to add “Independent” and “write-in” (along with “feisty”) to the list of adjectives with which she distinguishes her Republican-ness.

Candidates who qualified have until this Thursday to change their minds. If any do, or if any other news pops up, this site will be updated.

Americans Elect to seek ballot access in Tennessee

Posted on by
Reply

The group that is seeking to offer a third, nonpartisan/bipartisan choice in all 50 states for the 2012 presidential election will file its petition tomorrow to be listed on Tennessee ballots. A partial press release follows:

On Thursday morning, Americans Elect Tennessee delegate volunteers Ronn Huff and Chris Farrar will file the Americans Elect petition with the Tennessee Elections Division for a line on the ballot for the 2012 presidential election. Americans Elect collected the signatures of 72,662 voters in Tennessee – far surpassing the state requirement of 40,039 – in support of more choice on the ballot this November.

Volunteers Huff and Farrar, a Democrat and Republican, respectively, are enthusiastic that a fundamental change to the nominating system will open up the political process in Tennessee and across the country, giving voters the chance to elect leaders who represent people, not parties.

Your ticket for Super Tuesday

Posted on by
Reply

What is on the ballot tomorrow? I’m using a Hamilton County ballot in Commission District Three for the most detail. The only sections that will be the same statewide are the presidential candidates and the GOP at-large delegates.

Beyond that, variations occur by congressional district (for GOP delegates) and by county. I know Anderson County is electing a mayor this year, and there are several judicial elections in Davidson County. Check with your county election commission. Here are the candidates: Continue reading →

I can’t derive 55

Posted on by
Reply

Here’s the latest chapter in the quest for understanding the GOP convention delegate selection process in Tennessee. State party chair Chris Devaney reads some of the relevant text in this video.

So let’s test that against a recently posited method of picking delegates if one were a Rick Santorum supporter. The strategy for choosing fourteen at-large delegates went like this: select all ten of those pledged to Rick Perry, and then select the four uncommitted delegate candidates.

So, according to the last couple of slides in the video, both Rick Perry and “Uncommitted” would have to do well in the preferential primary, so that each would get allotted delegates to actually attend the convention. See, just because you vote for a delegate candidate, based on that candidate’s explicit (or assumed or hoped) convention intentions, doesn’t mean that candidate gets to go to the convention, even if he or she wins a high number of votes in the state or district.

The math hinges on the preferential primary outcome. It is not likely that either Rick Perry or “Uncommitted” will win a high percentage of the primary vote; and therefore it is unlikely that the cadre of convention attendees will be uncommitted or Perry delegates who’d then be released.

What does this mean for the Santorum voter? Well, you’d have to hope your candidate does very well in the preferential primary, because that would force the State Executive Committee to work out how to apportion the 55 convention delegates to reflect the outcome. I’m still not exactly sure how that process would work. Perhaps I’ll get a chance to attend the SEC meeting and report on the proceedings.

But we have to get through Super Tuesday first.