August 26, 2014 •
Tuesday Lobbying and Campaign Finance News Update
Lobbying “GOP staffers seek to cash in as odds grow of Senate takeover” by Megan R. Wilson in The Hill. “How the Lobbying Top Tier explains an influence paradox” by Lee Drutman, Matt Grossmann, and Tim LaPira in the Sunlight […]
Lobbying
“GOP staffers seek to cash in as odds grow of Senate takeover” by Megan R. Wilson in The Hill.
“How the Lobbying Top Tier explains an influence paradox” by Lee Drutman, Matt Grossmann, and Tim LaPira in the Sunlight Foundation Blog.
Massachusetts: “Martha Coakley owns up to lobbyist-held fundraiser” by Chris Cassidy in the Boston Herald.
Campaign Finance
“Election Panel Enacts Policies by Not Acting” by Nick Confessore in The New York Times.
“Joe Biden’s secret fundraisers” by Edward-Isaac Dovere and Tarini Parti in Politico.
“The PAC to End All PACs Is a Farce” by Walter Shapiro in Politico Magazine.
“Millennial PAC tries to inject youth, diversity into graying legislatures” by Aliyah Frumin in MSNBC.
Alabama: “Did Alabama state candidates violate law by taking money from Congressman Bonner’s campaign?” by Brenda Kirby in AL.com.
Alabama: “Alabama Attorney General’s office drops criminal charges against Lowell Barron” by Paul Gattis in AL.com.
Tennessee: “State auditing Brenda Radford’s campaign finance report” by Stephanie Ingersoll in The Leaf-Chronicle.
Ethics
Florida: “Scott campaign, GOP have paid $227K for use of jet” by Steve Bousquet in the Miami Herald Blog.
Georgia: “Judge hears arguments on call for sanctions in ethics commission saga” by Aaron Gould Sheinin in The Atlanta Journal Constitution.
Elections
“Ten weeks out from Election Day, is a Republican wave coming?” by Domenico Montanaro, Terence Burlij, Rachel Wellford and Simone Pathe in PBS NewsHour.
Arizona: “Arizona primary election: 5 key races to watch” by Alia Beard Rau in The Republic.
Political Advertising
“The 2014 digital ad juggernaut” by Darren Samuelsohn in Politico.
“New regs for Wednesday: TV ads, military health plans, truck drivers’” by Tim Devaney in The Hill.
“Political TV ads will soon know who you are” by Jon Fingas in Engadget.
August 21, 2014 •
Thursday News Roundup
Lobbying Alabama: “Campaign booster for Alabama Gov. Bentley was lobbyist for Corizon, prison health care contractor targeted in lawsuit” by Casey Toner in The Birmingham News. Canada: “Joe Clark’s new job: Lobbying the federal government” by Glen McGregor in the National […]
Lobbying
Alabama: “Campaign booster for Alabama Gov. Bentley was lobbyist for Corizon, prison health care contractor targeted in lawsuit” by Casey Toner in The Birmingham News.
Canada: “Joe Clark’s new job: Lobbying the federal government” by Glen McGregor in the National Post.
Campaign Finance
Florida: “David Rivera named co-conspirator as friend pleads guilty in campaign-finance case” by Marc Caputo, Jay Weaver and Patricia Mazzei in the Miami Herald.
Montana: “Out-of-state donors fund Daines’ Senate campaign” by The Associated Press in the Independent Record.
Vermont: “Vermont Public Money Gives Progressive Fundraising Edge” by Dave Gram (Associated Press) in Valley News.
Ethics
New York: “N.Y. poll: Government corruption a problem” by Jonathan Topaz in Politico.
Rhode Island: “Ethics Commission to probe lawmaker’s beach bid” by The Associated Press in The Washington Times.
Elections
“Top 5 Races to Watch in the Mid-Atlantic” by Nathan L. Gonzales in Roll Call.
Government Tech and Social Media
“Los Angeles Undertakes Massive Website Relaunch with Drupal” by Jason Shueh in Government Tech.
Redistricting
Florida: “Florida’s New Redistricting Plan: Round Two” by Linda Killian in The Wall Street Journal.
August 19, 2014 •
Tuesday Lobbying and Campaign Finance News Update
Lobbying “Spending on lobbying is actually falling. Or is it?” by Alexander Becker in The Washington Post. “Researchers Try To Quantify The Value Of Lobbying” by Michael Ide in Value Walk. Campaign Finance “DCCC outraises NRCC by $3.5M in July” […]
Lobbying
“Spending on lobbying is actually falling. Or is it?” by Alexander Becker in The Washington Post.
“Researchers Try To Quantify The Value Of Lobbying” by Michael Ide in Value Walk.
Campaign Finance
“DCCC outraises NRCC by $3.5M in July” by Alexandra Jaffe in The Hill.
Arizona: “Scottsdale campaign-finance violation likely, city says” by Beth Duckett in The Republic.
California: “California lawmakers pass 3 campaign reform bills” by The Associated Press in the News & Observer.
Missouri: “Missouri Democratic group to pay $10K ethics fine” by The Associated Press in the News & Observer.
Ethics
“House Ethics panel probing Rep. Petri” by Mario Trujillo in The Hill.
“The Grimes family discount” by Manu Raju in Politico.
Florida: “Update: Group blasts city for challenging ethics initiative” by Jeff Burlew in the Tallahassee Democrat.
Oklahoma: “Ethics Commission Seeks Input Regarding Financial Disclosure Availability” on KGOU.
Washington: “Washington Legislative Ethics Panel To Consider Free-Meals Rule” by Austin Jenkins on KPLU.
Elections
“Revised Election Schedule Submitted in Florida Map Case” by Bridget Bowman in Roll Call.
Government Tech and Social Media
“Local Governments Open Data with Performance Dashboard” by Colin Wood in Government Technology.
“Report Ranks Top Open Data States” by Colin Wood in Government Technology.
August 14, 2014 •
Wisconsin Burke to Face Gov. Walker in November
Democrat Mary Burke will face Republican Gov. Scott Walker in the November general election. Burke, a former Trek Bicycle executive and state commerce secretary, is the first woman to be nominated by a major party for governor in Wisconsin. A […]
Democrat Mary Burke will face Republican Gov. Scott Walker in the November general election.
Burke, a former Trek Bicycle executive and state commerce secretary, is the first woman to be nominated by a major party for governor in Wisconsin.
A recent Marquette University Law School poll found women support Burke by a 48 to 41 percent margin, while men support Walker 52 to 42 percent.
August 5, 2014 •
Special Election Called for NC Judicial Races
A special election will be held for three state judicial seats recently vacated by sitting judges. The state Board of Elections set the special election to coincide with the general election on November 4, 2014. The seats up for election […]
A special election will be held for three state judicial seats recently vacated by sitting judges. The state Board of Elections set the special election to coincide with the general election on November 4, 2014.
The seats up for election are for the Court of Appeals, the Superior Court in Mecklenburg County, and the Superior Court in Alamance County.
Judicial races in North Carolina are nonpartisan, statewide races, where all judicial candidates appear on the statewide ballot with no party affiliation. Each race is determined by a plurality of votes.
Candidates must file with the Board of Elections by noon on August 8, 2014, in order to appear on the special election ballot.
July 23, 2014 •
Georgia Purdue Will Face Nunn in November
David Perdue has won the Republican runoff primary for Senate by edging past Rep. Jack Kingston with less than 51 percent of the vote. Purdue, a businessman and nephew of the popular former Gov. Sonny Perdue, will face Democrat Michelle […]
David Perdue has won the Republican runoff primary for Senate by edging past Rep. Jack Kingston with less than 51 percent of the vote.
Purdue, a businessman and nephew of the popular former Gov. Sonny Perdue, will face Democrat Michelle Nunn in the November general election to fill the seat of retiring Republican Sen. Saxby Chambliss.
Neither Nunn nor Perdue has ever been elected to public office.
July 22, 2014 •
Special Election Announced for Texas State Senate District 28 Seat
Today Texas Gov. Perry announced a special election will be held September 9, 2014, for the State Senate District 28 seat. State Sen. Robert Duncan resigned on July 3, 2014, in order to serve as chancellor of the Texas Tech […]
Today Texas Gov. Perry announced a special election will be held September 9, 2014, for the State Senate District 28 seat.
State Sen. Robert Duncan resigned on July 3, 2014, in order to serve as chancellor of the Texas Tech University System. The winner of the election will serve out the unexpired term of Duncan, which expires in 2017.
Duncan has served in both the state House and the Senate since 1993.
July 15, 2014 •
Tuesday Lobbying and Campaign Finance News Update
Lobbying “Accepting Resumes! AGRP Executive Director Position” from the Association of Government Relations Professionals Blog. “Bottom Line” in The Hill. Rhode Island: “GOP Candidates Wants Tougher Lobbying and Ethics Law in RI” by Mark Curtis on WLNE TV News. Virginia: […]
Lobbying
“Accepting Resumes! AGRP Executive Director Position” from the Association of Government Relations Professionals Blog.
“Bottom Line” in The Hill.
Rhode Island: “GOP Candidates Wants Tougher Lobbying and Ethics Law in RI” by Mark Curtis on WLNE TV News.
Virginia: “Va. hospital group spends $400,000 on lobbying” by Alan Suderman (Associated Press) on WTOP.
Campaign Finance
“House Democrats to unveil campaign finance amendment” by Lauren French in Politico.
“How to Raise $5 Million Online For Campaign Finance Reform: Why MayDay PAC Succeeded” by Ben Winkler in TechPresident.
“DeMint rakes in Heritage cash” by Alexander Bolton in The Hill.
New York: “Rolling updates: NYC Campaign Finance Board filings” by Celeste Katz on NY Daily News.
Ohio: “Ben Suarez asks federal judge to throw out obstruction of justice conviction or grant new trial” by James F. McCarty in The Plain Dealer.
South Carolina: “House Speaker Harrell uses campaign funds to pay Charleston attorneys” by Jeremy Borden in The Post and Courier.
Ethics
“Partisan Activities of Lerner Co-Worker at FEC” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call.
Elections
North Carolina: “NC voters see runoff primaries in 37 counties” by The Associated Press on WSOC TV.
Redistricting
“Interactive: Understanding congressional redistricting” by The Associated Press in the Wisconsin State Journal.
New Jersey: “Top Assembly Republican wants redistricting do-over” by Matt Friedman in The Star Ledger.
Texas: “Texas accused of purposely excluding minorities in redistricting” by Will Weissert (Associated Press) in The Dallas Morning News.
Texas: “The Source: Texas Redistricting Back In San Antonio Federal Court” by Paul Flahive on Texas Public Radio.
July 9, 2014 •
Special Election to be Called for Florida House District 13
A special election is expected for Florida’s House District 13, a district covering the heart of Jacksonville and its surrounding areas. Incumbent state Rep. Reggie Fullwood was projected to run unopposed, but problems were found with his qualifying papers. Jacksonville […]
A special election is expected for Florida’s House District 13, a district covering the heart of Jacksonville and its surrounding areas. Incumbent state Rep. Reggie Fullwood was projected to run unopposed, but problems were found with his qualifying papers. Jacksonville City Council member Johnny Gaffney now plans to enter the race.
Gov. Rick Scott must determine the date of the special election, although Duval County Supervisor of Elections Jerry Holland projects the primary for the special election to be November 4, 2014. If necessary, a runoff would likely be in December 2014.
July 7, 2014 •
Monday News Roundup
Lobbying “New Bill Relative To Lobbyists and Candidates” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call. “Wall Street braces for gavel hand-off” by Megan R. Wilson in The Hill. “Silicon Valley pins hopes on Obama for immigration win” by Julian Hattem in […]
Lobbying
“New Bill Relative To Lobbyists and Candidates” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call.
“Wall Street braces for gavel hand-off” by Megan R. Wilson in The Hill.
“Silicon Valley pins hopes on Obama for immigration win” by Julian Hattem in The Hill.
“Former Lobbyist Jack Abramoff On Congressional Travel Disclosure” in the Daily Beast.
California: “Who pays the most for California government lobbying in Sacramento? Government” by Ben Baeder in the Los Angeles Daily News.
New York: “Binghamton University ranks second among SUNY schools in spending on lobbying” by Steve Reilly in the Press & Sun-Bulletin.
Pennsylvania: “Interest groups’ lobbying tally tops $500M in Pennsylvania” by Melissa Daniels in the Tribune-Review.
Rhode Island: “Schilling summoned to testify on his alleged lobbying for 38 Studios” by Katherine Gregg in the Providence Journal.
Vermont: “Revolving door: Ramos shifts from senate to lobbying job” by Anne Galloway in VTDigger.
Campaign Finance
“FEC Provides Reminder and Resources for Upcoming Deadline” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call.
“Hobby Lobby Ruling Fuels Amendment Push” by Eliza Newlin Carney in Roll Call.
“Law prof’s super PAC reaches fundraising goal; aim is new campaign-finance system” by Debra Cassens Weiss in ABA Journal.
Arizona: “Most AZ legislative candidates decline public funds” by Becky Pallack in the Arizona Daily Star.
California: “Activists for tougher campaign finance laws arrested at Capitol” by Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times.
Connecticut: “Despite limits, money finds its way to campaigns” by Ken Dixon in Greenwich Time.
Massachusetts: “House quietly approved amendment to help state GOP” by Frank Phillips in The Boston Globe.
New Hampshire: “‘NH Rebellion’ walks for campaign finance overhaul” by The Associated Press in the San Francisco Chronicle.
Ethics
“Ethics Chairman Says Panel Will Reverse Decision on Travel Disclosures” by Matt Fuller in Roll Call.
California: “Support wanes in Sacramento for tough ethics reform following scandal” by Jessica Calefati in the San Jose Mercury News.
Elections
“2014 Senate rankings: Map favors GOP” by James Hohmann in Politico.
State Legislatures
“Where are women winning? In state legislatures.” by Aaron Blake in The Washington Post.
Government Tech and Social Media
Pennsylvania: “Philadelphia Hires New Chief Data Officer” in Government Technology.
July 7, 2014 •
Lawsuit Filed as McDaniel Challenges Cochran’s Runoff Victory
State Sen. Chris McDaniel is questioning the integrity of Mississippi’s GOP Senate primary runoff. McDaniel refuses to concede the election to U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran and claims some election activity was unfair, unethical, and illegal. Evidence suggests hundreds, if not […]
State Sen. Chris McDaniel is questioning the integrity of Mississippi’s GOP Senate primary runoff. McDaniel refuses to concede the election to U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran and claims some election activity was unfair, unethical, and illegal.
Evidence suggests hundreds, if not thousands, of voters crossed party lines between primary and runoff elections. Mississippians who voted in the Democratic primary illegally cast votes in the Republican primary runoff.
State election law experts speculate the election results will stand because it is impossible to assume all the irregular votes went to Cochran. Additionally, a strong public policy interest exists in accepting the finality of the runoff election; questioning the integrity of or redoing elections is a slippery slope.
Nevertheless, a conservative group known as True the Vote filed suit in federal court on Tuesday, July 1, against the Mississippi secretary of state and the Republican Party of Mississippi to challenge the results of the runoff.
June 26, 2014 •
Transgender Woman Advances to Runoff for Oklahoma House District 88
Paula Sophia, the first openly transgender officer in Oklahoma City Police Department history, is vying to become the state’s first openly transgender legislator. Sophia received enough votes in Tuesday’s primary to force a runoff for the Democratic nomination to represent […]
Paula Sophia, the first openly transgender officer in Oklahoma City Police Department history, is vying to become the state’s first openly transgender legislator. Sophia received enough votes in Tuesday’s primary to force a runoff for the Democratic nomination to represent Oklahoma House District 88.
Sophia will face former pastor Jason Dunnington in an August 26 runoff. There is no Republican challenger; the winner will bypass the general election as a member of the state legislature.
June 25, 2014 •
Rangel Likely Winner in NY’s 13th District
Rep. Charlie Rangel has likely defeated challenger state Sen. Adriano Espaillat in a hotly contested Democratic primary for New York’s 13th Congressional District. The district covers parts of New York City, including Harlem and the Bronx. While some news sources […]
Rep. Charlie Rangel has likely defeated challenger state Sen. Adriano Espaillat in a hotly contested Democratic primary for New York’s 13th Congressional District. The district covers parts of New York City, including Harlem and the Bronx.
While some news sources report the race is too close to call, with 100 percent of the precincts reporting, Rangel leads by 1,828 votes. Espaillat has not yet conceded the race because absentee and provisional ballots still remain uncounted. There are 980 valid absentee ballots and an unknown number of provisional ballots, all of which will be counted on July 2, 2014.
There is no Republican challenger for the 13th District seat so a win in the primary guarantees the victor a seat in Congress.
Rangel has served 22 terms in Congress and was once the chairman of the Ways and Means Committee. The veteran congressman has defeated Espaillat once before in the 2012 Democratic primary, winning by less than 1,000 votes.
June 25, 2014 •
Lankford Defeats Shannon in Oklahoma GOP Senate Primary
U.S. Rep. James Lankford defeated former Oklahoma Speaker of the House T.W. Shannon in Tuesday’s GOP Senate primary. In November, Lankford will face the Democratic nominee for the state’s open U.S. Senate seat. The seat became available after GOP Sen. […]
U.S. Rep. James Lankford defeated former Oklahoma Speaker of the House T.W. Shannon in Tuesday’s GOP Senate primary. In November, Lankford will face the Democratic nominee for the state’s open U.S. Senate seat.
The seat became available after GOP Sen. Tom Coburn announced plans to step down with two years remaining on his term due to a recurring cancer battle.
Lankford is expected to win the seat easily in the deep-red state; Republicans hold every statewide office and both state legislative chambers.
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