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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Bob Beauprez came out on top in the Colorado GOP gubernatorial primary on Tuesday. The former congressman accepted his party’s nomination after besting fellow candidates Tom Tancredo, Scott Gessler, and Mike Kopp in a four-way race.

GOP strategists worried a Tancredo tea-party victory would hurt the Republican ticket in November and seem satisfied with the establishment win. All four GOP primary candidates intend to work as a team to support the new Republican nominee as he battles to unseat Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper.

Republicans have chosen former Attorney General Henry McMaster as the party’s nominee for lieutenant governor. McMaster easily won the runoff against businessman Mike Campbell, the son of late Republican Gov. Carroll Campbell, despite campaign support from former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.

The win is also a positive for former Sen. Rick Santorum, who campaigned for McMaster in the closing days before the runoff.

McMaster will face Democrat state Rep. Bakari Sellers in the November general election.

In a tight race Tuesday, Mississippi Sen. Thad Cochran secured the GOP Senate nomination with 50.8 percent of the vote. Cochran battled tea party candidate Chris McDaniel in a federal runoff after neither candidate carried enough votes in the June 3 primary to capture the nomination.

Although McDaniel’s campaign has not made a decision whether to challenge the results, Cochran’s win ends a somewhat bizarre and expensive political battle between the two candidates.

In November, Cochran will face Democrat Travis Childers; if elected, Cochran will serve a seventh consecutive Senate term.

Lobbying

“From Milwaukee to Milan, Uber’s Battles Are Mostly Local” by Tom Curry in Roll Call.

Texas: “State regulators set for conservative activist’s lobbying trial” by David Saleh Rauf in the Houston Chronicle.

Campaign Finance

“Senate Dems float campaign finance bill” by Byron Tau in Politico.

“Democrats Reintroduce DISCLOSE Act” by Eliza Newlin Carney in Roll Call.

“Kenneth Vogel on Campaign Finance” video on C-SPAN.

“Millionaires Keep Shoveling Money Into Politics” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call.

“California Lawmakers Back Amendment Overturning Citizens United” by Mollie Reilly in The Huffington Post.

North Carolina: “House OKs bill allowing more electronic filings” by The Associated Press in WWAY ABC News.

Wisconsin: “State lawmakers collect most money from outside spenders” by Adam Rodewald in the Green Bay Press Gazette.

Ethics

California: “California Senate panel shelves GOP ethics bill” by Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times.

Elections

“Live election results: June 24” in The Washington Post.

“Election night: Key House primaries” by Steven Shepard, Elizabeth Titus and Tarini Parti in Politico.

Colorado: “2014 Colorado primary election results” on ABC News Denver.

Maryland: “Brown, Hogan win gubernatorial nominations; Democrat Frosh wins attorney general contest” by John Wagner and Jenna Johnson in The Washington Post.

“2014 Maryland Primary Election results” on WBAL TV News.

Mississippi: “Inside the Thad Cochran comeback” by Alexander Burns in Politico.

New York: “Charles Rangel leads; Adriano Espaillat won’t concede” by A;ex Isenstadt in Politico.

New York: “Tea Party doesn’t sway New York GOP voters in primary” by David Robinson in the Albany Business Review.

Oklahoma: “Tuesday’s Election Results” in Tulsa World.

Government Tech and Social Media

“NCSL Launches Elections Administration Research Database” by Michael D. Hernandez on The NCSL Blog.

Lobbying

“K Street powerhouse loses founding partner” by Megan R. Wilson in The Hill.

“Is Akin Gump the New King of K Street?” by Marisa M. Kashino in the Washingtonian.

“Lobbyists want spot on Team Scalise” by Megan R. Wilson in The Hill.

“K Street hits the jackpot with casino magnate” by Julian Hattem in The Hill.

Campaign Finance

“Study Examines Role Of Citizens United Ruling On Politics” by Jim Letizia on WCBE.

“National Party Committees Report May Financial Figures” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call.

Alaska: “APOC staff says Anchorage mayor broke campaign finance law, proposes $187.50 fine” by Nathaniel Herz in the Anchorage Daily News.

Oklahoma: “Election Records: ‘Dark-Money,’ Campaign Groups Have Close Connections” by Oklahoma Watch & Clifton Adcock in KGOU.

Ethics

“‘Ms. Ethics’ Carol Dixon Remembered Fondly (Video)” by Colin Diersing in Roll Call.

“Don Young Must Repay $59K for Improper Trips/Gifts” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call.

Florida: “New Miami-Dade task force to target state public corruption” by David Ovalle in the Miami Herald.

Georgia: “Ethics commission to get new member” by Aaron Gould Sheinin in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Virginia: “Virginia governor Terry McAuliffe vetoes funds for ethics commission” by Rachel Weiner in The Washington Post.

Wisconsin: “Report: Scott Walker Accused of Campaign Finance ‘Criminal Scheme’” by Mark Murray in NBC News.

Wisconsin: “Scott Walker and campaign-finance law: Just how dodgy?” in The Economist.

Elections

“Democrats Playing Defense in 2014 State Legislative Races” by Louis Jacobson in Governing.

Oklahoma: “Is Oklahoma Senate headed for a runoff?” by Cameron Joseph in The Hill.

Government Tech and Social Media

“How the White House’s We the People E-Petition Site Became a Virtual Ghost-Town” by Dave Karpf in TechPresident.

“Awareness, Tech Projects are Top Crowdsourced Goals in Government, Study Says” in Government Technology.

EU: “Lobbyists increasingly look online to influence EU policy” in Euractiv.

A June 24 federal runoff has been scheduled for the Mississippi Republican Senate primary. Incumbent Sen. Thad Cochran and state Sen. Chris McDaniel will battle again in a tea party vs. establishment showdown. With 49 and 49.5 percent respectively, neither candidate earned enough of the June 3 vote to secure the party nomination.

McDaniel, running on a platform of change, hopes to unseat the longtime incumbent. Cochran’s congressional tenure began in 1972; he then served three consecutive terms in the House and six consecutive terms in the Senate.

Lobbying

“Under Contract” in The Hill.

“MPAA’s Michael O’Leary steps down – Big 12 hires a lobbying firm” by Byron Tau in Politico.

Missouri: “Lobbyists’ gifts to Missouri lawmakers exceed $500,000” by Angela Mueller in the St. Louis Business Journal.

Campaign Finance

“BitPay, CoinVox Team Up to Allow Politicians to Accept Bitcoin” by Eric Calouro in NewsBTC.

Delaware: “Campaign finance reform bills languish in legislature” by Jonathan Starkey in The News Journal.

Massachusetts: “Bill would increase PAC disclosures” by Frank Phillips in the Boston Globe.

New York: “Blame Game After Push to Revamp Campaign Financing Ends” by Mike Vilensky in The Wall Street Journal.

North Carolina: “N.C. election laws ‘stuck in pre-computer age’” by Jim Morrill in the Charlotte Observer.

Vermont: “Advocacy group turns sights to money in politics” by Neal P. Goswami in the Rutland Herald.

Ethics

“Prosecutor asks court: Reinstate DeLay convictions” by Juan A. Lozano (Associated Press) in the Houston Chronicle.

“Grand Jury Probes Capitol Knowledge & Stock Trading” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call.

Hawaii: “Ethics Commission Tells Lawmakers How They Should Spend Allowances” by Nathan Eagle in the Honolulu Civil Beat.

Elections

New York: “This is what happens when a campaign finance scholar runs for governor” by Max Ehrenfreund in The Washington Post.

Wisconsin: “Jon Erpenbach drops appeal in email open records case” in the Journal Sentinel.

State Legislatures

South Carolina: “SC House OKs $12,000 pay raise for lawmakers, overriding Gov. Haley’s veto” by Cassie Cope in The State.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor suffered a bruising primary defeat by tea party challenger Dave Brat on June 10.

Strategists say Cantor’s 11 percentage point loss was due to a lack of field effort, fueled by overconfidence in his path to victory. Many Republicans felt Cantor had become too removed from his district, mired in Washington infighting and too focused on the national stage.

According to historians, no House leader of Cantor’s rank has ever been defeated in a primary.

Lobbying

“Lobbying World” in The Hill.

“Sallie Mae spin-off registers to lobby” by Megan R. Wilson in The Hill.

“Amplifyd: Crowd-Sourced Lobbying Launches Website” by Annie Spiegelman in The Huffington Post.

“Politico: Wall Street Loses an Ally With Cantor’s Defeat” by Drew MacKenzie in Newsmax.

North Carolina: “Senate honors longtime lawmaker, lobbyist Alley” by Tara Jeffries in WRAL.

Campaign Finance

“Campaign Finance Hearings Showcase Extremes | Rules of the Game” by Eliza Newlin Carney in Roll Call.

“A Reporter Crashes the Super PAC Party” by Walter Shapiro in the Brennan Center for Justice Blog.

“Bitcoin bulks up lobbying power” by Julian Hattem in The Hill.

Connecticut: “Democratic governors lose challenge to Connecticut campaign finance law” by Nate Raymond in Reuters.

Kansas: “Panel looking into ethics of Facebook post seeking contributions to Schodorf campaign” by Brian Lowry in The Wichita Eagle.

North Carolina: “Legislators call for constitutional convention” in The Times-News.

Ohio: “Former executive testifies in campaign finance trial of northeast Ohio businessman” by The Associated Press in The Republic.

Elections

“5 takeaways from Eric Cantor shocker” by James Hohmann in Politico.