The New Orleans City Council has voted to call a special election on November 6 in order to fill the recently vacated District E council member’s position. District E council member Jon Johnson had resigned after pleading guilty in federal court to embezzling FEMA funds to finance his 2007 campaign for state senate. In the interim, the vacant seat will be filled by the city council in an upcoming meeting.

The council’s statement on the special election can be read here.

Governor Phil Bryant has set November 6, 2012 as the date of a special election to fill the District 19 senate seat.

The seat was previously held by retired Senator Merle Flowers, who resigned effective July 11, citing a need to spend more time with his family.

Photo of Governor Bryant courtesy of the U.S. Department of Agriculture hosted on Wikipedia.

Crowds gathered along Route 18 in the Montrose area of Summit County Thursday evening to witness President Obama’s tour bus make its way through Northeast Ohio. Eager Democrats and Obama fans filled the street corners, waiting anxiously for the president to pass by their local restaurants, stores and businesses.

Through his “Betting on Ohio” tour, Obama campaigned across the manufacturing belt of Northern Ohio on July 5, visiting the areas where he had received support during his election in 2008.

Obama arrived in Toledo on Thursday, traveling on a black secret-service bus to his first stop in Maumee, Ohio where he visited Wolcott House Museum. His tour took him across Northern Ohio, where he attended an ice cream social at Washington Park in Sandusky, and visited James Day Park in Parma, a suburb of Cleveland.

Obama endorsed his economic policies, presented his resolution to salvage American automakers Chrysler and General Motors, and compared his views to those of his Republican opponent, Mitt Romney.

“Throughout Ohio and Pennsylvania, President Obama will talk about his efforts over the last three years to get our economy back on track, doubling down on American workers by saving the auto industry, investing in manufacturing and bringing jobs back to America,” the Obama campaign said in a statement, according to CNN’s Ashley Killough.

The crowds cheered and waved as Obama’s tour bus passed through Montrose. After residing for the evening at the Double Tree Hotel in Fairlawn, Obama chose an Akron diner for breakfast, indulging in eggs and bacon at Ann’s Place restaurant on South Hawkins Avenue. He continued his tour Friday to Dobbins Elementary in Poland, Ohio, before heading to Pittsburgh.

 
Announcing their decision on the last day of the judicial term, the Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, upheld key parts of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The decision of the Court is already playing a role in the Presidential and congressional elections as both sides look to paint the ruling in their favor.

The ruling was a win for the Obama Administration as the ACA was a major achievement of the President’s first term. The president’s campaign has used the decision to build support and highlight individuals who have been affected by the legislation. However, while the ACA was by and large upheld, the Court ruled that the individual mandate portion of the law is constitutional only as a tax, not as a penalty. A decision that has given fodder to the right to paint the legislation as a tax increase.

To complicate matters for Republicans, aides to former Gov. Mitt Romney came out in a couple of interviews over the last week stating they agreed with the administration that the mandate was in fact a penalty and not a tax putting the campaign at odds with many in the party. Eric Fehrnstrom, advisor to Gov. Romney, said during an interview with the Washington Post, “The governor disagreed with the ruling of the court, he agreed with the dissent that was written by Justice Scalia, that very clearly said that the mandate was not a tax.”

These comments forced Gov. Romney to clarify his position in an interview with CBS News on July 4th, stating, “Well, the Supreme Court has the final word. And their final word is that Obamacare is a tax. So it’s a tax.”

While both campaigns are still working to find the appropriate way to approach the ruling, polling suggests the issue may not be as important or at least not as currently relevant as previously thought. The Pew Research Center released a poll this week showing 45% of respondents either didn’t know what the court had ruled or thought most of the law had been struck down. Furthermore, 63% of people 18-29 years old either thought the law had been struck down or didn’t know.

While it’s almost certain that healthcare will become an issue in the campaign (the house has scheduled a full repeal vote for July 19) both President Obama and Gov. Romney have worked to pivot the focus of the dialogue to jobs and the economy. June employment numbers were released today showing the economy added 80k jobs leaving the unemployment rate at 8.2% for the second straight month.

With the Republican convention less than 2 months away, speculation about Governor Romney’s choice for Vice President continues to grow. A report was released earlier last week that Florida Senator Marco Rubio, thought to be a frontrunner, was not being vetted as a candidate for the ticket. However, Gov. Romney’s campaign quickly rebuffed those rumors, and Gov. Romney himself announced that Rubio was being fully vetted. Other candidates have either withdrawn or effectively removed themselves from consideration, including Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels who this week announced he was accepting the position as President of Purdue University at the completion of his tenure as governor.

While Rubio is still in the running, former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty appears to be the latest frontrunner for the job. Pawlenty staged an unsuccessful run at the presidential nomination and has since been an aggressive Romney surrogate on the trail. Other names on the shortlist include Ohio Senator Rob Portman, who has long held a position at the top of the list, Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan, who submitted his questionnaire to the campaign Friday, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal and South Dakota Senator John Thune.

Other campaign notes:

• This week, the Supreme Court will announce its decision concerning the Affordable Care Act. The court’s ruling will have a definitive impact on the Presidential race with both sides using the decision to encourage their base and shore up support for November. Court announcements will be made at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday and can be found on SCOTUSblog.

• Former Florida Senator George Lemieux (R) has ended his campaign for Florida’s senate seat effectively clearing the way for Rep. Connie Mack (R). Lemieux was appointed to the Senate in 2008 by Gov. Charlie Crist after then Senator Mel Martinez resigned prior to the end of his term. Lemieux’s seat was then won by Marco Rubio in 2011. Lemieux cited dwindling resources and money as his reason for leaving the race. Lemieux and Mack have waged an often times contentious campaign during the primary.

• Rep. Nydia Velasquez (D-NY) received an endorsement last week from New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. The endorsement is welcome support as Velasquez, a 20 year house veteran, faces a tough race against City councilman Eric Dilon in the newly drawn 7th district.

• Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) will likely weather the storm created by his failure to obtain 60% of the vote at Utah’s state convention in April. Hatch faces Dan Liljenquist in the state’s primary on Tuesday. A new poll by Key Research shows Hatch has a comfortable 16 point margin over Liljenquist.

President Obama and his campaign are looking to bounce back after a rough first week of June. According to numbers released by both campaigns, Governor Mitt Romney outraised President Obama in May bringing in $76.8 million compared to the president’s $60 million. This marks the first time Gov. Romney has topped the president during this campaign. President Obama’s totals include a $15 million fundraiser at the home of Actor George Clooney, while Gov. Romney’s totals include $75,000 donations made by both he and his wife.

Additionally, the President spent the week dealing with a May jobs report that didn’t meet projections as the unemployment rate rose to 8.2% and saw only 69,000 new jobs created. However, the campaign can find some comfort in that it is still early in the election cycle, and there is plenty of time for growth between now and November.

Super PAC’s continue to play a major role in the campaign as more and more money is being spent on advertising in key battleground states, like Ohio, where both the president and Gov. Romney gave speeches on Thursday. Billionaire casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, has reportedly pledged $10 million to Restore our Future, a pro-Romney Super PAC while the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) has teamed with Priorities USA, a pro-Obama Super Pac, to run a $4 million ad campaign.

Other Campaign notes:

• A judge has signed off on the Justice Department’s request to dismiss the remaining five charges against former Senator and Presidential candidate John Edwards. The jury in the North Carolina trial found Edwards not guilty on one count of accepting illegal campaign contributions but were deadlocked on the remaining five.

• In Wisconsin, Republican Governor Scott Walker survived his recall election in what many are calling a referendum on the president’s policies and likely putting Wisconsin in play in the general election.

• Democratic candidate Ron Barber, former district director for Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, won the special election in Arizona’s 8th congressional district and will serve the remainder of Giffords term. Giffords resigned to focus on her recovery from a brain injury suffered during a shooting at an event in January 2011. Barber was Giffords choice to succeed her and will run for a full term in November in the newly drawn 2nd congressional district.

• Utah will hold the final Presidential primary contest on Tuesday, June 26. While Governor Romney has already secured the Republican nomination, Utah will likely be a boost for the campaign as Romney is expected to do well in the state with its large Mormon population.

Former Governor Mitt Romney secured the Republican Party’s nomination for president with a win in the Texas primary on Tuesday, May 29, after amassing a projected 1,191 delegates.

“I am honored that Americans across the country have given their support to my candidacy and I am humbled to have won enough delegates to become the Republican Party’s 2012 presidential nominee,” Romney said in a statement.

President Obama called the former governor Thursday morning to congratulate him on the nomination and express his hope for “an important and healthy debate about America’s Future,” said Obama campaign spokesman Ben Labolt.

Other campaign notes:

• Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker (R) faces a recall election Tuesday, June 5, against his 2010 gubernatorial opponent, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett (D). The recall started after Gov. Walker proposed a plan eliminating certain collective bargaining powers for public employees, but has focused primarily on economic conditions in the state. Current polling shows the Governor leading Mayor Barrett. A Real Clear Politics average of various polls on the race show Walker maintains a roughly six point advantage (51% to 44.4%).

• Congressman Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI) is waging a write in campaign for his own congressional seat after failing to obtain enough signatures to appear on the ballot in Michigan’s 11th District. McCotter waged a long shot, and ultimately unsuccessful, campaign for the 2012 GOP nomination for president. Now McCotter faces teacher Kerry Bentivolio in the 11th districts republican primary on August 7, 2012. Perhaps the biggest obstacle; however, may be the Congressman’s name, which could be tough for voters to spell. Luckily for McCotter, Michigan election law does not require a name be spelled correctly in order to count, as long as the voter’s intention is clear.

• Artur Davis, Former Alabama Democratic Congressman, has started the process of moving his voter registration to Virginia. On his website, Davis confirms rumors that if he were to run again, it would be as a Republican. Davis has lived in Northern Virginia since December 2010, after losing the Alabama gubernatorial election, as a democrat, by a large margin.

Recall Elections

“Recall Fever: As Scott Walker Fights To Keep His Post, Recall Elections Spread Across U.S.” by Ashley Portero in the International Business Times.

“Recall fundraising figures released” by the Associated Press in WEAU News.

“Statistics Fly in Wisconsin’s Recall Battle” by Douglas Belkin in The Wall Street Journal.

Redistricting

Connecticut: “Challenge to Senate redistricting is delayed” by Brian Lockhart in the Connecticut Post.

Kansas: “Brownback tells federal judicial panel to toss legislative redistricting maps” by Scott Rothschild in the Lawrence Journal World.

Kansas: “Kan. redistricting trial nears completion” by John Milburn (Associated Press) in Real Clear Politics.

Photo of Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker by Megan McCormick in Wikipedia.

Arizona: “Dismissal of Arizona redistricting lawsuit requested by commission” by The Associated Press in the Arizona Capitol Times.

Kansas: “Remove politics, and redistricting map falls in line” by Scott Rothschild in the Lawrence Journal World.

Kansas: “Redistricting hearings begin in Kansas City” by Andy Marso and Aly Van Dyke in the Topeka Capitol-Journal.

Missouri: “Missouri’s U.S. House and statehouse districts will remain, court rules” by Elizabeth Crisp in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

North Carolina: “N.C. group: Panel, not lawmakers, to draw districts” by the Associated Press in the Greensboro News & Record.

Texas: “Redistricting concerns remain in Texas” by Paul J. Weber in the Daily Oklahoman.

Depending on where you live, and how much attention you pay to television advertisements for political campaigns, messages being disseminated are having varying effects. President Obama’s campaign has come out with a couple ads aimed at defining former Governor Mitt Romney’s history in the private sector, most notably his involvement with Bain Capital, a firm he co-founded.

The first round of ads have been airing across the country, mostly in battleground states like Colorado, Iowa, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia. The second round of ads are set to air in targeted markets as well in the coming days.

Gov. Romney finally broke his silence Wednesday, during interviews and appearances on the campaign trail. In countering the ads from the Obama campaign, Gov. Romney told TIME’s Mark Halperin, “I happen to believe that having been in the private sector for twenty five years gives me a perspective on how jobs are created – that someone who’s never spent a day in the private sector, like President Obama, simply doesn’t understand.”

As far as whether or not the Bain ads are working, it’s perhaps too soon to say. A recent NBC/Wall Street Journal poll shows that a majority (53%) of respondents did not recognize or have enough information to offer an opinion about the name Bain Capital. The same poll also showed that 59% of respondents said Gov. Romney’s background was an advantage in working to reduce the federal budget deficit.

To make things more complicated, a number of prominent democrats – Newark, New Jersey Mayor Cory Booker, Former Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell and former White House “car czar” Steve Rattner – have all levied criticism over whether or not attacking private equity is an appropriate campaign strategy.

President Obama’s campaign has stood firm; however, and the President has stated that Gov. Romney’s record at Bain is what “this campaign is going to be about.”

During a press conference at the end of the recent NATO summit in Chicago, President Obama stated, “When you’re president, as opposed to the head of a private equity firm, then your job is not simply to maximize profits. Your job is to figure out how everybody in the country has a fair shot.”

It’s clear the issue is not going away anytime soon, and will be a centerpiece of both campaigns moving forward.

Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a bill today that will push back the state’s primary by two days, to September 13, 2012. The primary is traditionally scheduled for the second Tuesday after Labor Day, but this year that day is September 11.

Out of respect for those that attend annual September 11 memorials, the state decided to change the date of the primary. The state also moved the primary back two days in 2007 for the same reason.

The delayed primary date will push back all pre and post-primary report due dates by two days as well.

House District 28 is vacant following the resignation of Michael Harden.

The Secretary of State’s office has notified local officials to inform them there will not be a special election because the House is not in session.

The seat will be an open one on the ballot for the July 31st primary and for the November 6th general election.

As the national party conventions draw nearer, the race to obtain a majority of the 2286 delegates available to secure the GOP nomination appears to be well within the grasp of former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.

Following Tuesday’s primary wins in Nebraska and Oregon, the Associated Press and NBC News project Gov. Romney now has 989 of the 1144 delegates needed to become the Republican nominee for President. While most of Gov. Romney’s competitors have suspended their campaigns, (Congressman Ron Paul remains in the race) the governor must still obtain the necessary delegates in order to be officially nominated at the GOP convention in Tampa Bay, Florida, August 27-30.

Romney can potentially pick up 81 proportionally allocated delegates in the next two primaries in Arkansas and Kentucky on May 22. If he then wins the “winner-take-all” Texas primary, and its 155 delegates, on May 29, Romney will assuredly lock up the nomination heading into the summer. The Washington Post has an excellent, interactive delegate tracker and primer to help make sense of the GOP primary process.

As the Republican nominee, donors are certain to coalesce around Romney which he will need in order to mount a formidable campaign. April fundraising reports are due to the Federal Election Commission on May 20th.

President Obama’s campaign has already begun to leak numbers announcing that it raised $43.6 million total in April for the campaign, the Democratic National Committee and other committees such as Organizing for America, a project of the DNC founded in January 2009. While the President’s numbers are lower than the $45 million raised in February and $53 million in March, President Obama still maintains a large overall fundraising advantage over Gov. Romney.

Gov. Romney’s campaign also leaked fundraising numbers today ahead of Friday’s deadline (campaigns are required to submit reports prior to the deadline if the due date falls on a weekend or holiday). The Romney campaign, along with the Republican National Committee and other committees, raised $40.1 million in April, just $3.5 million behind the President’s campaign.

If these fundraising numbers are any indication, we’ve only just begun.

Photo of President Barack Obama courtesy of Pete Souza on Wikipedia. Photo of Mitt Romney courtesy of Gage Skidmore on Wikipedia.

Election Law

NCSL is now offering a searchable database of election reform legislation from the states in one convenient location on their website: “Election Reform Legislation Online on NCSL Website”

“Brewer signs elections bill, vetoes 6 bills” by Mary JO Pitzl in the Tucson Citizen.

Redistricting

Alabama: “Alabama Legislature holding final day of session” by The Associated Press in the News Courier. According to the article, “Legislative leaders have asked the governor to call a special session starting Thursday to draw new legislative districts.”

Alaska: “Redistricting board unveils changes made in Southeast” by Becky Bohrer in the Anchorage Daily News.

Kansas: “Republicans at war with each other over redistricting” by Scott Rothschild in the Lawrence Journal World.

Minnesota: “$628K sought for redistricting costs in Minn.” by Martiga Lohn (Associated Press) in the Crookston Times.