Today is primary day and 3.5 million Flori

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Independent Voters: Pass the Open Primaries, Please!

OPEN PRIMARIES
Arizona and Washington DC
THIRD PARTIES
TEA PARTY
  • Is the Tea Party Ready For Its November Close-Up? (By Rhodes Cook, Wall Street Journal/Capital Journal) Roughly 20% to 30% of Americans sympathize with the views of the Tea Party, according to polls taken over the course of this year. But a basic question is whether it is an independent political movement truly disgusted with both parties, or a very vocal and conservative subset of the GOP? Data tend to point to the latter.
FLORIDA
  • DeFede: Primary Night 2010 Winners And Losers (Jim DeFede, MIAMI (CBS4) In order to win a three way Senate race, Crist needs to not only collect moderate Republican and independent voters, he absolutely has to peel away Democratic voters as well. If Jeff Greene had won, there would have been a stampede of Democratic officials lining up to endorse Crist. 
  • Three-way Fla. Senate race begins without a clear favorite (By Dan Balz, Washington Post) Whether Crist has damaged himself by the decision to run as an independent or whether he has cleverly found the route to political survival is the central issue that voters will decide.
  • Washington Veterans Take Senate Primaries (By DAMIEN CAVE, Washington Post) Mr. Crist released a statement on Tuesday night calling Washington “a swamp of partisan bickering, finger-pointing and destructive political games” and saying “we need independent leadership.”
GEORGIA
  • Roy Barnes' campaign of contrition (By Melissa Maynard, Stateline) “Amazingly, Roy Barnes remains in contention despite the fact that the head of his party nationally, Barack Obama, has reached a phenomenally low level of support in Georgia,” says Matt Towery, the CEO of InsideAdvantage, the firm that conducted the poll. Virtually as many Georgia voters identify as independents as identify with either party, Towery notes, and “the race really boils down to independent voters.”
NEW YORK
  • State Sen. Joe Addabbo Loses Bid For Working Families Party Line (BY GLENN BLAIN, Daily News/Daily Politics) With the Democrats holding only a one seat majority in the Senate, the Addabbo-Como contest is likely to be among the most-closely watched races this year and could determine whether the GOP retains control of the chamber.
NYC CHARTER REVISION
  • NYC Charter Revision Proposals: A Hobson’s Choice (Citypragmatist) Ballot Access: Generally reduce the number of petition signatures needed by candidates for city elective office to appear on a ballot; This would make it easier for newcomers to challenge party regulars, and for third-party candidates to unseat Democrats and Republicans. Several critics, including Jim Brennan, who heads up the State Assembly committee that oversees municipal charter revisions, have cautioned against it. Yes, he’s a Democrat.

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