Justice Department: Open Primaries Are OK in Louisiana

Justice Department okays Louisiana open primaries.

BREAKING

• Department of Justice gives approval to Louisiana's open primaries (By Bill Barrow, The Times-Picayune) The change ends the short-lived party primaries used in the 2008 and 2010 federal cycles. It also realigns the structure of federal House and Senate elections with state, parish and municipal races, which have continued under the open-primary system with no interruption. Presidential primaries will remain divided by party.
• Feds OK open congressional primary (POSTED BY MARSHA SHULER | CAPITOL NEWS BUREAU, 2theadvocate) The U.S. Justice Department has approved Louisiana’s return to the open primary system for congressional elections, the state’s elections chief said Tuesday morning. The move will save more than $5 million in election expense and help reduce voter confusion, said Secretary of State Tom Schedler.
• Federal officials approve Louisiana open primary (WWL AM FM New Orleans, Associated Press Reporting)  And in Shreveport Times

OPEN PRIMARIES

• South Dakota Bill to Let Independent Voters Vote in Partisan Primaries (Ballot Access News) Five Republican state legislators in South Dakota have introduced SB 175, which requires political parties to permit independent voters to vote in their primaries. 
• Debra Bowen a likely candidate for Congress (By Torey Van Oot, Sac Bee) A special election to fill Harman's seat would be conducted under the new primary system created under Proposition 14, meaning the two top two vote-getters in the primary advance to a runoff, regardless of their political affiliation. Because it is a special election, a candidate can win outright by taking more than 50 percent of the vote in the primary.
• Winograd's party (Ben Smith, Politico) "We were informed by a colleague of Marcy's last evening that she intended to register as 'decline to state,'" said Los Angeles Democratic Party chairman Eric Bauman, referring to the state's registration for independent voters. 

REDISTRICTING

• Redistricting done right (AS I SEE IT, By Kurt Hayes, Worcester News Telegram) Political data such as voter patterns and party registration should be prohibited from consideration as input for redistricting.
• Fending off GOP criticism, redistricting chairman finds unlikely support (By Kyle Cheney, Statehouse News Service, Needham Wicked Local) Jones said he believed 10 to 12 public hearings would be sufficient for a rigorous process, and he noted that critics of any approved plan have legal avenues to protest the results.
• Va. political districts set to be redrawn (BY JENNIE LYNN PRICE, Delmarva Now.com) In his address to the group, McDonnell said the commission is "bipartisan by definition." He stressed the importance of working across party lines.

OBAMA SPIN

• Americans Think Obama Would Lose In 2012 (By Reid Wilson, National Journal/Hotline On Call) And more voters say, at the moment, they will vote against Obama. Fully 51 percent say they definitely or probably will not vote for Obama, while 47 percent say they're predisposed to vote for him. Independent voters would vote against Obama by a 44 percent to 53 percent margin, while he would win moderates by a much larger 55 percent to 45 percent margin.
• Poll: Obama & Menendez numbers heading up (By: CNN Deputy Political Director Paul Steinhauser)

NO LABELS

• Political Groups Compete to Represent the Center (By MICHAEL D. SHEAR, NY Times/The Caucus) “No Labels reflects the changing times and the growth of the independents — a larger number than either of the two parties,” said Nancy Jacobson, one of the founders of the group. “No Labels has been formed to provide a home to citizens that believe its time for the voice of the majority to be heard in Washington. The truth is, a new coalition needs to be made and nurtured.”

LOCAL INDEPENDENT CAMPAIGNS

• New mayoral candidate won’t accept contributions (WANE - Fort Wayne IN) “The citizens of Fort Wayne deserve an option of a candidate who is independent of either party. One that will, when elected, approach the city needs with bipartisanship and common sense,” said Ahrendt. 

NEW YORK

• DA: NYC mayor testified in probe into politico (By JENNIFER PELTZ - Associated Press, Fresno Bee) Prosecutors say Haggerty got the Democrat-turned-Republican-turned-independent Bloomberg and his political advisers to give $1.1 million from the billionaire mayor's personal fortune to finance a state Independence Party ballot security effort in the fall of 2009.
• Bloomberg Testified in Secret - Mayor Was Called Before Grand Jury in Case of Operative Charged With Theft (By MICHAEL HOWARD SAUL, Wall Street Journal) The mayor's testimony before the grand jury came as a surprise to the attorneys representing the operative, John Haggerty Jr., who worked as a volunteer on Mr. Bloomberg's 2009 re-election campaign and most recently on Carl Paladino's 2010 gubernatorial bid. Mr. Haggerty, 42 years old, has pleaded not guilty.

IT BEARS REPEATING

• Change to believe in - Former Commissioner Riddle takes on major parties (By Heather Scofield, Durango Herald) Joelle Riddle, having recently ended her term as a county commissioner, is beginning a “grass-roots effort” to change the face of politics in Colorado.

LAST WORD

• Protesters Take New Ground in Cairo (By CHARLES LEVINSON And SAM DAGHER, Wall Street Journal) Demonstrators demanding the resignation of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak took over new ground, expanding their protests to the parliament building a few blocks from their encampment at Tahrir Square.

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS 8/27/10

INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• Time for Obama to Pull a Clinton (By DOUGLAS E. SCHOEN, Wall Street Journal) The independent voters who hold the fate of the Democrats in their hands are looking for candidates who champion, in a bipartisan context, fiscal discipline, limited government, deficit reduction and a free market, pro-growth agenda. If Democrats don't offer this, they will be branded liberal tax-and-spenders.

OPEN PRIMARIES

• VT: Primary process limits choices (LETTER Rutland VT Herald) I am writing this letter to draw your attention to the injustice that is experienced by ‘independent’ voters during primary elections, which are held year after year.
• LA: Election is historic, so go and vote (EDITORIAL St. Tammany News) Last closed primary - this will be the last closed primary election for Congressional candidates. The Legislature passed, and the governor signed into law that after the general election in November, all primaries will be open. Currently under the closed primary system, a Republican voter has to vote for a Republican candidate, Democrats for Democrats and so forth.
• FL: Lawmakers need to write off the write-in loophole - THE ISSUE: Undemocratic fixture remains in elections laws. (EDITORIAL Sun Sentinel FL)
• DC: DC primaries should be scrapped (by Topher Mathews, Greater Washington.org) But nonetheless, DC's primary election system has no legitimate purpose and should be scrapped in favor of an instant run-off voting system for the general election.

THIRD PARTIES

• If traditional politics bore you, consider the Toga Party (by Ry Rivard, Daily Mail Capitol Reporter WV) The Democrat, Republican and Mountain parties all have open primaries, which allow voters who are not affiliated with one of the other three major parties to vote for their primary candidates. Among the 130 parties are established if little-known minor parties, like the Constitution Party, a national conservative party that claims about 70 members in West Virginia. There are 1,300 self-identified Libertarian Party members.... There are also 185,000 voters with no party affiliation and 12,200 declared Independents.
• Delaware politics: Minor parties add candidates to ballot - House, Senate hopefuls slated by Blue Enigma, Independent Party and Working Families groups (By GINGER GIBSON, The News Journal DE)

COLORADO

• Ballot-bound HD-61 hopefuls weigh in (Gunnison Times) Then there is incumbent Kathleen Curry of Gunnison. During her three-term stint in the Colorado House of Representatives, Curry has risen to become one of the state's most well-known and popular political leaders. Yet her chances of winning re-election this November hinge on being successful as a write-in candidate -- which would be a nearly unprecedented feat for a statewide office-holder.

ARIZONA

• Post-primary election analysis (by Three Sonorans, Tucson Citizen) Why would so many Independents have chosen to vote in the Republican primary? I think the answer is very simple. The most popular race in the nation for Tuesday’s primary was taking place in Arizona, and JD Hayworth scared the bejeezus out of the Independents, and they decided to vote in the Republican primary for McCain.
• David Freddoso: McCain's easy win undercuts Democrats' story line (By: DAVID FREDDOSO, Washington Examiner) Here's a tip for gamblers: Most or all of the "unelectable" conservatives will win in November 2010. It will come as a surprise only to liberal pundits, who view most Americans' opinions as outside of the mainstream because they remain stubbornly unlike the opinions of President Obama.

NEW YORK

• Suffolk’s Ethics Probe Enigma Consumes All - Levy, legislature, DA and Newsday all caught in ethics feud (By Timothy Bolger, Long Island Press) As for the man chosen to wade into the firestorm and report his findings within the next three months, the legislature voted 13-5 to hire Joseph Conway, a Mineola-based criminal defense attorney, former federal prosecutor in the Eastern District of New York and member of the Independence Party.
• The Unrepentant Republican Party (By Sam Foster, American Thinker) While the September primaries will likely resolve the Republicans' mistake in NY-1, the damage has already been done in the case of NY-23. Given NY's proclivity for third-party ballot lines, Matt's name will appear on the Independence Party ticket, and Doug Hoffman on the Conservative line, despite the Republican primary outcome. The flagrant hatred exhibited by Republican leaders for Hoffman makes it hard to believe that party bosses could unite under Doug Hoffman's potential candidacy. Thus, another three-way race is brewing in NY-23, and the possibility for the district to shed its sickly shade of blue is quickly slipping out of reach.

NYC CHARTER REVISION

• Do-over on term limits: Charter commission must fix the botch it made of its mandate (EDITORIAL NY Daily News)

It's Primary Day - Do You Know Where Your Independents Are?

INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• 10 things Republicans must do in 10 weeks (By Ed Hornick, CNN) #8 - Appeal to Independents: "The Republicans know that independents were an absolutely critical partner to Obama in the presidential election in 2008," said Jacqueline Salit, president of independentvoting.org, a national strategy and organizing center for independents. "So there's a lot of energy going into trying to peel independents away and turn them back to center-right."
• Independent voters getting stronger (by Robert Robb, The Arizona Republic)

OPEN PRIMARIES

• AZ: New poll: Arizonans want open, nonpartisan primaries (Arizona State University) Results showed that three-quarters of Arizona voters favor a primary election in which the two candidates, regardless of party affiliation, who receive the largest number of votes face off in the general election. This change is favored across party lines and among all age groups.
• AZ: Hear Me Out: Independent voters surge in Arizona, is two-party system not meeting public's needs? (ABC15.com)
• AZ: Get out and vote: Primary elections are today (BY BILL HESS, Sierra Vista Herald/Review) As for this primary, he would not forecast the turnout of the 76,641 registered voters in the county — independents may ask for Democratic, Republican or Green party ballots, but not Libertarian, to vote in those parties’ primaries.
• WI: Ross Kinzler: Declare winner with 51 percent of votes (LETTER Madison State Journal)
• WI: Bill Broydrick: Make our primaries more open (By BILL BROYDRICK, Wisconsin State Journal)
• VT: It's Primary Election Day in Vermont (By JOHN CURRAN, Associated Press Writer, WNCT Channel 9) Vermont has an open primary without advance party registration. That means a voter doesn't register as a party member, but selects one party's ballot and selects only from that one in the primary.
• FL: Other views: Florida should mandate open primaries (BY AUBREY JEWETT, Florida Today)
• LA: GOP endorses closed primaries (By MARSHA SHULER, Advocate Capitol News Bureau)
• LA: State Republican Party endorses return to party primaries for federal election (Ed Anderson, The Times-Picayune)
• WV: Citizens to determine format of city elections (By Kara Van Pelt, Register-Herald Reporter)

THIRD PARTIES

• In Mich., A 'Tea Party' Is Denied Spot On Ballot (by DON GONYEA, NPR) Richard Winger, who publishes a newsletter called Ballot-Access News, says independent voters are worth watching closely. "When times are bad, people are more interested in getting outside their normal habits," he said. And, Winger says, Michigan's Tea Party controversy aside, it could be the best year for independent candidates and third parties in many decades.

NEW YORK

• Republicans Look to Pick Up a Seat in Queens (by Ray Katz, Gotham Gazette) The 26th Assembly District features tree-lined streets, houses with American flags, parks -- and voters who switch from one party to the other.

NYC CHARTER REVISION

• Commission Votes to Put Term Limits on November Ballot in New York City (By JAVIER C. HERNANDEZ, NY Times)
• Term Limits Vote Won't Apply to Sitting Pols, Commission Rules (By Jill Colvin, DNAinfo)
• Mike loses on limits (By DAVID SEIFMAN, NY Post)
• Limits & loopholes (NY Post) How many times do New Yorkers have to say, "Two terms is enough," before the political class gets the message? It's a relevant question, as Mayor Bloomberg's handpicked Charter Revision Commission today finishes up recommendations meant to appear on the November ballot -- with term limits chief among them.
• Fritz Schwartz Calls On Goldstein Not To Do Revote On Term Limits (By Chris Bragg, City Hall News)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

Independent voters moving left

Nobody really likes Joe Lieberman

Louisiana Repubs move to reject independents -- until 2006, LA had an open primary system...

Bill introduced in Maine state legislature to designate "unenrolled" as "independent

South Dakota state legislature closes primaries to indies

The Moderate Voice has a great round-up of press on Obama's press conference on the economic stimulus plan...

Lessons on "bi-partisanship" -- HINT: It's still partisan...

Conservative press presses indies' declining support of stimulus pkg

Obama's independent nonpartisan dream doesn't register with media...

New York state legislature considers un-fusion bill...

Libertarian to run for Kristen Gillibrand's seat...

Partisan control of New York state politics, from the top to the top...

Does Mayor Bloomberg have anywhere to turn???

Ashley Casey gets 4% in Louisiana's 6th special election Saturday

Chris Cillizza missed the story in his column "Democrat Wins La. Special Election" about special election in Louisiana's 6th district yesterday, where independent candidate Ashley Casey won 4% of the votes, the margin of defeat for Repub Woody Jenkins which allowed Dem Don Cazayoux to win. Fortunately, Robert Goodwin got it (see his comment).

More here:

• Can Youx Believe It? (National Journal/Hotline) A surprising factor in the race for the Baton Rouge-area CD turned out to be conservative/GOPer-turned-indie Ashley Casey, who took 3.7K votes (4.2% - the margin of defeat for Jenkins)
• Democrat takes Louisiana special U.S. House election (Southern Political Report) small but significant number -- 3,718 (4%) -- of votes cast for Ashley Casey, a no-party candidate and a former aide to last year’s millionaire gubernatorial candidate John Georges.
• RESULTS BY PARISH

Ashley Casey wants your vote in Louisiana.

Ashley, from Baton Rouge, and a former aide to top Republicans in the state, is running as an independent. She told the Press Club of Baton Rouge this week that her election would send a forceful message to the major parties about the unpopularity of “business as usual” in Congress."
Please feel free to email me at ashley@ashleycasey.com with any questions!

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• Democrats to let independents vote in primary (Register-Herald - Beckley WV) In advance of the May 13 primary, Democrats mailed special letters to some 145,000 non-affiliated voters, the so-called “independents,” inviting them to help pick their candidates for the fall balloting.
• Independents say they’ll be back (Paul Giblin, East Valley Tribune/Checking In/Freedom Blogging)
• Democrats sending 100,000 invitations to Independent voters before primary (Charleston Daily Mail)
• Parties look ahead to May 13 primary (Huntington Herald-Dispatch.com)

POLLS

• Hillary Drops Back-A new Newsweek poll shows Obama pulling away. (Newsweek Web Exclusive) In a race against McCain, Obama gets more independent support than Clinton does.
• LINK TO COMPLETE POLL RESULTS
• Pre-Pennsylvania Primary Poll: Obama O-Belts it Out of the Park (Half Empty - pro-Obama blog)

NORTH CAROLINA

• Clinton aide: NC win would be 'biggest upset of the century' (CNN Political Ticker)
• Tight race draws people out (Blueridge Times-News)
• Officials: Interest growing in one-stop early voting (Hickory Daily Record)

LOUISIANA INDEPENDENT ASHLEY CASEY * Candidates Face Challenges in Louisiana 6th Congressional Race (Bayou Buzz)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

CAMPAIGN

• Clinton, Obama rallies are like jazz vs. rock (The Oregonian)
• Democrats See Opening In GOP Bastion of Nebraska/War Sentiment Could Play a Role In Number of Races (Wall Street Journal) Independents outnumber Dems and Repubs
• With John on Her Side (Andrew Romano, Newsweek Stumper) Hillary to create Poverty Czar post for John Edwards
• Campaign Notebook: Social Issues Put on Back Burner in Campaign (Bloomberg)
• PA voter sign-ups near record-Officials say historic high could be reached by April 22 primary (Erie Times News)

POLLS

• Presidential Swing States (FL, OH & PA) Poll April 2, 2008 (Quinnipiac University Poll)
• Second poll shows Clinton's Pennsylvania lead shrinking (The Morning Call)
• N.C. poll: Voters put value on trust-McCain surpasses both Democrats in array of ratings (MyrtleBeachOnline.com)
• CUIP seeks independent voters for online presidential poll (Independentvoting.org) Independent voters -- by a wide margin (58% to 37%) -- said in a recent CBS/AP poll that the U.S. should have stayed out of the war in Iraq. CUIP wants to know what you think about this and other important issues of the day.

LOCAL

• RI: Chafee, Laffey speak volumes (The Providence Journal) Chafee’s new book, Against the Tide: How a Compliant Congress Empowered a Reckless President.
• FL: Enviros say climate-change legislation a political plus for Crist (Sarasota Herald Tribune) “The take home message today is that independents have swung clearly in the direction of climate protection,”
• LA: Vote today called key to seat in Congress-Republicans hold sway in 1st District (NOLA.com) after excluding unaffiliated voters from primary
• OR: Voters Switch Affiliations For Primaries (KPTV Portland) Nearly 10,000 Oregon voters have switched their party affiliation in order to vote in May's primary.

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

HANKSTER LEDE: An Independent Shut Out Of A Defining Choice (Hartford Courant)

MARYLAND: Confusion, bad weather and late starts plague primary voting (Business Gazette MD) independents show up to vote, turned away

LOUISIANA: Congressional Elections, Barack Obama (BayouBuzz) March 8 Dem primary open to independents

POLLS: Some Reflections on Polling in the Primaries (RealClearPolitics HorseRaceBlog)

THE CAMPAIGN: Clinton seeks swift reply to Obama onslaught (AP) * Campaign Trail Leads To Texas, Wisconsin (CBS) * After Potomac Sweep, Can Obama’s Momentum Be Stopped? Clinton’s Determined to Try (By: Michael H. Cottman, BlackAmericaWeb.com, and Associated Press) * Is It Too Late for Hillary? (Time Magazine)

WASHINGTON: Basking in Obama's glow (Joni Balter, Seattle Times)

OHIO: All eyes on Ohio (By STEPHEN ORAVECZ Tribune Chronicle) Obama has drawn a lot of independent voters, but they may be closed out in Ohio’s closed primary.

PENNSYLVANIA: 93,000 independents may not know they can't vote April 22 (Philadelphia Daily News)

SUPERDELEGATES: Democratic Super Delegates Guided By Voters, Not Backroom Deals (Bloomberg) * The Role of the Superdelegates: Could They Thwart the Choice of a Majority of Democratic Primary Voters? (By EDWARD LAZARUS, FindLaw)

REPUBS/CONSERVATIVES: Gingrich: There’s No Reason For Voters To Keep Republicans In Power (News Hounds)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• Poll: 58 percent of independent voters would back a Democratic congressional candidate who votes to expand children's health insurance bill (Politico)
• Quit the Democratic Party - become an independent! (OpEdNews)
• Instant runoff voting is simple and effective (By John B. Anderson, Christian Science Monitor)
• Hillary's Dilemma: In an evenly divided country, nobody can be elected president without winning voters outside his/her party. (Scripps Howard)
• 'ROCK STAR' OBAMA TRIUMPHS AT ARCH (New York Post) and Obama Distances Himself From Clinton, on Her Turf (The New York Times)
• Oregon: Frohnmayer's brother running for U.S. Senate (Daily Emerald) and Former mayor switches party affiliation to Independent, Jim Torrey says he doesn't plan to run for statewide office (Statesman Journal)
• Kentucky: Paper ballots with no option for straight ticket voting (Lexington Herald Leader)
• Louisiana: Lieutenant governor race offers candidate variety-2 independents (Shreveport Times)

Steve Rankin: The Louisiana Election System and Partisan Primaries

Steve Rankin (who publishes on Y'all Politics) comments:

Louisiana is the only state that has nonpartisan elections for all of its state officials: all candidates run in the same election. The state, which alone has also used that system for its congressional elections, is restoring party primaries for those elections, starting in 2008.

Louisiana's Republicans are allowing only Republicans to vote in GOP congressional primaries. Louisiana Democrats have not yet said whether they will invite independents to vote in Democratic congressional primaries. "... the Legislature allowed the political parties to determine whether they would allow independent voters to participate in the closed party primary." The legislature had no choice, since, in 1986, the U. S. Supreme Court gave parties the right to invite independents to vote in their primaries.

Mississippi Republicans say that they will keep ALL GOP primaries open to ALL voters-- regardless of the outcome of the Democrats' lawsuit. The Democrats, in contrast, have indicated that they will invite independents but block Republicans from voting in Democratic primaries.
Louisiana has had party registration since 1916.

Louisiana: Independent voters numbers climbing

Looking for a Voice: The number of independents in Louisiana has ballooned over the past decade, but will these voters play a stronger role in the election process? By Jeremy Alford The Independent Weekly Mainstream candidates rarely know how to approach them, a vast majority don’t have a national platform, and all serve an unappreciated role in the American election process. Over the past 10 years in Louisiana, hundreds of thousands of voters have made the switch. Today, there are nearly 610,000 independent registered voters in the state that have no affiliation with elephants or donkeys. That’s up from 360,000 in 1997, when Ross Perot’s Reform Party was reaching its peak in popularity....