February 6, 2010

Gubernatorial campaign cash: a visual

R. Neal organized the data into a usable format, and A.C. Kleinheider linked to it, and with their help I bring you these visualizations of the numbers reported this week by the seven "major" gubernatorial candidates.

Posted by joe lance in Campaign finance & TN Gubernatorial Elections at 6:33 AM | Comments (0)

February 5, 2010

Volunteer Doppelgängers

While some have compared Tennessee Congressman Marsha Blackburn, and her would-be U.S. House colleague, Robin Smith, to former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, others have a different Tennessee political stalwart in mind.

While Sarah Palin may be the darling of the Republican Party, Tennessee has it’s own “Sarah” wrapped up in Dayton’s matron, June Griffin, candidate for governor.

(HT: Post Politics)

And then there is this comparison:

Tim [Gobble] is a former U.S. Secret Service Agent and current Sheriff of Bradley County. He has a record of successfully helping bring jobs to the area, managing public budgets, and he has dedicated his life to helping and protecting people. I personally feel he is Tennessee's Scott Brown and so do many other people that I have spoken with.

Which other Tennessee political figures should temporarily replace their Facebook profile pictures?

Posted by joe lance in Humour & Miscellaneous at 7:59 AM | Comments (0)

February 1, 2010

Candidates tout variety of finance figures

The day is finally here. It's the campaign finance reporting deadline for the 2009 year-end period, and flacks were busy all weekend (at minimum) coming up with just the right spin to accompany the data.

Boiled down, there are essentially three messages: (A) "I've got the most money, no matter where it came from;" (B) "I don't have any (or am not willing to part with) personal money, so I don't have the most money, but I received money from the greatest number of people;" or (C) "money isn't what makes a good candidate for office, but I sure wish I had some more of it so I could tell more people that."

A secondary theme that shows up sometimes is "wow, I raised x dollars in only y weeks." That's what we heard from state Sen. Jim Tracy, who is seeking to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Bart Gordon in the 6th Congressional District. Tracy has quite the task ahead of him, as the GOP field is crowded with folks eager to be the one that pushes this district into their party's column. (That'll be pretty easy to do, by the way, if no Democrat ever shows up to run. So far: nada.) Tracy's A-list counterpart is Lou Ann Zelenik, who has created a treasury by dumping about $300,000 into her campaign account.

Here in the 3rd District, Robin Smith issued the "continues to lead all Third District candidates in campaign contributions from individuals" release, with a total of $240,029 (over $90K for the quarter); while Chuck Fleischmann continued his "I'm dominating the field with way more cash on hand than anyone else" drumbeat. Cleveland businessman Art Rhodes, Bradley County Sheriff Tim Gobble, and Chattanooga real estate investor Tommy Crangle occupy the third financial tier in the GOP. Knoxville attorney Van Irion has not filed any reports. As with the 6th, there are no Democrats, as nothing further has been heard from Oak Ridge scientist Brad Parish; Chattanooga City Councilman Andrae McGary announced late last week that he will not seek the nomination.

Independents who have declared an interest in the race fare pretty poorly in the disclosure rankings: Mark DeVol raised no funds in the fourth quarter, and no records are yet available for Greg Goodwin. Newer entrants Jean Howard-Hill, Mo Kiah, and Spencer Owens are excluded from the reporting period.

In the gubernatorial race, Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam is the undisputed money leader with $5.7 million, while U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp claims the momentum title, even though he was slightly edged out by Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey for the period. (Ramsey, it should be noted, is barred from continuing to raise money while the General Assembly is in session.) The Democratic candidates for governor have yet to release their reports as of this writing. Updates will be added as they become available.

References and further reading:

Posted by joe lance in Campaign finance & TN Gubernatorial Elections & US House Elections at 7:29 AM | Comments (0)

January 29, 2010

LiberTea debate postponed

The 3rd Congressional District GOP candidate debate (or forum) that had been scheduled for Saturday, January 30, 2010 has been postponed due to inclement (or, if you ask some, awesome) weather.

Watch for an announcement here and at Chattarati.com when the event is rescheduled.

Posted by joe lance in US House Elections at 7:54 PM | Comments (0)

Schools Closing

From Channel 3's (WRCB) Twitter account: Hamilton County public schools are closing early at the following times on Friday, January 29, 2010:

High schools: 11:30
Middle schools: 11:45
Elementary schools: 12:15
Magnet schools: 1:00

Please be safe, everyone.

Posted by joe lance in Miscellaneous at 11:11 AM | Comments (0)

January 24, 2010

Happy Birthday to TennesseeTicket!

Five years ago today, a search ended. An enthusiastic reader of nationally focused political Web sites for the previous five years, I had set out on a quest to find a blog that covered politics and elections in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Surely there must be at least one, I thought.

I never found it, but I did find a site called Chattablogs. It offered a free blog to anyone (even those not affiliated with Covenant College!). So I asked for one, and here it is. (And, as it ran on Movable Type, it turned out to be way less bug-ridden than the original Blogger, which I had tried.)

Site visitor statistics spiked quickly a few months later when several sitting Tennessee lawmakers were arrested by the FBI on bribery charges in the "Operation Tennessee Waltz" sting. I don't know that I've ever regained that traffic summit—but I want it to be clear that the only reason I care about visitor stats is to be sure I am providing information to as many voters as possible.

In 2006, I partnered with former (excellent) blogger Adam Groves to provide a comprehensive list of all candidates running for every applicable General Assembly seat, with supporting detail and links; and added local, gubernatorial and federal candidates to complete the information.

In 2008, esteemed Knoxville blogger R. Neal created a solution that provided that year's election data, and more, on his TennViews site, so I didn't try to create something else.

For the 2009 Chattanooga municipal elections, I was a candidate, so I didn't do much writing here. The invaluable experience of running for local office showed me, however, that this is what I would much rather be doing.

This year, I have made contact with a blogger who has similar goals to mine; talks have begun about a joint effort, though nothing has solidified. Ideally, we would form a network with writers across the state to provide regional and local information to voters in each county. That's probably a longer-term goal. Check back with me in five years to see what has been developed.

And, seriously, to those of you who have read this blog, whether for months or for years (or you just found it today), you have my heartfelt thanks.

Posted by joe lance in About Blogs & Site News at 9:56 AM | Comments (1)

Zach Wamp opens campaign headquarters

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — An estimated 250 supporters and onlookers crowded into a downtown building to celebrate the opening of the first of three statewide offices by the Zach Wamp for Governor campaign. Chattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield and Hamilton County Mayor Claude Ramsey shared the task of introducing Wamp. Each voiced support for the eight-term congressman and asked those in attendance to volunteer to help him win the election.

Wamp began his remarks with a somber nod to the families he has consoled during his tenure who have lost sons or daughters in military service. He said that he is humbled to be where he is, and views his role as a public servant. "I'm not in this for money or power," he said.

The campaign had wrapped up its tour of Tennessee's 95 counties on Friday in Haywood County. While the "Big Red" recreational vehicle sat idling outside, Wamp introduced its crew of drivers and other support personnel and presented them with gifts. He thanked local supporters, including Corky Coker.

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U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp thanks supporters

Having said that he wasn't going to give his stump speech as "this is a different crowd," Wamp nevertheless emphasized his focus on third grade reading as a way to improve education; and he claimed a unique position in the race at understanding the excesses of federal government, leading to his support for state sovereignty as articulated in the Tenth Amendment. He closed with a rallying cry, saying that his campaign has the most momentum, and that there are possibly only two candidates who have a real chance at winning the election. To ensure it was understood who the other is, Wamp said that he will continue to travel the state and talk to voters between now and August, and isn't sure if the other candidates will stay out on the trail or "hide behind their money."

The campaign plans to open additional offices in Nashville and Memphis next month.

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Wamp drives home a point

518 Georgia Avenue was the place to be seen on Saturday morning, especially for elected officials and those trying to become elected. Cleveland Mayor Tom Rowland led the Pledge of Allegiance. Collegedale Mayor John Turner, who's running for the Hamilton County Commission in District Nine, worked the crowd. State Representatives Gerald McCormick and Richard Floyd were also there, along with Hamilton County Commissioners Curtis Adams (who is not running for reelection) and Bill Hullander (who is running for Trustee), and Chattanooga City Councilman Manuel Rico.

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Criminal Court Clerk Gwen Tidwell (left) and Circuit Court Clerk Paula Thompson (right) with Hamilton County Mayor Claude Ramsey

At least two of those seeking to replace Wamp in the U.S. House of Representatives were on hand to honor the occasion. Tommy Crangle and Robin Smith handed out cards and attempted to build enthusiasm about the upcoming primary.

Posted by joe lance in Political News & TN Gubernatorial Elections at 8:37 AM | Comments (1)