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August 28, 2008

Why this day means a lot to me

There is a reason that this week is particularly momentous for me. Though no one can fully know the inner heart of another, I am as certain as I can be that my father would have been overjoyed to see U.S. Sen. Barack Obama receive the nomination of a major political party for the office of President.

My dad, who grew up as a poor white in the South, saw firsthand what some Americans have had to overcome -- for no other reason than their ancestry (ironically, like that of Obama's, much of it "mixed").

My dad, who worked in an auto factory in Detroit during the 1960s riots, saw, yes, some of the ugly turmoil as the nation struggled to grow in this area. He chose not to let those events change his views.

My dad, who took the Christian faith to heart more than most people I know, unceasingly taught my sisters and me about the value and potential in all human beings, regardless of their background--economic, ethnic, religious, or other.

And so my dad would have been "proud of his country" -- not for the first time, of course, but surely in a new way, had he lived to see the son of an African lead his party.

Please do not mistake me: this is not a post to say "vote for Obama." This is simply to acknowledge, in one of the ways I am able, how meaningful this day would have been to someone I love.

I'll be back with less sentimental content in the near future. I just had to get that out.

Posted by joe lance in Political News | Politics is Personal | Presidential Elections at 3:01 PM | Comments (2)

August 26, 2008

An important anniversary

Let me add one more voice to the thousands celebrating August 26, 1920, which marks the certification of the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

Posted by joe lance in Politics is Personal at 9:25 PM | Comments (1)

August 24, 2008

City Council special election set

Three men -- each a community leader in his own right -- have qualified for the special election being held on November 4 in Chattanooga's 5th Council District. While your Ticketeer is not a resident of District 5, I have been asked to moderate a Brainerd candidate forum in about a month, and so it goes without saying that I will stay neutral in this race.

The most I can do, then, is to keep an eye on who's supporting whom, what donors are involved, and how each of the candidates plans to win a plurality of votes in what should be a high-turnout election, given that we will elect a new President of the United States on the same day.

Think about it: the historic situation of having U.S. Sen. Barack Obama at the top of the ballot brings a dynamic not usually seen in city council races. Typically speaking, these local elections are about having an edge in the number of die-hard supporters, as (unfortunately, I say) most people don't bother to show up. But if current indications hold true, the number of votes to divvy amongst these three candidates will be significantly larger than normal, and so the task at hand is to reach out to as many of those as possible.

Russell Gilbert Sr., Joe Rowe, and current county School Board Vice Chair Jeffrey Wilson are the candidates. I had the opportunity to interview Gilbert a while back, and hope to repeat that with Rowe and Wilson. Stay tuned.

Meanwhile, if you have pertinent commentary to add, please do so.

Posted by joe lance in Chattanooga City Elections at 8:55 PM | Comments (0)

August 22, 2008

On a McCain-Romney prospect: Money isn't everything. Money is everything.

If Mark Halperin is right, and John McCain chooses Mitt Romney as his running-mate; and if Barack Obama meanwhile happens to pick a centrist purple- or red-stater, then Obama could end up doing what President Bill Clinton did in 1992, but without the help of Ross Perot.

Never mind the polls that are being published right now. As several higher-profile bloggers and pundits have had sense to point out, it is only August.

A McCain-Romney ticket is terribly soft on credibility for the evangelical Right. The most ardent may either sit the election out or cast a protest vote for Chuck Baldwin; but many heartland Americans, faced with a pair of country-club denizens or a couple of candidates who'd appear, by contrast, to be more sympathetic to voters' current economic plight, would choose checkbook over church, especially since the latter would be lacking. (Besides, Americans seem to be backing away from wanting religion to play such a heavy role in politics.)

Yes, Romney's millions would provide somewhat of a buffer against the fund-raising maelstrom that Obama's supporters will undoubtedly unleash this fall; but remember, Romney lost the primary, too. And whose fault was that? Mike Huckabee's, many say: and Huckabee appealed to the very voters we're talking about here, who wanted neither McCain nor Romney to be the GOP nominee. Part of that appeal, of course, was faith-based; but I'm not convinced that another strong component wasn't the former Arkansas governor's economic "little guy" rhetoric.

If Obama were to choose, say, Senator Evan Bayh, a popular Indiana pol, two things would happen. One, the Democratic insiders who once backed Hillary Clinton would get the memo that, as Bayh was to have been her VP pick, the ticket would now have the Clintons' blessing. And secondly, there would begin a significant exodus by those famous "white working-class voters" from the McCain column to that of Obama, despite the latter's skin color or funny-sounding name.

Naturally, this is all still speculation until the choices are announced. I don't think I've seen a more suspense-filled "veepstakes" before, but it may as well be enjoyed while it lasts.

(An aside: as he is a CEO, I'm certain that Mitt Romney knows exactly how many houses he owns. Regardless, though, that number is more than the one that many are struggling to keep, or the one that many only yet dream of owning.)

Posted by joe lance in Presidential Elections at 7:03 AM | Comments (2)

August 19, 2008

So it's Hillary?

A commenter on abcnews.com's Political Radar, after U.S. Sen. Joe Biden tells media stalkers that he's "not the guy":

Why would Obama agree to let HRC have a roll call vote that would derail his convention? He wouldn't. He knows it will never happen. Why not? [...] It's looking pretty obvious now, isn't it? Maybe he's a bit more savvy, and has a bit more killer instinct, than we thought! My prediction: Bill speaks on Tuesday night, and HRC goes on Wednesday.

I can't say that the part in bold has not crossed my mind.

But wait -- it's Kaine, isn't it? Clinton? Biden? Bayh? Reed? Sebelius? Richardson? Someone we're forgetting? Wasn't it supposed to be Obama/Bredesen at some point?

How's this for an idea? Let's all (including me) just settle down and wait for the campaign's announcement.

(HT: Instapundit)

Posted by joe lance in Presidential Elections at 8:37 PM | Comments (0)

August 18, 2008

Insider update on VP pick

A fairly well-placed source seemed to indicate tonight that recent buzz surrounding U.S. Senator Joe Biden of Delaware as a potential choice for Barack Obama's Veep nominee may, in fact, mean something.

Of course, everyone's got an opinion about whom will be chosen as each candidate's running-mate.

What's your prediction?

Posted by joe lance in Political News | Presidential Elections at 11:20 PM | Comments (3)

Election qualifying deadline notice

The November 4, 2008 general election has been in sight for a very, very long time for a few candidates for President and their associates. This week marks a milestone in the process for down-ticket races being decided on that same day.

So far there are three declared candidates for the Chattanooga City Council seat vacated earlier this year. Russell Gilbert has qualified already. Election Commission member Joe Rowe has resigned his post this morning and announced his intention to run; and District 5 County School Board member Jeffrey Wilson has also picked up papers. Those papers are due by Thursday, August 21, at noon: each candidate must present a completed qualifying petition bearing the signatures of twenty-five (25) registered voters who reside in the district, plus a campaign treasurer declaration. Municipal elections are nonpartisan, so there will be no primary round.

While the state's Democrats and Republicans held their primary elections on August 7, independent candidates for the state House and Senate also have until noon on Thursday to complete and return qualifying forms. Just a reminder: to my knowledge, Representatives Gerald McCormick (R-26), Richard Floyd (R-27), Tommie Brown (D-28), Vince Dean (R-30), and Jim Cobb (R-31) have no opposition on the November ballot at this point. If you live in one of these districts and feel that you or someone you know could offer voters a viable alternative to the incumbent, then there are still a few days left to make that happen--but you'd better hurry!

I'm not certain whether the August 21 deadline includes independent candidates for Congress as well. I confirmed the deadline for the state legislative races with elections administrator Bud Knowles a couple of weeks ago, but we didn't have a lot of time to chat. Clarification from readers is most welcome.

In any case, we will know the full slate of candidates for the District 5 city council election by Friday.

Posted by joe lance in Chattanooga City Elections | State House Elections | State Senate Elections at 12:10 PM | Comments (1)

August 14, 2008

Cross-dressing at the polling place

There's been a lot of talk lately in the state blogosphere about so-called "crossover voting." Here's why: U.S. Rep. David Davis, of Tennessee's 1st Congressional District, narrowly lost last Thursday to former Johnson City mayor Phil Roe in the GOP primary; and Davis and his supporters are alleging that a number of Democrats engaged in a concerted effort to cause Roe to win.

Tennessee is among several states where voters do not register with a party affiliation, and where primary elections are open to any registered voter who shows up and declares, at the polling place, an affinity for a particular party. Therefore, it is possible for a person, who might have voted for Democrats in the past, to vote in a Republican primary; and vice-versa. And it happens all the time, for a variety of reasons.

I respect the opinions of those who feel that primaries should be closed. Generally speaking, these are members of the two main parties--Democratic and Republican--who likely see no issues inherent in the fact that the primaries for these parties are held by public election, but that the nominating process for other parties, such as Constitution, Green, and Libertarian, are private affairs.

Allow me to suggest that all party nominating events should be private, and that when such is the case, each group would be completely free to include only those members who swear loyalty in whatever fashion deemed appropriate.

Until then, though, here's the deal: as long as Democratic and Republican primaries are public elections, then any member of the public should be free to participate in whichever one that person chooses on that day.

Here are a couple of examples that illustrate why nonpartisan registration and open primaries are best for now. First, in the Tennessee House of Representatives District 31 contest, the only two candidates running were both Republicans. But though they may number in the minority, there are self-identified Democrats aplenty in north Hamilton and Rhea Counties. Are these Democrats supposed to entirely sit out the election of their representative in Nashville?

Second, the number of independent voters in Tennessee is growing (citation needed). As one libertarian-leaning voter told me during the run-up to our presidential preference primary, as of now the reality is that the two major parties are going to name the two viable choices. Independents, therefore, need to be able to participate in that winnowing process, else the general election would hold nothing for us.

So, whether Republicans voted in the Barnes-Kurita race, or whether Democrats spoiled things for one-term Congressman David Davis--these questions are barely relevant. I challenge both parties to take their nominating elections out of the public sphere (and off the public dime). Perhaps we'd have five or six contenders in any major general election race, and the public--all of us--would choose among those candidates after the parties got through naming them.

And while we're at it, some sort of ranked voting system (IRV as one example) would help declare a winner among the half-dozen without the need for expensive runoff elections. But maybe I'm getting ahead of myself.

Much more on this topic, as related to recent events:

Sean Braisted: "I think the majority of people who cross over and vote in another party's primary do so because they want to have a say in who represents them, and that is a good thing."

Jama Oliver: "So, while a closed primary system has it's merits, there are a lot of ballot access problems that would need to be ironed out before I could support such a move in Tennessee." (II)

DeMarCaTionVille: "This is not about protecting the sanctity of the process. This is about a guy, who doesn't want to go down in history as the first incumbent Republican to fumble a 1st District election since 1932."

David Oatney: "The only way to enforce this notion is to close the Primary (something that has been advocated in this space on numerous occasions), because there is no way to determine voter intent where party loyalty is concerned without party registration and closed primaries."

Terry Frank: "We interviewed Congressman Davis on our radio program on election day and at that time, he was very concerned about the Democrats being so open in their support and electioneering for Roe."

Joe Powell: "Huge numbers of Democrats in the first district? Just over 6,000 took part in the Democrat Primary, compared to a low turnout of some 50,000 for the Republican Primary."

Knoxville Talks: "The laws describe an awful lot of steps to be taken *at* the polling place. It presents issues as to the feasibility of challenging each of those rascaly Democrats' ballots, as well as a problem of timing: namely that the law describes various steps to be taken in the event a challenge is filed *before* the vote happens, at the polling place."

Post Politics: "While Rep. David Davis is getting a lot of ink for his increasingly likely intention to challenge his election result, Tim Barnes wants us to know that he too believes interlopers affected the outcome of his race against Rosalind Kurita."

Posted by joe lance in Elections at 11:22 PM | Comments (1)

August 12, 2008

Bulletin: Tennessee Politics Blog going offline

Someone is taking a chainsaw to the "Groves of comprehensibility":*

After more than two years of reporting daily on Tennessee politics, I will be closing Tennessee Politics Blog.[...]

This venture has been both a fun and sobering exercise at times. I want to thank you my readers, especially the great people I have met over the years because of this venture. I thank you for taking the time to read this blog over the past two years and I thank you for your friendship.

TPB's daily handpicked nuggets of the best political news for our state will be sorely missed. Yes, there are plenty of other good bloggers out there covering the same stories, but no one does it exactly like he has.

All the best in whatever comes next for you, Adam.

*The source of that phrase cannot be located via Google search, though I remember seeing it at A.C. Kleinheider's old place. I don't recall where he got it, though.

Posted by joe lance in About Blogs at 10:22 AM | Comments (0)

August 11, 2008

McCain's Georgia speech was out of cite (updated)

The Political Insider let us in on a little secret today: U.S. Senator and GOP presidential hopeful John McCain gave a speech on the rather anxious situation in the Caucasus region, and parts of the speech bore an uncanny resemblance to Wikipedia's article on Georgia.

But I'm sure it's okay, because I heard that Deval Patrick gave him permission. ;-)

In all seriousness, let us all pray (whatever that means for each) for an end to the violence in S. Ossetia and Georgia. And in Darfur. And in Iraq and Afghanistan, and France and Spain and India and Pakistan and right here in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

UPDATE: Welcome, readers from Houses of Parliament, UK; and from SovIntel, Moscow, and other locations in Russia.

Posted by joe lance in Political News at 3:37 PM | Comments (2)

August 10, 2008

Let's make it a site to behold

The webdudes responsible for the Tennessee Legislature's online presence seek your input as to what improvements are needed and wanted by the browsing public.

Give them some constructive feedback, and hopefully we'll see an even more helpful service as a result. There's always room for improvement in the area of bill status. What else? Go tell them.

(via Post Politics, by way of Ben Cunningham, and see also Kay Brooks)

Posted by joe lance in Government | Tech at 8:53 PM | Comments (0)

The long, slow file

I encourage you to read, if you have not, the cover story in today's Chattanooga Times Free Press, by co-authors Dave Flessner and Pam Sohn. It is the first of a two-part series on the challenges faced by area disabled persons in applying for and receiving benefits through the Social Security Administration.

I look forward to the second installment, too, because I think the story published today leaves quite a few questions unanswered. But it was a good start.

And surely there are ways to make the application process more efficient and have the program better serve the people it was intended to address.

Posted by joe lance in Community | News at 9:17 AM | Comments (0)

August 9, 2008

Weekend links

We had an election, now what? R. Neal at TennViews has updated the site's database of legislative and congressional candidates now that the primaries are over. He also linked to a good analytical column on the General Assembly races by Tom Humphrey. The next two-and-a-half months will be lots of fun, at least in a few districts.

John Edwards: Taegan Goddard, alice, and others cast their declaratory statements on the affair, whether or not it is any of our business, and what it means. My own reaction was not one of surprise. I had no specific inclination toward believing that Edwards would cheat on his wife and then lie about it; I just have always regarded his words as plastic props in a big show. Admittedly, such is merely my perception.

In the city: Mike Feely, a minister who runs a nonprofit organization that caters to the needs of area Hispanic residents, and who also served briefly as an interim City Council member following Marti Rutherford's resignation, is being hired by the Council to work with both Hispanic and homeless populations. I'll try to research the impetus of this contract, just so readers are the most informed. But I see it as a good move, all things considered.

Posted by joe lance in Elections | Government | Political News at 8:26 PM | Comments (0)

August 8, 2008

Turnout will do it every time

A source close to the Jim Vincent campaign told TennesseeTicket today that the candidate spent much of the day on Thursday in Rhea County, and was cautiously optimistic about his chances of winning back the District 31 seat until the numbers started coming in that evening.

Voters were out in force, relatively speaking, in Dayton and other Rhea locales; but Hamilton County suffered a weaker showing, and that is what likely cost Vincent the victory. The media had sometimes portrayed this as a territorial match, though the areas bound by the district lines are geographically and culturally similar irrespective of the county line.

I offered some unsolicited strategic advice to take back to the campaign: when U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp runs for Governor in 2010, state Sen. Bo Watson could then run for Congress, which would open up the District 11 Senate seat if Vincent wanted to try again at state politics.

Posted by joe lance in State House Elections at 7:32 PM | Comments (0)

August 7, 2008

Nail-biter in District 2, perhaps?

With about a quarter of the votes counted, incumbent Chip Baker leads challenger Joe Dumas by a mere 40 votes, 678-638. Obviously this is what Chuck Todd would label "too early to call," but it could be the best race of the night to watch. Stay tuned.

UPDATE: with 40% in, Dumas takes the lead by approximately 53% to Baker's 47%.

In other races, it's not looking too good so far for Greg Beck, as Jim Hammond holds a commanding lead in the race for Sheriff.

Jim Vincent, though, is likely to retake his former House of Representatives seat from Rep. Jim Cobb, if the current trajectory prevails. (I don't have the totals from Rhea County yet, though.)

Oh, and I'm switching to Twitter for further updates. It just makes more sense.

Posted by joe lance in Hamilton County Elections at 8:45 PM | Comments (0)

August 6, 2008

Some hyperlocal voting location notes

The Brainerd precinct has moved from the Brainerd Rec Center on North Moore to the Brainerd Crossroads (aka Brainerd Baptist Annex, aka the BX) just off Belvoir Ave near North Terrace. Also, the Eastgate 1 and Eastgate 2 precincts are temporarily voting at New Covenant Fellowship Church, 1326 North Moore Road. The Woodmore precinct votes at Brainerd High School. Pass it on.

Posted by joe lance in Elections at 10:26 PM | Comments (0)

Vote with all your might, and bring a friend

I was at the Election Commission on Wednesday, picking up a stack of maps to hand hapless voters who might show up at the Brainerd early voting location, and the place sure was busy. Crews were taking voting machines to all the precincts (pop quiz: how many are there in Hamilton County?), paperwork was being finalized, television news stories were being recorded, and through it all, Bud Knowles was a statue of calm. Seriously, I don't know what it would take to ruffle the man, though I wasn't there the day he found out they had to reprint all those ballots.

But I say all of that to get to this: it will be a real shame if those people do all that work, and not many voters show up to perform their duty. Early voting turnout was low, so there is a deficit. Fill it, please. We're electing a new sheriff and deciding three school board seats, and the District 31 primary will decide which candidate goes to the state House in January. These are important choices.

I've been writing a more or less "objective" election guide at Chattarati.com, and I published my endorsements and predictions on this blog.

Posted by joe lance in Elections at 10:07 PM | Comments (0)

August 4, 2008

Endorsements, recommendations, and predictions for August 7

The Chattanooga Times Free Press, along with countless other papers in the land, has a tradition of publishing endorsements on the Sunday before any Election Day. The Free Press editorial page even mocks up a ballot and darkens the ovals beside its recommended names -- presumably this is to aid those readers who experience difficulty comprehending the text in the editorial column itself. (I'm half-joking, of course. I do believe that graphics almost always make things clearer.)

TennesseeTicket.com will offer you something more: in some cases, I will make recommendations where no candidate deserves an outright ringing endorsement. And on top of that, I will post my predictions of each contested race's outcome. (This latter extra is speculation only, and is just for fun.)

UNITED STATES SENATE
Mark E. Clayton
Gary G. Davis
Kenneth Eaton
Leonard D. Ladner
Wm Mike Padgett
Robert D. Tuke - Endorsed
Write-in

Prediction: Bob Tuke, but you wouldn't guess that by just looking around here. And, I reserve the right to update this as the week progresses. It may be close, with Mike Padgett as the possible winner.

UNITED STATES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 3rd CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT
Doug Vandagriff - Recommended
Write-in

TENNESSEE SENATE, 10th SENATORIAL DISTRICT
Andy Berke - Endorsed
Write-in

TENNESSEE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 26th REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT
Write-in

TENNESSEE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 27th REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT
Write-in

TENNESSEE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 28th REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT
Tommie F. Brown - Endorsed
Write-in

TENNESSEE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 29th REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT
JoAnne Favors - Recommended
Write-in

TENNESSEE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 30th REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT
Write-in

TENNESSEE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 31st REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT
Write-in

UNITED STATES SENATE
Lamar Alexander - Recommended
Write-in

UNITED STATES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 3rd CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT
Teresa Sheppard
Zach Wamp
Write-in

Prediction: Zach Wamp

TENNESSEE SENATE, 10th SENATORIAL DISTRICT
Oscar Brown
Basil Marceaux Sr.
Write-in

Prediction: Oscar Brown

TENNESSEE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 26th REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT
Gerald McCormick - Endorsed
Write-in

TENNESSEE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 27th REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT
Richard L. Floyd - Recommended
Write-in

TENNESSEE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 28th REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT
Write-in

TENNESSEE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 29th REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT
Basil Marceaux Jr.
Write-in

TENNESSEE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 30th REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT
Vince Dean
Write-in

TENNESSEE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 31st REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT
Jim Cobb
Jim Vincent - Recommended
Write-in

Prediction: Jim Vincent will win reelection to his former seat by default after winning in this primary. (To my knowledge, no independent candidate has qualified; but the deadline is August 21st. Correct me if I'm wrong.)

ASSESSOR OF PROPERTY
Bill Bennett (Rep) - Recommended
Write-in

SHERIFF
Greg Beck (Dem) - Recommended
Jim Hammond (Rep)
Tim Akins (Ind)
Jim Winters (Ind)
Write-in (note: Fred Fuson is running a registered write-in campaign)

Prediction: Jim Hammond will win, and I also caution that someday we could learn more about this candidate that may cause some voters to regret their decision. I agree with Harry Austin's Chattanooga Times editorial in that Hammond's experience clearly overshadows that of the others in this race; but I submit that judgment and character must be considered in addition. Plus, I just can't bring myself to vote for a hyper-authoritarian like Hammond seems to be.

SCHOOL BOARD, DISTRICT 1
Rhonda Thurman
Write-in

SCHOOL BOARD, DISTRICT 2
Chip Baker
Joe Dumas - Endorsed
Write-in

Prediction: Joe Dumas in an upset! We'll see.

SCHOOL BOARD, DISTRICT 4
Gregg Juster - Recommended
Debra L. Matthews
Kenneth Simpson
Write-in

Prediction: Debra Matthews, but by a very slim margin

SCHOOL BOARD, DISTRICT 7
Kevin Burke II (note: is not actively seeking the post)
Michael Dzik - Recommended
Linda Mosley
Write-in

Prediction: No earthly idea. It all comes down to whether Mosley's funding and (slight) endorsement advantages can beat Dzik's ground organization. Your thoughts?

This system of using the ballot to retain appointed judges is convoluted, confusing, and in need of correction. I will not make any recommendations here, because I know far too little about each judge's record. I'm almost inclined to vote "No" on the Court of Criminal Appeals and Supreme Court members, based solely on my position against capital punishment; but how do I know which judges are on my side? The Court of Appeals, which hears civil cases, doesn't present the same challenge. Use your best judgment, so to speak.

Prediction: All seven appellate court judges up for a retention vote will be retained.

Posted by joe lance in Hamilton County Elections | State House Elections | State Senate Elections | US House Elections | US Senate Elections at 12:22 PM | Comments (4)

August 2, 2008

I am voting today

Saturday, August 2, 2008 -- the last day of early voting for the August 7 county general and state/federal primary elections.

Since I will be at the Brainerd Rec Center all day on Thursday, helping direct Brainerd area voters to their new (or existing) precincts, I need to vote today. Here is what my ballot will look like (click for PDF samples, DEM and GOP):

My district is represented on the Hamilton County Board of Education by Chairman Kenny Smith. This district will be on the ballot in 2010, so there's nothing I can do about the various school board elections happening elsewhere around the county.

There is no one opposing Assessor of Property Bill Bennett. I may skip this one, and I may not. It won't matter in the slightest.

There are no Democrats running in the primary for Tennessee House of Representatives District 30. Rep. Vince Dean is unopposed in the Republican primary. Whichever ballot I choose (I'm an independent, and Tennessee has open primaries), there's not much for me to do with this one.

The state Senate, District 10 position has a contested Republican primary between Oscar Brown of Jasper and Basil Marceaux Sr. of Soddy-Daisy. These two ran last year in the special election primary, but were handily defeated by Oscar Brock. No Democrats have lined up to take on Sen. Andy Berke, so Berke will face either Brown or Marceaux in November.

There is also a contested GOP primary in the U.S. House of Representatives, 3rd Congressional District race. Teresa Sheppard wants voters to consider her instead of multiple-term incumbent U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp. The lone Democratic candidate is Doug Vandagriff. Does anyone, anywhere know who this guy is? I've seen his name on ballots for years now, but I have yet to find out what he's all about.

The United States Senate seat held by U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander is up for election in November, and there are six Democrats vying to cash in on this year's forecast favorable climate for their party and hope it takes one of them all the way. The three moneyed contenders are Ken Eaton, Mike Padgett, and Bob Tuke.

I spoke with Padgett yesterday evening as he made a campaign stop with local supporters Annie Hall, Brent and Lori Staton, and others. He feels confident that his outreach network among local elected officials across the state will give him the victory.

I'm also friends on Facebook with candidate Lenny Ladner, whose lower profile and lack of funds have cost him being allowed to speak at forums; and I have spoken at length and in detail about policy positions with Bob Tuke. I don't know anything about Mark Clayton nor Gary Davis. If I choose a Democratic primary ballot, I will have a tough choice in deciding whom should be the nominee against Sen. Alexander. Lamar faces no Republican opposition, so that would be an easy one.

Now to the big local contest: a special election to name a Sheriff of Hamilton County. Jim Hammond has the money, the resume, and the connections, but something about him just doesn't feel right. Greg Beck has the supporters I prefer and mostly trust, but in my estimation would not be the strongest sheriff. Jim Winters is intriguing, in some ways; but is off-putting in others. Tim Akins seems like a great guy, and I'll leave it at that. Fred Fuson is another option, and it will be interesting from a purely election-geek perspective to see how well his write-in campaign performs next week.

Oh, and there are those judicial retention questions. Gaw. Shall each one "be elected and retained in office?" How about "shall I refrain from casting a thoroughly uninformed vote?" Yes, the Judicial Evaluation Commission recommended retaining all of them. But who are they?

Finally, are you interested in seeing the outcome of my decisions? Votes are a private matter, but there is no restriction on making them public. Leave a comment if you feel strongly one way or the other.

Posted by joe lance in Hamilton County Elections | State House Elections | State Senate Elections | US House Elections | US Senate Elections at 11:20 AM | Comments (0)