RandySF
RandySF's JournalOR-03: 3 leading Democrats battle for Blumenauer's seat in Congressional District 3 race
Three Democratic front-runners are vying to win their party’s nomination to represent Oregon’s 3rd Congressional District, which has been represented for nearly 30 years by retiring Democratic Rep. Earl Blumenauer.
The three candidates – state Rep. Maxine Dexter, Multnomah County Commissioner Susheela Jayapal and Gresham City Councilor Eddy Morales – have raised several hundreds of thousands of dollars each. Three other Democrats in the primary – Ricardo Barajas, Rachel Lydia Rand and Nolan Bylenga have not raised anything, according to the Federal Elections Commission, while Michael Jonas, also a Democrat, has raised nearly $16,000.
Three Republicans – Joann Harbour, Teresa Orwig and Gary Dye – are also vying for their party’s nomination. But the district, which stretches from Portland east, encompassing most of Multnomah County, part of Clackamas County and all of Hood River County, is dominated by Democrats. They represent 44% of registered voters, while Republicans represent 14%, according to the Secretary of State’s Office. Unaffiliated voters account for 36% and many of them vote for Democrats. That means that the Democratic primary winner is likely to represent the District in Congress.
The Capital Chronicle will publish answers from a questionnaire we sent to all the district’s candidates. Here’s a look at the three Democratic front-runners:
https://oregoncapitalchronicle.com/2024/04/24/3-leading-democrats-battle-for-blumenauers-seat-in-congressional-district-3-race/
FL: 'We're not telling people how to vote. We just want to educate people around what happened'
On a Saturday morning in April, dozens of participants gathered around small round tables on the second floor of the Mt. Zion Progressive Missionary Baptist Church Annex in South St. Petersburg to see and hear an important presentation.
Common Cause Florida was there to watch, the ACLU of Florida was there, the St. Petersburg Chapter of the League of Women Voters was there and Antonio Gilliam, the assistant police chief in St. Petersburg, was there. Overall, the focus was on Equal Ground, a statewide nonpartisan organization working to increase civic engagement among the Black electorate in Florida as the November election looms in 2024.
It was the first date of the group’s statewide voter education tour, in conjunction with the St. Petersburg chapter of the NAACP. The other events will take place in the coming weeks and across the state.
“We are in an age of conservatism,” said Trenia Cox of the St. Pete NAACP. “We are at a point where there is an ‘anti-woke agenda’ and never have we needed the advocacy and the engagement so that victories that have been won remain in place, and we can create some new ones.”
Blacks represent nearly 13% of Florida voting electorate, according to the latest records from the Florida Division of Elections, with 1,721,238 voters. Of those voters, 74% are Democrats, 23% are Republicans, and the remaining 3% are either non-party-affiliated or registered with third parties.
https://floridaphoenix.com/2024/04/24/were-not-telling-people-how-to-vote-we-just-want-to-educate-people-around-what-happened/
Conservative justices appear skeptical federal law requires emergency abortion care
A divided Supreme Court seemed skeptical Wednesday that federal law can require hospitals to provide emergency abortion care in states with strict bans on the procedure, in the latest legal battle over access to abortion since the high court overturned Roe v. Wade nearly two years ago.
Throughout two hours of argument, only the court’s three liberal justices strongly backed the Biden administration’s view that a 40-year-old emergency-care law preempts Idaho’s strict ban, which imposes penalties of up to five years in prison on doctors who perform the procedure, with an exception when “necessary to prevent the death of a pregnant woman.”
The liberal justices repeatedly raised detailed, harrowing examples of women facing health emergencies short of death, including infertility and kidney failure, and said pregnant women in Idaho were being forced out of state for emergency abortion care in violation of federal law.
Conservative justices, who make up the majority of the court, pushed back on the Biden administration’s interpretation of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, and suggested that the federal government cannot force private hospitals that receive federal funds to violate a state’s law.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/04/24/supreme-court-arguments-abortions-emergency-emtala/
AZ: Fraud claim brings in notable lawyers in Gilbert election challenge
Election challenges against two Gilbert candidates have been dismissed, but a third candidate faces a new claim of signature collection fraud.
The challenges were brought by attorneys that have been active in voter fraud allegations at the state and county level in past election cycles.
Michael Webb, a Gilbert resident and part of mayoral candidate Shane Krauser’s election committee, filed three challenges targeting mayoral candidate Natalie DiBernardo and two Town Council candidates.
An audit of the nomination signatures by the Maricopa County Recorder’s Office found all three — DiBernardo and council candidates Kenny Buckland and Noah Mundt — had enough valid signatures to stay on the ballot.
https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/gilbert/2024/04/24/gilbert-election-challenges-fraud-claim-brings-in-notable-lawyers/73376814007/
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes asks state Supreme Court to reconsider 1864 abortion ban
As lawmakers prepared to again try to repeal a 160-year-old abortion ban, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes’ office on Tuesday asked the state Supreme Court to reconsider its decision to uphold the ban.
The 32-page motion for reconsideration asks the court to revise or toss its April 9 ruling to uphold the ban, claiming the decision ignores normal legal traditions and previous laws while attempting to trump a federal court ruling in a different lawsuit.
The Arizona Supreme Court may not "position itself as a court of higher review regarding federal decisions," Solicitor General Joshua Bendor warned in the motion.
Mayes' spokesperson, Richie Taylor, said the court has no deadline to respond to the reconsideration request, but could "ask the other side for a response or to deny it."
https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/arizona/2024/04/24/arizona-abortion-ban-attorney-general-asks-state-supreme-court-to-reconsider/73432217007/
House Democrats upend GOP's early 2024 fundraising dominance
House Democrats and Democratic candidates have begun to dominate Republicans in fundraising as the 2024 election draws near, an Axios analysis has found.
Why it matters: It's a stark reversal of the consistent fundraising advantage vulnerable Republicans enjoyed over their Democratic counterparts last year.
By the numbers: Democratic incumbents, nominees and frontrunners in highly competitive House districts raised an average of $890,000 in the first three months of this year.
Republican incumbents and candidates in that those districts raised on average just over $550,000 during the same time period.
https://www.axios.com/2024/04/23/house-democrats-republicans-2024-fundraising-q1
After backlash to March primary, Missouri lawmakers debate reversing 2022 election change
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KY3) — After this year’s presidential preference primary in Missouri, many voters called for state lawmakers to return the process to state control.
The 2024 election cycle was the first presidential primary to be administered by a party-run primary system after Gov. Mike Parson signed a 2022 law to shift the burden from state and local election officials.
“My sense is that the clerks obviously didn’t like having two elections within 30 days of each other because of some logistical concerns and evidentiary concerns if there are problems or audits,” Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft said. “There was also the concern about the cost.”
According to Ashcroft, running the presidential preference primary cost state and local governments roughly $10 million. The new system also allowed the individual parties to restrict participation to only registered members.
https://www.ky3.com/2024/04/24/after-backlash-march-primary-missouri-lawmakers-debate-reversing-2022-election-change/
CA: DA Price recall supporters push for quick, special election
After securing enough signatures to let voters decide if Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price should stay in office, the group behind the recall is now calling on the board of supervisors to set a special election date for July or August.
“The recall of Pamela Price is real, it's coming. This is it, and what we are waiting for now is to set up the date,” Carl Chan of SAFE said.
“We don’t need to wait until November. There is not a timeline on life,” Brenda Grisham of SAFE said. “And waiting till November is not an option. We need her to go right now.”
Recall supporters believe the board of supervisors should have already set a date during last week's meeting.
https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/east-bay/pamela-price-recall-election/3518696/
Pa. voters had 'improved voting experience' in primary election, top voting official says
With primary voting over and ballots being tallied, Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt said at a news conference Tuesday night, “Pennsylvania’s voters overwhelmingly encountered an improved voting experience this year.”
So far, Schmidt’s office said, the issues election officials have been made aware of were “minimal” and “isolated,” such as a couple of polling places opening late. Schmidt said he is unaware of any significant unforeseen closures of polling places or instances of eligible Pennsylvanians being prevented from voting.
What appears to be a relatively issue-free primary election comes after a number of more tumultuous elections so far this decade.
The 2020 election was conducted amid health concerns due to COVID-19 and during the height of pandemic-era restrictions on gathering. Its results were then challenged by former President Donald Trump and his supporters, without evidence. The 2022 election saw the rejection of a large number of mail-in votes over technical issues, which resulted in a lawsuit that was only ruled on months ago.Touting the success of Tuesday’s election, Schmidt noted the department’s election complaint hotline received significantly fewer calls than during the previous two primaries, which Schmidt said he hopes is indicative of fewer issues.
https://penncapital-star.com/campaigns-elections/pa-voters-had-improved-voting-experience-in-primary-election-top-voting-official-says/
SD: Debate begins on abortion-rights ballot measure as Mitchell event brings out both sides
MITCHELL — A proposed measure to reinstate abortion rights hasn’t made the ballot yet, but the debate is underway.
About 100 people converged Tuesday evening on Dakota Wesleyan University for a discussion sponsored by the university’s McGovern Center as part of its Courageous Conversation series.
The room was filled with attendees from both sides of the issue eager to dissect the measure, which seeks to secure abortion rights in South Dakota, reversing the effects of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 decision that overturned Roe v. Wade. When that happened, a trigger law that the South Dakota Legislature had adopted in 2005 immediately banned abortions in the state except when necessary to save the life of the mother.
The ballot measure would amend the state constitution to legalize all abortions during the first trimester of pregnancy. It would allow regulations on abortion during the second trimester, but only in ways that are “reasonably related to the physical health of the pregnant woman.” In the third trimester, it would allow regulations up to a ban on abortions, with exceptions for the life or health of the pregnant woman.
https://southdakotasearchlight.com/2024/04/24/debate-begins-on-abortion-rights-ballot-measure-as-mitchell-event-brings-out-both-sides/
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