Shelby Busch, chairman of the We the People AZ Alliance (WTPAZ), released a statement Tuesday, picking apart and rejecting a proposal introduced by Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer, which presented ideas on improving elections in Arizona.
“I encourage Maricopa County voters to immediately reject this plan and tell Mr. Richer that we deserve secure elections not convenient elections,” said Busch.
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Pennsylvania state senators are asking other lawmakers to support an upcoming bill to let nonpartisan voters participate in primaries.
State Senators Daniel LaughlinTwo (R-Erie) and Lisa Boscola (D-Bethlehem) proposed legislation permitting all state residents whose voter registrations reflect no party affiliation to cast a ballot in either the GOP or Democratic nomination contests. The senators cite 2021 data from the commonwealth indicating that 1,233,748 Pennsylvanians are registered to vote but choose to identify with neither of the two major parties. Since 2017, that number has increased by 51,816.
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Tuesday morning on The Tennessee Star Report, host Leahy welcomed official guest host, Aaron Gulbransen in studio to discuss the concept of primary elections by state and the importance of the TN5 race.
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Silicon Valley billionaire Larry Ellison, the executive chairman and chief technology officer of Oracle, donated $1 million on March 21 to the recently-formed SuperPAC supporting TN-5 carpetbagger candidate Morgan Ortagus, according to Federal Election Commission records obtained by The Tennessee Star on Friday.
That SuperPAC, the Tennessee Conservatives PAC, has already begun running a $100,000 radio ad buy in the district in support of Ortagus.
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The Tennessee Secretary of State’s office provided partial clarification on the applicability of the newly enacted three-year residency law to carpetbaggers Morgan Ortagus and Robby Starbuck, but left out a reference to a key part of state code.
The Tennessee Star previously reported that mere hours after the enactment of the new three-year residency law for federal candidates in primaries, Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett’s office offered conflicting comments about whether he intends to enforce the new law and remove “carpetbagger” candidates from the August 4 Republican primary ballot.
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Within hours of the enactment of a new law on Wednesday that requires candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives in Tennessee to be residents of the state for three years prior to their placement on a primary ballot, Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett’s office offered conflicting comments about whether he intends to enforce the new law and remove “carpetbagger” candidates from the August 4 Republican primary ballot.
Reaction from Tennessee state legislators to the comments from the Secretary of State’s office were swift and pointed.
Sources tell The Tennessee Star that if the Tennessee Secretary of State refuses to enforce the newly enacted law and remove any candidate from the ballot for the U.S. House who fails to meet the three-year residency requirement he will be sued to require him to enforce the law.
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The three-year residency requirement legislation for Tennessee candidates for federal office in primaries is now law – effective immediately – without Governor Lee’s signature.
The Tennessee General Assembly sent the legislation, which it overwhelmingly approved, over to Governor Lee’s office on April 1. Governor Lee had the option to sign the legislation into law, veto it, or allow ten days to pass where it would be enacted into law without his signature. Lee chose the third option.
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A new dark money super PAC spent $100,000 in radio ads on Wednesday in support of carpetbagger Morgan Ortagus in the race for Tennessee’s 5th Congressional district seat, according to Federal Election Commission records released on Friday.
The PAC’s name is Tennessee Conservatives PAC and the expenditure was made on April 6. Saturation-level radio ads – at least 20 spots per day – began running on Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC in Nashville and 99.7 WTN in Nashville beginning on Wednesday.
The PAC, which was organized on February 22, 2022 according to FEC records, has yet to release its funding sources. The group’s report for the period ending March 31 will not be made filed with the FEC until April 15. It is common practice for dark money PACs to hide their sources of funding until the latest possible date.
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Jake Sherman of Punchbowl News and MSNBC is reporting that a well-funded new super PAC named Tennessee Conservative PAC says they intend to file a lawsuit challenging the General Assembly-passed three-year residency requirement legislation for candidates in federal primaries.
The legislation has yet to be transmitted to Governor Lee for his signature.
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The Tennessee General Assembly approved legislation establishing a three-year residency requirement for federal candidates in primaries.
The legislation has now passed both the House and the Senate, with the House approving the Senate version on Monday by a vote of 70 to 18. One House member voted present, not voting.
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Tennessee legislation establishing three-year residency requirements for candidates in federal primaries is on the House message calendar for floor consideration on Monday, March 28.
According to Tennessee state House staff, the House message calendar is for bills that went over to the Senate, were non-concurred, and came back.
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The Tennessee Senate has non-concurred, essentially rejecting the House-passed version of the three-year residency requirement bill for federal candidates in primary.
The bill now goes back to the House, where they have the option to conform to the Senate version, or else the legislation goes to conference committee. The state House is expected to consider the legislation again this week.
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Ohio’s May 3 primary elections are in jeopardy after the state Supreme Court struck down state legislative maps for the third time.
The court ruled 4-3 late Wednesday night the maps unfairly favor Republicans, saying the Ohio Redistricting Commission has attempted three sets of maps without input from Democrats on any, instead using GOP staffers to draft each map.
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The Tennessee House has approved legislation creating a three-year residency requirement for federal candidates in primaries. The final vote was 86 to 0 to approve HB2764, as 6 members voted “present” on the legislation.
The companion bill, SB2616, had already passed the Tennessee Senate. The bills were originally markedly different in terms of the effective date, but that conflict was resolved.
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Tennessee House legislation establishing residency requirements for federal candidates is scheduled for a floor vote on Monday, March 14.
The companion bill, SB2616, has already passed the Tennessee Senate and is sitting on the House desk. The bills are currently markedly different in terms of effective date, but that conflict is expected to change when HB2764 comes to the floor.
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State Rep. David Wright, the House sponsor of the bill that establishes residency requirements for federal candidates, told The Tennessee Star that he plans to make the language in his version match Senator Frank Niceley’s Senate-passed version.
“All I’m trying to do is to get a bill to the floor in the House so I can motion to substitute and conform to the Senate version.” said Wright. “I would hope that I can get this to Calendar and Rules on Thursday morning for it to be on the floor next week.”
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Senator Frank Niceley expects his version of the bill establishing residency requirements for candidates in Tennessee primaries, which was approved by the Senate 31-1, to carry the day in the state House.
Senator Niceley told The Tennessee Star, “I expect when the House legislation reaches the floor, they’ll vote to substitute and conform to the Senate bill. That way it’ll be quick and painless. If its a good bill, its a good bill now.”
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State Representative Dave Wright’s (R-Knoxville) version of the bill establishing three-year residency requirements for federal candidates was passed by a key subcommittee.
Before HB2764, the House version of Senator Frank Niceley’s legislation, was recommended for passage by the House Elections and Campaign Finance Subcommittee, it was amended on Wednesday. The amended version is significantly different than the Senate-passed version as it applies to all federal candidates in primaries and general elections, sets an effective date to one day after this year’s elections, and exempts candidates elected this year from that standard for future elections. The House version is now in conflict with the Senate-passed version.
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The Tennessee Senate has approved a bill creating creating three-year residency requirements for candidates seeking to run in primaries for U.S. Senate and U.S. House. The vote was 31-1.
State Senator Frank Niceley (R-Church Hill) is the sponsor of the Senate version that was approved, SB2616.
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Representative Dave Wright, the Tennessee House sponsor of legislation that would establish three-year residency requirements for Congressional and Senate candidates running in Tennessee, motioned to roll his bill back for consideration by one week in the House Elections & Campaign Finance Subcommittee.
Wright said that he intends to amend the bill to have the three-year residency requirements, an effective date of one day after this year’s November general election, and an exemption for incumbents at the next scheduled subcommittee meeting.
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Senator Frank Niceley wants to keep the effective date the same for his legislation establishing residency requirements for candidates in U.S. House and U.S. Senate primaries. In its current form, SB2616 would effect this year’s elections.
The Tennessee Star previously reported that Tennessee State Representative David Wright (R-19) said he intends to amend the House version of SB2616 so that the effective date of the bill’s three-year residency requirement to qualify as a candidate for a congressional primary in the state from 2022 to 2024 because it would be “too confusing” to make it effective this year.
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Tennessee State Rep. David Wright (R-19) told The Tennessee Star on Thursday he intends to amend the effective date of the House version of SB 2616 so that the effective date of the bill’s three year residency requirement to qualify as a candidate for a Congressional primary in the state from 2022 to 2024 because it would be “too confusing” to make it effective this year.
Representative Wright is the main sponsor of HB2764, the state House companion bill to Senator Frank Niceley’s Senate legislation establishing residency requirements for U.S. Senate and U.S. House candidates running in primaries.
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Legislation establishing a three-year residency requirement to qualify for the Tennessee primary ballot in U.S. House of Representatives elections passed a key Senate committee.
Tennessee State Senator Frank Niceley (R-TN-08) is the sponsor of SB2616, which states that candidates for U.S. House and U.S. Senate must meet the same residency requirements as Tennessee state representatives and state senators in order to run in a primary in Tennessee. That means a candidate has to have to have lived in the state for three years.
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Tuesday morning on The Tennessee Star Report, host Leahy welcomed State Senator (R-TN-08) Frank Nicely in studio to outline bill SB2616 to establish a three-year residency requirement in the state to run for the US House of Represenatives.
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The Ohio General Assembly has agreed to give Secretary of State Frank LaRose some authority to make administrative changes regarding the upcoming primary election while challenges to the state’s new legislative districts continue to play out in court.
LaRose asked for the power a little more than a week ago when the Ohio Redistricting Commission returned to work in an effort to meet a court order to redraw previously approved districts. The House and Senate approved the changes Wednesday, sending the legislation to Gov. Mike DeWine.
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Reuters Voter engagement in the 2018 U.S. midterm races remains feverish, primaries in notable swing states Wisconsin and Minnesota showed on Tuesday. Both states showed sharp increases in participation as voters picked candidates for Congress, Senate and governor, with Minnesota’s turnout surpassing a two-decade high and Wisconsin’s hitting levels…
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