Judge Irv Maze threw Gail Powers out on her teabagging ass in the 44th district, saying one of the two required signatures on her petition came from someone outside the legislative district. Powers has said she will appeal, which is almost as mindless as the out-of-district signature on her petition. She'll still be on the ballot, but no one will be counting votes for her unless, by some miracle, she wins her phony appeal. Powers was running against incumbent Joni Jenkins, who would have stomped her like a water roach.
In the other totally absurd case, Jeff Donohue's candidacy in the state's 37th District is being challenged. Paul Holliger, candidate for Soil and Water Conservation Supervisor, filed a lawsuit that alleges one of the signatures on Donohue's petition comes from someone living outside the district, which is the same goofy mistake made by Powers in the 44th. As of now, there is no court date set for Holliger's complaint.
Donohue is in complete denial. He stated in a CJ article on the matter that his campaign was going to "move forward". After watching it closely for weeks, I wasn't sure it had yet begun. The mistake, honest or not, could insure victory for Wade Hurt, Donohue's Republican opponent. If there was one race in the Commonwealth in which BOTH candidates should lose, it is this one in KY House 37.
Problems like these are a sign of the times. There are questions we should be asking new candidates. Things like: How can we elect you if you can't follow the rules to get on the ballot? Did you even read the rules to get on the ballot? Can you spell "ballot"? Who is advising you to do this?
Check back for more on this terrible series of events later, and thanks for reading The Valley Report.
Correction: This entry was corrected to properly identify the district in which candidate Jeff Donohue is running. It is the state's 37th Legislative District, not the 38th as I had previously written.. The Valley Report regrets the late-night error.
This race is in the 37th House district- not the 38th.
ReplyDeleteThanks for correcting me. It was 3am when I wrote it. Sorry for the confusion.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if you reviewed the actual facts but the contested signature in the 37th district is on the same street as Donohue's and less than a quarter of a mile away from his house. Maybe bigger blame she be put on the ridiculous nature of district drawing the puts one side of the street and the other side in different districts. Honestly neither Powers or Donohue should be disqualified. Let the voters decide. Aren't we tired of judges making choices for us?
ReplyDeleteHow should districts be drawn, then, if they cannot be divided by streets? That is a weak argument. It is your responsibility to know where you are with respect to district in this state if you are signing papers for a candidate.
ReplyDeleteThe requirements for running for office are not complicated and are spelled out in detail to any person that takes even a casual interest in politics. Both of these jokers should be disqualified because that is what the law says. Remember that whole "rule of law" thing? Or is that just reserved for when an elected official gets a blow job?
I think if someone wants a job that entails crafting laws for people to follow, that person should have to follow laws already established in order to be elected. End of story.
It's the candidate's responsibility to verify the signatures on their papers are individuals who are registered voters of the same party living the district they are running for. Donahue and Powers didn't. Therefore they were disqualified.
ReplyDeleteBTW, good article Brian.
Determining which district a voter lives in takes like 15 seconds: http://mapit.louisvilleky.gov/
ReplyDelete