Free Republic

Sen. Barbara Mikulski’s (D-MD) decision to retire at the end of her term has sparked a predictable succession feud among Democrats in that deep blue state, but the coming internecine squabble has the potential to engulf the entire party. Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), a six-term member of Congress and the former chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, wasted no time in declaring his intention to run for Mikulski’s seat. On Friday, he received a powerful endorsement from Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid. “I enthusiastically endorse Chris Van Hollen for the United States Senate,” Reid said in a statement....

More than four years ago, while announcing his campaign for governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo stood in front of the Tweed Courthouse in downtown Manhattan and said Albany’s antics “could make Boss Tweed blush.” New York had had enough corruption, he said, and he was going to put a stop to it. “Job 1 is going to be to clean up Albany,” he said, “and make the government work for the people.” Mr. Cuomo became governor on that platform and recorded several impressive achievements, but he failed to perform Job 1. The state government remains as subservient to big...

An upset last night in the Democrat primary for governor of Nevada was almost as stunning as the Brat win in VA-7. "None of the Above" won with 29.96% of the vote. Nevada was the first state to institute a “none of the above” line to its ballot in 1975, as a way for voters to protest weak, unqualified candidates.

RALEIGH, N.C. - North Carolina Congressional candidate Keith Crisco died suddenly at his home on Monday, WNCN confirmed. MOREAdditional Links A woman at his company, Asheboro Elastics Corp. in Asheboro, confirmed that he died at his home Monday around 1 p.m. She said employees at the company were being told what had happened. Crisco had faced Clay Aiken in a tense battle for the Democratic nomination in the 2nd Congressional District.

Muriel Bowser won the District of Columbia’s Democratic mayoral primary Tuesday, defeating incumbent Vincent Gray in a race defined by a scandal involving Gray’s campaign four years ago. Bowser tapped into an electorate that tired of the allegations surrounding Gray. Five people who worked on the mayor’s 2010 campaign have pleaded guilty to felonies, and Bowser said the city needed a fresh start as the mayor faced potential criminal charges. Bowser, 41, is a D.C. councilmember and a protégé of former Mayor Adrian Fenty, whom Gray defeated in 2010. …

Woman Who Can’t Afford Her Own Birth Control Switches to Run for California State SenatePosted By Bryan Preston On February 5, 2014 @ 7:58 am In Politics | No Comments Sandra Fluke, the Georgetown grad best known for telling America that she can’t afford her own birth control, spent $1,740 on the filing fee to run for Congress. Now Fluke says she isn’t running for Congress. Instead, she is running for state Senate. Democratic attorney and activist Sandra Fluke has decided against running for retiring Rep. Henry A. Waxman’s congressional seat, instead planning a bid for the state Senate. “I...

OKLAHOMA CITY - Oklahoma Democratic Party chairman Wallace Collins says former U.S. Rep. Dan Boren is considering running for Tom Coburn's U.S. Senate seat. Boren served four terms as a U.S. Congressman then went on to work for the Chickasaw Nation as president of their corporate development department. Boren was the state's only Democratic member of Congress, serving the 2nd District.

South Carolina Democrats hope a combination of enthusiasm, a desire to change the direction of the state and more careful vetting of people seeking the party's nominations will help them make gains next election. Democrats acknowledge they need some wins. All nine statewide offices are run by Republicans, along with eight of the state's nine congressmen. A Democrat hasn't won a statewide race since 2006, and the party hasn't taken a statewide or federal office back from the Republicans since 1998. State Democratic Party Chairman Jamie Harrison says the party has talked to credible, competent challengers for every statewide race...

Popular former Gov. Brian Schweitzer said Saturday morning that he will not run for Montana's open U.S. Senate seat in 2014, an announcement that complicates Democratic efforts to retain their majority in next year's elections. Schweitzer told The Associated Press that he doesn't want to leave Montana and go to Washington, D.C. He had been considered the Democrats best candidate for holding onto the seat being vacated by U.S. Sen. Max Baucus next year. Schweitzer said he felt compelled to consider the race only because many in his party said they needed him to run.

Mullins: Low Turnout Just Shows Dems Had No Good Choices for Lt. Gov., Attorney General Statement of RPV Chairman Pat Mullins: "Amid very low turnout from their own party, Virginia Democrats have fielded a ticket that is weak - from top to bottom - and incapable of winning in November. The lack of enthusiasm from Virginia Democrats is understandable given that this is a ticket that is not focused on nor is credible on the primary concern of Virginians: creating jobs. In Terry McAuliffe, Democrats have nominated a failed crony capitalist who has used his insider connections to profit from...

Newark (NJ) Mayor Cory Booker will enter the race for US Senate, a campaign aide confirmed Friday.

If Charlie Crist runs for governor as a Democrat, he’s going to lose. He’ll either get rubbed out in the Democratic primary, or he’ll lose to Gov. Rick Scott in the general. If Crist runs for governor, rank-and-file Democratic voters will never again trust the party leaders who support Crist. Terence McCoy, of the alternative New Times Broward-Palm Beach, made some excellent points in Five Reasons Charlie Crist Will Not Run For Governor, which I urge everyone to read. McCoy thinks Crist won’t run, but every Democratic leader I know who’s been talking to Crist says he will, and they’re...

The embattled mayor of Pennsylvania's financially crippled capital of Harrisburg was ousted on Tuesday when she lost the Democratic primary to the owner of an independent bookstore. Mayor Linda Thompson's loss to Eric Papenfuse comes after a tumultuous term in which her outbursts and statements caused a loss of confidence in her administration. Papenfuse is likely to win the general election in this heavily Democratic city in November, but he must still face off against independent candidate Nevin Mindlin.

The bad news? Between this and what’s going on in South Carolina, American voters seem to have finally jettisoned any pretense of standards for their political leaders.The good news? We’re still on track for a Sanford-versus-Weiner presidential election in 2028. Cross those fingers. According to the poll, if Weiner entered the Democratic primary today, his 15 percent would put him behind Quinn’s 26 percent but ahead of City Comptroller John Liu (12 percent), de Blasio (11 percent), Thompson (11 percent) and former City Councilman Sal Albanese (2 percent).By comparison, without Weiner, Quinn would receive 30 percent of Democratic votes and...

Anthony Weiner is on a roll. A week after floating his name as a possible mayoral candidate, the disgraced former congressman finishes second when he’s included in the field of Democrats, a new poll reveals. Weiner — who resigned from office in 2011 after getting caught in a sexting scandal — said he’s mulling a political comeback by running for mayor.

As Gov. Martin O’Malley’s gun control proposal works its way through the Maryland General Assembly, gun rights activists already are preparing payback for those legislators who are allowing it through. Patrick Shomo, president of Maryland Shall Issue, a gun rights group, said he’s seen a movement in the gun rights community to register new voters in anticipation of the 2014 statewide election, and in some cases to switch membership from Republican to Democratic. ------------------------cut----------------------- But soon the emphasis will shift, Shomo said, to fielding pro-gun rights candidates who can oust incumbents who voted for the gun bill. “We’re going to...

LOUISVILLE, Ky (WHAS11) -- After two decades in front of the camera as an actress and more recently as an activist, Ashley Judd has been unguarded in her comments -- a candor which might cause complications if she runs for U.S. Senate from Kentucky. As Judd inches closer to a decision, her outspoken nature is yielding decades of pointed and controversial comments which Kentucky Democratic strategists concede are a gold mine for the campaign of potential opponent, U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell (R). Judd's essays and speeches are easily accessible on her website. In one, she criticized the tradition of a...

Middlesex District Attorney Gerard Leone tells the Herald he’s considering getting into the Democratic race for U.S. Senate, a move that could shock the party establishment and completely shake up the special election battle. “I’m going to give it some thought,” Leone said in an interview, adding that he’s been besieged by calls from supporters urging him to get in the race — especially since former GOP Sen. Scott Brown announced yesterday he was not running. The only two announced candidates are Democratic congressmen Stephen Lynch of South Boston and Edward Markey of Malden. Markey, who has the backing of...

Queens state Sen. Shirley Huntley was indicted Aug. 27 charged w/ falsifying documents to conceal govt fraus---her niece and and aide aide allegedly siphoned $30,000 from Huntley's sham tax-funded non-profit. Rivera gave two boy toys tax-funded jobs at a do-nothing non-profit to which she funnelled govt funds. Anothr was ensconced as a "full-timer" in her Assembly office while paid $90,000 as a full-time public-school teacher. Four investigative agencies are probing Rivera’s hiring practices. Rivera even lost in latino precincts once considered her strongholds.

A Texas felon gave President Obama a run for his money in the West Virginia Democratic primary, beating Obama in several counties and winning enough of the vote to be eligible for at least one delegate at the convention, according to the Associated Press. Perennial candidate Keith Russell Judd, currently serving 210 months in a federal prison, is currently pulling down roughly 40 percent of the vote to Obama's 60 percent. Judd has caused problems in other elections as well. In 2008, Idaho Democrats were peeved Judd qualified for the ballot, with one Democratic official calling him a "yahoo prisoner...