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Theory? Or Fact?
by Jon Fleischman - Publisher
3-10-2006 7:45 pm
I've been contacted by several people advancing this theory, explaining what happenned today with Gallegly...
Supposedly the Congressman filed for reelection, and THEN decided (due to health reasons) that he would not run again - apparently not realizing that once you file your candidacy, you cannot "unfile" - thus he is on the ballot, and because he (the incumbent) technically filed for re-election, filing closed. I was told that Gallegly had assumed he would be able to "unfile" and this filing would be open for another week....
Now we have this bizarre situation of Gallegly on the GOP ballot but not wanting to be, this unknown guy, Tannenbaum.
Rumor has it that Strickland may seek legal recourse on Monday, asking a judge to extend filing in light of this bizarre thwarting of the democratic process...
As of 7:57 pm tonight there is no "unknown guy, Tannenbaum" on the ballot. The only filings for CA-24 are Gallegly (R), Jill Martinez (D), and Mary Pallant (D).
Gallegly is a putz. Of course you can't "unfile" for an office. Neither are you allowed to withdraw your name from the ballot. Maybe he should have read his filing documents once out of the twenty years he's been in office.
If he was really so sick he ought to resign, and consulting with staff for TWO WEEKS over how to get his name off the ballot he should have announced his two weeks ago.
Fine - We're rid of Thomas thank God, and of Gallegly, who until yesterday I admired a lot, especially for being stalwart against illegal immigration.
It's not impossible that someone might believe this. The rules for state legislative offices permit a five day extension if there's no incumbent running.