I know it would be great for Edwards

but is a special election really worth it?  I mean the time and money involved is kind of crazy.  Plus, with the House ending early (due to the elections), the seat wouldn't be open for that long.

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by: wmlawman @ Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 21:34:26 PM UTC

Special could coincide with the General?

Maybe Gov. O'Malley could schedule the special election for the general election? (Like Shelley Sekula-Gibbs' election to Congress for 2 months and the lame duck session at the end of the 109th.)

It'd give Edwards seniority in Congress, and come at a relatively minimal cost; an extra box to touch/bubble to fill in on the GE ballot.

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by: jeffmd @ Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 21:38:33 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Seniority, yes. She'd have a leg up on at least 20+ new members

It is worth it.  

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by: JeremiahTheMessiah @ Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 21:43:28 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Seniority

At the present time, if a special election is held, she would outrank at least 32 others, even if no incumbent is defeated in November.

In the beginning, the major benefit of seniority to Edwards is that she will get a nicer suite of offices, since office space  is assigned strictly on the basis of seniority.  She and others elected since November 2006 would get to choose before the lottery is held for the members of the class of 2009.  Otherwise, it takes a couple of terms before seniority makes a difference in the House.  Personal relationships are much more  important.  If she gets a choice initial committee assignment, chalk it up to Hoyer and/or Van Hollen rather than a few extra months of seniority.

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by: Vadranor @ Fri Mar 28, 2008 at 20:43:30 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Is there a law?

that requires a certain amount of time pass between a resignation and a special election...like could O'Malley call it in June?  

Liberty Avenue Politics - a place for politics in Southern Queens

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by: nrafter530 @ Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 21:39:38 PM UTC

Graceful exit by Al Wynn

I do give him full credit for that.

But then of course, if he's gonna be a lobbyist, he'll be more effective if he's on speaking terms with all the Members, even the one who knocked him out of the office!

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by: WoodyNYC @ Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 23:56:59 PM UTC

Not as graceful as it could be

If he really wanted to be graceful he'd get out right away rather than hanging around till June for an extended period of possible conflicts of interest, and making it harder to schedule the special election required to keep his constituents from going half a year with no representation in the House (something their neighbors in DC have had to deal with for 200 years, but that doesn't make it any more acceptable).

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by: KCinDC @ Fri Mar 28, 2008 at 18:32:35 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I think he waited a proper ammount of time

If he would have exited right away, he would have looked like a sore loser.  Angry.  Upset.  Etc.  

In the discussion that has occured so far, nobody has brought up Marylands special elections laws.  So until we go over what the law is, we shouldn't complain about how hard he is making it for everyone.  

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by: JeremiahTheMessiah @ Fri Mar 28, 2008 at 20:42:58 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Title 8, Subtitle 7:

http://www.elections.state.md....

Basically, since this vacancy occurred "the period beginning 60 days before the regular primary election and ending on the last day of the term, the Governor may:

(i) decline to issue a proclamation; and
(ii) allow the office to remain vacant for the remainder of the term."

O'Malley gets a choice on whether he wants a special or not.

Editorializing here, I find this a bit arcane. Essentially, given this primary cycle, a Congressman could have stepped down December 14, 2007 (60 days before the primary on February 12th, 2008), and the seat could be left vacant until the 111th Congress is sworn in, January 3, 2009 - a full year and three weeks later.

If there is a special, the special would be announced in the next week or so. The primary for the special would be a Tuesday that is 36 or more days after the announcement. The general for the special would be a Tuesday at least 6 weeks after the primary.

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by: jeffmd @ Sat Mar 29, 2008 at 02:15:13 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Not clear

The question is whether the vacancy can become known to the governor when it hasn't occurred yet. After all, until Wynn has actually stepped down, he can always change his mind. If O'Malley has to wait until the vacancy to make the proclamation, we may not know until June what he decides.

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by: KCinDC @ Sat Mar 29, 2008 at 13:02:59 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Good point.

You're right, I don't think its considered a vacancy until the Congressperson actually steps down.

Thus, if Wynn leaves in June, the primary would be at earliest mid-July or early August; the general would be at earliest late August or mid-September. At that point, it may not be worth it to hold a separate election.

Tangentially, for you superdelegate trackers out there, this looks like -1 for Obama. Wynn won't be around for Denver, and Donna Edwards (also an Obama supporter), probably won't be elected by August 26th. Wynn would have to step down before June 10th, and O'Malley would have to schedule the elections at the earliest possible times under state law.

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by: jeffmd @ Sat Mar 29, 2008 at 19:04:21 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Probably

You're probably right, unfortunately, but see my comments at DemConWatch for another possible way of handling the situation, as used in Oklahoma in 2002.

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by: KCinDC @ Sat Mar 29, 2008 at 22:46:37 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Alright, Thank you. NT

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by: JeremiahTheMessiah @ Sat Mar 29, 2008 at 16:36:30 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

he gets no credit

this action is going to cost the state over 2 million dollars at a time of a major budget crunch.  That 2 million that won't  go for schools, public safety or environmental protection.  The last selfish act of a selfish politician.

www.trublupolitics.com

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by: Politicalhack @ Sat Mar 29, 2008 at 04:09:35 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

In proportion

Maybe $2 million seems like a lot of money to some people, but more than that was spent in Iraq while I was reading your comment. Hey, I wonder if we could find one trust fund baby who has paid $2 million a year less in taxes than she would have otherwise after W's tax cuts for the rich? Sure. Could we find 1,000? Sure. Or 10,000? I think so. Maybe 100,000 or more. Even 1,000,000.

Anyway, I'm willing to see $2 million spent on a special election -- that's democracy. If we didn't want Al Wynn out of office sooner than later, why was a million or more spent in primaries to get him out?

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by: WoodyNYC @ Sat Mar 29, 2008 at 16:23:00 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

its plenty of money

for a state that already has to cut at least 200 million in the next month to balance the budget.  And it was completely unnecessary and will only be spent because of the selfishness of Al Wynn.

www.trublupolitics.com

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by: Politicalhack @ Sat Mar 29, 2008 at 20:13:53 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Unnecessary what?

What's got your panties in a knot? Wynn lost the primary because most of the Democrats in the district didn't want him any more. He agrees to leave ahead of schedule. Good, they didn't want him, so leave.

Wynn also points out that by leaving early, he'll give his successor a head start. Good for her, good for his district. Of course, good for him too, because he starts making lobbyist money sooner. But good for us, we get a solidly progressive Member in the House sooner. It's worth it. Let's get on with the election.

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by: WoodyNYC @ Sun Mar 30, 2008 at 00:33:03 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

He's leaving early

is just another example of his contempt for the people of this district.  Its either going to harm his district or the state.  Its a bad deal either way.

www.trublupolitics.com

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by: Politicalhack @ Sun Mar 30, 2008 at 03:39:14 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Whatever

The people of his district asked him to leave. He's leaving. How can this be a bad thing? Well, whatever.

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by: WoodyNYC @ Mon Mar 31, 2008 at 04:10:39 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

what do you know about the people of district

from NYC.  The people here are very pissed at his actions right now.  But just throw me another whatever.

www.trublupolitics.com

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by: Politicalhack @ Mon Mar 31, 2008 at 20:18:35 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Whoah

I've gotta say from the outside it is hard to understand your Vitriol.  I understand that he was not deemed a good rep and that is why he lost the primary.  But having lost the primary what do you think he should do?  Would you be less angry if he rode out the term?

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by: Johnny C @ Mon Mar 31, 2008 at 21:55:07 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

O.K.

Whatever.

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by: WoodyNYC @ Wed Apr 02, 2008 at 04:30:32 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

If only...

Liebersuck would have followed suit in 2006, Ned Lamont would've been representing CT.  

Oh well, Wynn deserves credit for making an exit as such.

Go Edwards!!

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by: blueandwhite31 @ Fri Mar 28, 2008 at 04:53:31 AM UTC

We need a special election

Gov O'Malley should call a special soon. It's worth it. because it's never right for the constituents to be without a Representative for long, and six months is 1/4 of the two-year term!

We should be especially sensitive about denying voters their say. The way the Repubs and their Democratic allies in FL and MI made a mess of things doesn't make us look good. Then skipping an election in MD and letting the citizens go without a voice in Congress would only add to the bad impression.

And Donna Edwards is the epitome of a "better Democrat" from the push for "more and better Democrats." We need her in the House, the Democratic Caucus, and the Cong. Black Caucus to put her vote and her influence to work a.s.a.p. A few months on-the-job training before January would increase her influence in that next Congress -- along with the extra seniority from the head start.

Finally, having Donna Edwards go around as "the Democratic nominee and expected winner" rather than "the Congresswoman from Maryland" diminishes her -- and slights her constituents.

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by: WoodyNYC @ Fri Mar 28, 2008 at 16:17:23 PM UTC

O'Malley looking at special election

Gov. O'Malley is looking at the possibility of special legislation to make it possible to hold a special election without holding a special primary first, thus getting Edwards into office sooner.

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by: KCinDC @ Wed Apr 02, 2008 at 19:34:48 PM UTC