Few Candidates for Top Election Job
Why are there only two candidates for Iowa Secretary of State?
It’s an open seat. Ambitious, risk-averse politicians crave open seats. But they aren’t craving this one.
Here we have a state won by Gore in 2000 but by Bush in 2004. In both years there was talk of seeking a recount. In this state there are 610,000 active Republican voters and 602,000 active Democrats–-a virtual tie. In the Iowa State Senate there are 25 Republicans and 25 Democrats–-a literal tie.
Last year the Governor ignited a furor by easing the way for felons to get back their voting rights. The year before that the Secretary of State was criticized for merely sending a voter registration form to every postal address in Iowa. At this moment a critical election law bill requiring auditable paper trails lies stuck in a House committee even though it passed unanimously in the Senate and even though HAVA hearings around the state last year produced only one clear public demand—FOR PAPER TRAILS!!!
Despite all this controversy there is just one Democrat seeking the job of Secretary of State. There is just one Republican. And the Republican looks like a mere place holder.
January 15th, 2006 at 1:43 pm
In Michigan where we have a Republican Secretary of State not a single Democrat has stepped forward to challenge the incumbent. The time to recruit candidates for these races is NOW. Any serious statewide campaign needs to start getting its ducks in a row very soon.