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* Gov. Pat Quinn went on the attack yesterday after Scott Lee Cohen’s announcement that he plans to run for governor as an independent. The governor also tossed in a shot at Bill Brady while he was at it…
The full Quinn quote…
“I really have no interest in talking to Mr. Cohen. I bumped into him at the ballpark opening day and I said hello to him and he said he had a surprise for me. Well, y’know. I’ve been competitive all my life. And I can handle any competition. And I think whether it’s Senator Brady with his extreme record opposing things that help working women to Mr. Cohen to his record both in his private and public life, I think I’m a much superior candidate to both of them.”
* Bill Brady’s response to the Cohen announcement…
Scott Lee Cohen’s announcement today comes after Forrest Claypool last month declared he would run as an independent against Joe Berrios for Cook County Assessor.
Whether he manages to get on the ballot or not, Scott Lee Cohen is certainly in a position to speak about the backroom deals he’s seen during this unusual saga. Regardless of who ends up being a candidate for governor in November, Bill Brady will continue to call for a clean break from the old politics in Illinois.
* Green Party nominee Rich Whitney also got into the act…
Even assuming that he gets on the ballot, I am not overly concerned by Mr. Cohen’s presence in the race. He seems to be positioning himself as some sort of centrist. But being in the “center” between two candidates who each support devastating cuts to education and essential social services, who won’t fix our broken tax system, and who have no original ideas for creating real job opportunities for Illinoisans, is nothing to brag about.
* Zorn bemoans the hoops Cohen will have to jump through…
Not only is the man clearly in the grips of a grandiose delusion — given his heavy baggage and light political resume — he’s also headed straight into the buzz saw of Illinois’ daunting petition process to get on the ballot, a process that routinely turns well-organized men and women into political wood chips.
In seven weeks, Cohen must gather 25,000 nominating signatures from registered voters. It’s one of the top 10 steepest requirements in the nation for independents who want to run for governor, according to data compiled by Richard Winger of San Francisco, publisher of Ballot Access News. […]
In Florida, for example, if you’ve been following the wild politics down there, Republican Gov. Charlie Crist will simply pay a $10,440 filing fee to run as an independent in November against presumptive Republican primary winner Marco Rubio and Democrat Kendrick Meek.
The signatures aren’t my biggest beef. It’s the complicated election laws that have to be followed which often boggle my mind. For instance, here’s a legal hurdle that Joe Berrios will allegedly try to force independent Forrest Claypool to clear...
Berrios and his legal team are ready to argue that no [petition] signature can be admitted from anyone who so much as voted in February’s primary. Simply by going to the polls and requesting a party’s primary ballot—no matter whether Democratic, Republican, or Green—a voter aligned himself with that party, they say, and thereby disqualified himself from signing Claypool’s independent petition.
If Berrios wins on this point, there’s practically no way Claypool will be able to present 25,000 good signatures. Yes, the election turnout was low in February’s primaries—only 761,626, roughly a quarter of the registered electorate. But it’s the politically active quarter that Claypool’s signatures are most likely to come from.
Right now, we have two directly opposite state appellate court cases on this general topic and we really need the Illinois Supreme Court to step in and resolve it now because the GA doesn’t appear willing to do so.
* Cohen, meanwhile, says he hasn’t decided whether to use professional petition gatherers…
Cohen says he hasn’t decided whether to hire people to help him gather the signatures.
COHEN: We have not gotten that far yet. We need a running mate.
Anyone interested in being his running mate, Cohen says, should call him or send him a resume.
Relying on volunteers will be deathly. The League of Women Voters tried the same thing (until they offered a $10,000 bounty to the Young Chicago Republicans at the end) and failed miserably to get their constitutional amendment on the ballot. The same fate awaits Cohen if he uses volunteers.
* Video of Cohen’s announcement…
posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 10:21 am
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Too bad Quinn can’t extend his Put Illinois to Work program to Cohen & Company.
Comment by Brennan Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 10:27 am
If I recall, you are theoretically allowed to sign petititons for an independent even if you took a primary ballot… you cannot sign for a third party (or at least that’s where the debate comes in).
There isn’t a conflict with being a Republican/Democrat/Green/etc and supporting an independent. There is, potentially, a conflict with supporting multiple parties.
Comment by John Bambenek Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 10:32 am
What a strange comment by Brady…why did he bring up Claypool in relation to Cohen?
Anyway, Cohen is not a real candidate. He has virtually no chance of getting on the ballot, even if he uses paid petitioners. He doesn’t even appear to be TRYING to look like a real candidate. No running mate, no petitioners? No petition?
I think he’s attempting to clear his loans to himself from his failed Lt. Gov. bid, and he’s also a convenient distraction for what’s really going on (or not going on) this week in the state legislature.
Comment by PFK Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 10:35 am
- And I think whether it’s Senator Brady with his extreme record posing things that help working women -
I can’t watch the video at the moment but I’m guessing NBC misquoted here and that should say opposing?
Comment by Small Town Liberal Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 10:41 am
*What a strange comment by Brady…why did he bring up Claypool in relation to Cohen?*
I can see the Brady campaign seeing value in linking the two to say “the Dems are so messed up they have folks defecting from to give voters another option.”
Comment by Montrose Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 10:43 am
As offensive as Granger Terry suckering this dupe in to spend more money in his deeply held psychological need for redemption, it’s way more offensive that he trots his poor kids out. He first did it at the withdrawal and then here.
There’s a special place in hell for people who do this to their kids. I feel very sorry for them.
Comment by Chicago Cynic Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 10:46 am
A quick quibble, almost every candidate in Florida pays the filing fee. I think I read somewhere that Meek was the first state-wide candidate ever to submit signatures rather than simply pay the fee.
Comment by chuddery Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 10:50 am
I’m surprised at how polite Brady, Quinn, Whitney were in their statements. Why not pick a fight with him, as you know he’ll fire back, and women certainly hate SLC now?
Comment by Robert Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 10:51 am
- Why not pick a fight with him, as you know he’ll fire back, and women certainly hate SLC now? -
To me it would seem like picking a fight or showing any emotion about Cohen’s decision to run might legitimize it to some voters. Treating him like a harmless moron might be the safer way to go.
Comment by Small Town Liberal Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 10:56 am
Yeah, we should make it much easier for anyone to get their name on the ballot. That’ll help alot. We are already the laughing stock of the country. Remember when California went thru its’ recall circus? There were dozens of folk, most weirder than Cohen, running for that spot. I know that some of these rules are too much but let’s be careful what we wish for. Not that we have much to worry about - those in power will make sure that the primary system remains much the same. We have 4 candidates for gov now - do we really need more? I listened to SLC on 560 AM earlier today. I won’t comment for fear that someone might think this person is a viable candidate for anything.
Comment by dupage dan Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 11:00 am
We have more than four candidates for governor. I copied this list from www.politics1.com:
“GOVERNOR & LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR:
Pat Quinn (D)* - & Sheila Simon (D) - Ex-Carbondale City Councilwoman, Law Professor, Attorney & Daughter of Ex-US Sen. Paul Simon
Bill Brady (R) - State Sen., Developer & ‘06 Candidate
& Jason Plummer (R) - Lumber Company Executive
Michael White (Constitution) - Speech Therapy Clinic Business Manager & Retired USAF Officer
& Jeff Trexler (Constitution) - State Party Chairman
Rich Whitney (Green) - Attorney, Ex-Journalist & Frequent Candidate
& Don Crawford (Green) - Teacher, Environmental Activist & ‘08 Fayette County Commission Nominee
Lex Green (Libertarian) - Auto Worker
& Ed Rutledge (Libertarian) - Financial Executive & Chicago Libertarian Chair
William “Dock” Walls (Independent) - Ex-Chicago Mayoral Aide & Frequent Candidate
& Runningmate Not Yet Named”
The petition requirements should be the same, for all parties.
Comment by Conservative Veteran Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 11:10 am
> We have 4 candidates for gov now
I wouldn’t count Cohen as a real candidate. He’s not anywhere close to getting on the ballot. There are only 3 ballot-qualified candidates.
He’s also not the only candidate trying to get on the ballot (to the extent that he’ll actually try). Doc Walls is petitioning as an independent, along with candidates from the Libertarian and Constitution parties. And I’m sure there are others who will file. Of those, I think the Libertarians may have the best chance of actually getting on the ballot, but who knows.
Comment by PFK Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 11:16 am
Cohen is just looking for suckers to try and recoup some of the money he spent in the primary.
I’ll be amazed if he gets on the ballot. And will be interesting to see who leads the petition challenge if he files. Quinn’s camp I assume.
Comment by just sayin' Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 11:21 am
I did not include SLC’s name as a candidate since he doesn’t have the requisite 25,000 names on a petition. I should be clear and ask a better question. How many people RIGHT NOW have met the requirements for candidacy for gov? 2? Have the candidates for the Green or Libertarian party met the requirments? I know the other 2 haven’t. Call back when your name is on the ballot. I believe you have until June sometime. Boy, it’s gonna be a long summer.
Comment by dupage dan Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 11:24 am
I assume Bill Brady didn’t want to pick a fight because he wants Cohen in the race. It’s possible that he is naive enough to think that Democrats will go for the guy. Who know, maybe they are that naive, but I kinda doubt it. It’s also possible he knows that the more horses in the race, the better his chances (i.e. GOP Primary).
Comment by ShadyBillBrady Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 11:26 am
Oh, Mr Shady, you say that Democrats might be naive about their candidates. Are you really handing us one that easy or were you just kidding?
Comment by dupage dan Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 11:29 am
From page 48 of the “2010 Candidates Guide”, http://elections.il.gov/Downloads/ElectionInformation/PDF/2010Canguide.pdf
3. Can a voter sign an established party petition and a new party and/or independent petition? Yes, a voter may sign an established party candidate’s petition prior to a General Primary Election and subsequent to that Election, sign a petition of an independent OR new political party candidate prior to a General Election. The voter may not however, sign a petition of more than one established political party candidate nor may he sign more than one independent or new political party candidate’s petition for the same office. (10 ILCS 5/7-10, 10-3)
And yes, the Supreme Court of Illinois will be taking up Hossfeld v. Rauschenberger:
http://dailyherald.com/story/?id=368396
Comment by Scott Summers Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 11:41 am
=Cohen says he hasn’t decided whether to hire people to help him gather the signatures.=
Well if he doesn’t hire people to help with petitions, how in God’s name does he think he’s going to get 25,000 in a few short weeks? He’ll need more than 25,000 to offset bad signatures and it is a very time consuming effort.
You know all his petitions will be scrutinized with a fine tooth comb. At a buck or two a signature, you encourage people to round table the sheets.
SLC has a tall task ahead of him.
Comment by Just Wondering Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 11:47 am
The last day, for new parties and independents, to filed their petitions is June 21.
Comment by Conservative Veteran Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 12:01 pm
To people forced to deal with our legal systems as a defendant, the legal “hurdles” those of us have never had to experience, aren’t a deterrent, but a way of life.
Comment by VanillaMan Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 1:26 pm
The good news is that the SLC story will be over relatively soon.
Comment by Bubs Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 1:32 pm
Cohen first example of decision making ability…. weeks from deadline he is debating whether he needs a professional service experienced at gathering schedules, and he still has no running mate.
Any chance he is not really intending to be a true canidate but isntead is hoping to cash in on a few media deals, reality series etc aka blago/palin style.
Comment by Ghost Tuesday, May 4, 10 @ 1:40 pm