Who’s running besides Schor?

Only six months ago, the names ofpossible replacements for term-limited state Rep. Joan Bauer,D-Lansing, next year in the Lansing-based 68th House District lookedlike a grocery list.

Now, less than six months away from theMay filing deadline, there’s only one clear candidate, Ingham CountyCommissioner Andy Schor. 

Schor made his expected announcementofficial last week by adding that he’s already raised $45,000. That’ssignificant. When the seat was last open in ’06, the eventual field ofsix Democratic candidates raised a combined $40,000 in the off year,2005.

Bauer, the eventual winner, raised $100,000 for her entire campaign. Schor is halfway there and it’s not even 2012.

Meanwhile, all of Schor’s potentialopponents have dropped off the earth. Kelly Bernero, daughter of MayorVirg Bernero, saw her chances go up in smoke when she was busted with alittle weed during an impaired driving stop.

Lansing City Council President A’LynneRobinson told me the night of her re-election that she was serving fourmore years on the Council.

Councilman Derrick Quinney got blown upin this fall during his successful reelection campaign for not takingthe 68th House seat off the table when talking to City Pulse. A sourceclose to Quinney told me running for the state House is not first onhis mind right now.

And former Lansing talk show host WaltSorg was drawn out of the 68th House District and into the 67th duringlast summer’s redistricting exercise.

Schor’s growing support and bank accountis effectively allowing him to clear the field of challengers with ashot at beating him in a Democratic primary. The only ones who couldpull it off are a no. Councilwoman Kathie Dunbar isn’t interested. CityClerk Chris Swope is looking at the county clerk’s job if Mike Bryantonretires.

Griffin Rivers, the former Ingham CountyDemocratic Party chairman, apparently is making calls and former mayorcandidate Charlie Ford is tossing around his name. Commissioner DaleCopedge was suggested as a possibility.

Somebody will run against Schor. It’s anopen seat. History shows this won’t be uncontested. But thestraight-laced and politically conscious Schor isn’t going to implode,meaning any potentially successful candidate has their work cut out forthem.

Legislative recalls attempts dead

Three local recall attempts atlegislative lawmakers — Senate Democratic Leader Gretchen Whitmer ofEast Lansing, Rep. Barb Byrum, D-Onondaga, and Rep. Mark Meadows,D-East Lansing, died Monday after the Republican activists charging thecampaign opted to pull the plug.

Stu Sandler, the Michigan RepublicanParty operative leading the statewide effort against Democraticlawmakers, told MIRS the attempt was aborted after a discussion ofparty leaders found that some key “strategic objectives” had alreadybeen accomplished.

The “strategic objectives” appeared tobe riling up organized labor and Democratic interest groups to preventthem from spending as much time and energy in southern Genesee County,where former Rep. Paul Scott was facing what ended up being asuccessful recall attempt against him.

The Michigan Education Associationbankrolled the Scott recall to send a message to its members that itwasn’t going to take unwanted reforms, like a complete re-write of thestate’s teacher tenure law, lying down. Fueled by Scott’s recentsupport of the pension tax, education cuts, the new emergency managerlaw and other Republican initiatives, the MEA attempted to make theScott recall a localized referendum on the policies of new Gov. RickSnyder.

Genesee County voters on Nov. 8 opted tobounce Scott by 233 votes, making him the first recalled legislator inMichigan since 1983.

Over the fall, Sandler’s team of localactivists tried to divert attention away from the district by targetingDemocrats for opting not to support Snyder’s initiatives — like endingthe Michigan Business Tax or putting a four-year lifetime cap onwelfare benefits.

He succeeded in getting recall languageapproved for six Democratic lawmakers and began actively collectingsignatures in at least one of the districts.

But the Ingham County ElectionsCommission — made up of Judge George Economy, County Clerk MikeBryanton and County Treasurer Eric Schertzing — somehow always foundthe recall language used against Byrum, Whitmer and Meadows unclear. 

Time and time again, Holt man RobertWalter submitted language to the commission. Time and time again, thethree Democrats dumped the language, even when Walter submitted theexact same language approved by election commissions in Wayne andOakland counties.

Bryanton couldn’t help himself in theByrum case on at least one vote, though, casting a dissenting “yes”vote in support of the recall language against his potential politicaladversary.