Filing Day, 2014

By Bill Kraus


June 2 was Filing Day for 2014 legislative candidates, and a lot of things were settled.

Sixteen Republicans and 16 Democrats were elected to the Assembly as were two senators, maybe three.

None of these people will have to campaign for themselves or answer any embarrassing questions.

The same can be said for the six candidates who have no major party opposition in the primary and whose coronation will have to be delayed until August when their third-party opponents will be dispatched.

There are also going to be seven Assembly candidates facing intra-party opposition in August. Five of these will result in an unopposed Republican on the November ballot.

The split in the Senate is one Dem and one Republican elected. The situation in the 1st district, where the Dems had charged that unless he lives in a Post Office Box Senator Lasee is not a resident of the 1st district has been settled in his favor. The GAB called this complaint “frivolous.”

The Dem challengers to Senator Lasee have problems of their own. One of their candidate's nomination papers produced a denial and the another one’s is “pending,” which doesn’t sound positive, and could result in Senator Lasee joining Senators Erpenbach and Carpenter as elected on June 2.

Let's put aside the battle for control of the state Senate aside, where the Democrats have to win three seats to gain a majority, which is regarded as difficult but not impossible.

The Assembly is definitely going to be Republican even though there are presumably but not actually some 60 seats up for grabs. Even though there are major party candidates in all 60, the combination of clustering and gerrymandering has reduced the really competitive races to no less than 10 and no more than 20.

Most of us, like me, are spectators in the state Legislature contests. My Assembly Representative is unopposed and was “elected” on June 2. My state senator is not up this year.

Is there something wrong with this picture?

There is.

Can it be fixed?

Partially.

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