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RandySF's JournalThree announced candidates qualify for state Dem chair, other offices uncontested
All three announced candidates for chair of the state Dem Party met the requirements to qualify for the race at next month’s convention.
The other four races will be uncontested, including state Treasurer Sarah Godlewski’s bid to become first vice-chair, the party’s No. 2 leadership post.
Those who will be on the ballot for chair are: 3rd CD Dem Chair William Garcia, former party Executive Director Devin Remiker and operative Joe Zepecki.
The others who met Saturday’s filing deadline and had their paperwork certified by the party yesterday are: Joshua Taylor, 2nd vice-chair; Kim Butler, secretary; and state Rep. Randy Udell, treasurer.
https://www.wispolitics.com/2025/three-announced-candidates-qualify-for-state-dem-chair-other-offices-uncontested/
GOP bill would make it easier to appeal complaints rejected by Wisconsin Elections Commission
Months after the Wisconsin Supreme Court rejected a complaint about a Racine mobile-voting van, Republican lawmakers are pushing to make it easier to bring future complaints to court if they’re dismissed by the Wisconsin Elections Commission.
When the Supreme Court’s liberal majority threw out a lawsuit in February challenging a mobile-voting van used by Racine in 2022, it said former Racine County Republican Party Chair Kenneth Brown’s complaint shouldn’t have even been heard by circuit court in the first place.
Writing for the majority, liberal Justice Jill Karofsky said Brown didn’t prove the Wisconsin Elections Commission’s decision to dismiss his complaint three years earlier “personally affected him.” In short, they said Brown didn’t suffer an injury and, therefore, didn’t have legal standing.
But now, a Republican bill would make it possible for anyone to appeal decisions rejecting an election complaint. To do that, the legislation would tweak state law by specifying that people who appeal WEC decisions in court will be considered to have standing, “regardless of whether the complainant has suffered an injury to a legally recognized interest.”
https://www.wpr.org/news/gop-bill-would-make-it-easier-to-challenge-wisconsin-elections-commission-decisions
Former Michigan House Speaker (R) and wife heading to trial on embezzlement charges
Former Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield and his wife were bound over for trial on embezzlement felonies and other criminal charges Friday, after an investigation by the Michigan Attorney General’s Office found the pair funneled money from their political nonprofit to fund their personal purchases.
Ingham County Judge Molly Hennessey Greenwalt heard arguments from the defense for Lee and Stephanie Chatfield and the Michigan Attorney General’s Office in February, determining this week that there was probable cause for the charges and the case should proceed to trial.
The Michigan Attorney General’s Office contends that through investigatory efforts by authorities beginning in 2021, it was discovered that the Chatfields had for years used nonprofit money to reimburse themselves for purchases at souvenir shops at Universal Studios during a family trip, transactions at retail stores like Coach and expenses at a strip club, amongst other expenditures.
The Chatfields’ attorney Mary Chartier has asserted that the charges brought against the former House Speaker, a prominent Republican in Michigan who raised millions of dollars while he was Speaker, are rooted in the political agenda for Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, a Democrat.
https://michiganadvance.com/briefs/former-michigan-house-speaker-and-wife-heading-to-trial-on-embezzlement-charges/
Plea deal for ex-councilman (R) involved in Matt O'Donnell sting operation
Former Mount Arlington Councilman John Windish has pleaded guilty to bribery charges connected to a controversial 2019 sting operation involving former tax appeal attorney Matt O’Donnell as the state’s cooperating witness in a small-ball sting operation that has proven to be an albatross for the embattled New Jersey Office of Public Integrity and Accountability.
Windish, now 72 and appearing before a judge virtually from a medical facility, admitted that he accepted an envelope with $7,000 in cash from O’Donnell. Prosecutors allege that Windish took the money in exchange for a commitment that he would vote to reappoint O’Donnell as the municipal attorney during a meeting at a hotel in Hanover in 2018. O’Donnell was wearing a wire.
The state is asking for a non-custodial sentence.
He lost the Republican primary that year. State law prohibited cash contributions of over $200.
https://newjerseyglobe.com/judiciary/plea-deal-for-ex-councilman-involved-in-matt-odonnell-sting-operation/
NJ-02: Northfield Democrat will run to take on Jeff Van Drew
Terri Reese says that when she began meeting with Democratic groups and showing up at rallies around Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-Dennis)’s district this year, she asked her fellow activists who would take up the mantle against the congressman in the 2026 midterm elections. No one was able to give her a definitive answer.
“At the very first meeting that I went to, I asked the question, ‘Who is running against Jeff Van Drew?’” Reese said. “‘They need to start today – to start calling out the things that are happening today. We can’t wait until March of 2026.’ And nobody could answer that question.”
“I got tired of waiting,” she continued. “So I said, ‘I’m going to put myself out there.’”
Reese – a former retail store manager, a single mom of two adult kids, and a lifelong Atlantic County resident – decided last month that she would run against Van Drew, who has represented a conservative-leaning swath of South Jersey in Congress since 2019. The 58-year-old Northfield Democrat has never run for office before and only recently became directly involved in politics, but she said that she has what it takes to take Van Drew down.
https://newjerseyglobe.com/congress/northfield-democrat-will-run-to-take-on-jeff-van-drew/
NJ-GOV: Sierra Club backs Mikie Sherrill (D)
he New Jersey Chapter of the Sierra Club, one of the state’s leading environmental advocacy organizations, today endorsed Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-Montclair) for the Democratic nomination for governor.
“With the Trump administration rolling back monumental achievements for both people and businesses, and core regulatory mechanisms and standards to protect us, there is no chance that we can let New Jersey be governed by someone following into the same path,” said Anjuli Ramos-Busot, the group’s New Jersey director. “We need a New Jersey governor that will stand up to the nonsense, and the cruelty that comes from the Trump administration.”
New Jersey Sierra Club Chapter Chair Rich Isaacs praised Sherrill’s record in Congress on environmental issues, including helping to secure $19 million in federal funding for clean school buses.
Sherrill promised to protect the state’s natural resources.
https://newjerseyglobe.com/campaigns/sierra-club-backs-mikie-sherrill/
NJ-GOV: Uber spends millions backing Fulop (D), Sherrill (D), Ciattarelli (R) in primary
Uber is spending millions on primary races this summer in a push to end high insurance costs for rideshare companies in New Jersey.
The spending is part of an ongoing push from Uber to end the insurance requirements, including a five-figure digital ad campaign earlier this month. The company has claimed that 33% of fares in New Jersey go directly to covering high insurance costs. Uber was also among the sponsors of the New Jersey Globe’s gubernatorial primary debates earlier this month.
“The cost of rideshare in New Jersey has become too expensive for many, and that is largely due to state-mandated insurance requirements,” Uber spokesperson Freddi Goldstein said in a statement. “We’re supporting candidates who are committed to making New Jersey more affordable – even if it means taking on special interests to do so.”
Uber’s PAC, Fair & Affordable New Jersey, gave $1 million to Workers for a Better New Jersey, a super PAC supporting Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop’s campaign for governor. A source close to Uber told the New Jersey Globe the company’s PAC sent $500k to Stand Together NJ, a super PAC supporting Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill, and another $500k to Kitchen Table Conservatives, a super PAC supporting Republican Jack Ciattarelli.
https://newjerseyglobe.com/campaigns/uber-spends-millions-on-primary-including-1m-behind-fulop/
Three candidates face off in Manhattan borough president debate
Three candidates vying to become the next Manhattan borough president went head-to-head in a NY1 debate.
The candidates include state Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal, who represents parts of the west side of Manhattan; Councilman Keith Powers, who represents parts of the east side of Manhattan; and Calvin Sun, who is an emergency physician.
The seat is currently occupied by Mark Levine, who is running for city comptroller.
Since it rolled out in January, the MTA argues that data shows congestion pricing below 60th Street is working by raising revenue and cutting down on Manhattan traffic.
https://ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/politics/2025/05/30/three-candidates-face-off-in-manhattan-borough-president-debate
Comptroller debate (D) spotlights split on Mayor Adams, unity on policy
In the first debate for this year’s city Comptroller Democratic primary, Brooklyn City Council Member Justin Brannan sought to close the polling gap between himself and front-runner Mark Levine by launching broadsides against the Manhattan borough president over his stance on Mayor Eric Adams, but the two candidates appeared aligned on most issues.
Throughout the hour-long program, the two candidates, the only ones in the four-way race who qualified for the debate stage, traded barbs over their respective approaches to the scandal-scarred Mayor Adams and how they would take on President Trump. However, there was very little daylight between them on most other topics, ranging from using the city’s pension funds to build affordable housing and auditing the NYPD’s overtime use.
The debate was hosted by Pix11 and the city Campaign Finance Board and was co-sponsored by Schneps Media — the parent company of amNewYork.
The clash followed a Wednesday Emerson College/Pix11/The Hill poll that showed Levine leading with 37% of voters listing him as their first choice, while Brannan trailed with 17%. However, the survey also revealed that 29% of voters are still undecided with the June 24 primary less than a month away.
https://www.amny.com/news/comptroller-debate-spotlights-split-on-mayor-adams-unity-on-policy/
NYC-CC39: 'Money vs. democracy': Hanif (D) and supporters accuse Uber of election interference
Rideshare drivers, delivery workers, labor activists and local Democrats rallied May 28 in Kensington with City Council Member Shahana Hanif, who accused Uber of interfering in the June 24 Democratic primary.
Campaign filings released May 28 show Uber has spent more than $129,000 on mail and digital ads backing Hanif’s opponent, local activist and NYU Brennan Center senior research fellow Maya Kornberg. The spending was funneled through Uber NY PAC, the company’s independent expenditure committee, which is not subject to candidate fundraising limits and cannot coordinate with campaigns. Uber also launched a website supporting Kornberg — a move not seen for any other city candidate this cycle.
Hanif, whose district includes parts of Kensington, Borough Park, Windsor Terrace, Park Slope, Gowanus, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill, Boerum Hill and the Columbia Waterfront, and her supporters say Uber’s backing of her primary opponent is no coincidence.
Hanif is the lead author of Intro. 204, which would grant Uber drivers and delivery workers access to paid sick leave, and co-author of Intro. 276, which would provide Uber drivers with “just cause” protections against unfair deactivations if passed. She has earned endorsements from 12 unions and the AFL-CIO’s NYC Central Labor Council. Hanif also championed campaigns by the New York Taxi Workers Alliance and Los Deliveristas Unidos to secure a livable minimum wage and wage theft restitution for Uber workers.
https://www.brooklynpaper.com/hanif-uber-election-interference/
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