SD58 DFL Convention: bad news for Dominguez & Mullary
[Updated]
I just received an email that Bobby Joe Champion received the DFL endorsement over Willie Dominguez in 58B. On the other side, neither Peggy Flanagan nor Joe Mullery could gain endorsement in the 58A. My source says Mullery had 53% and Flanagan had 47%.
I posted about the race between Flanagan and Mullery here.
[Update]
Tim Bonham posted this on the Mpls Issues List:
endorsing convention today. Over 520 people in attendance, and they stayed
there for a long time.
Both the A & B side denied endorsements to the incumbent House legislators.
On the A side, 3 ballots were held, and it was basically a deadlock between
Peggy Flanagan (47%) and Joe Mullery (52%), and the convention then voted "No
Endorsement" (until after the primary). This motion passed almost unanimously;
with both campaigns saying the results were a victory for them.
On the B side, the first ballot had Bobbie Joe Champion at 54% and incumbent
Willie Dominguez at 45%. Bobbie Joe increased his lead on each ballot, until
receiving 68.7% on the 4th ballot and thus the DFL endorsement.
The convention also voted on Resolutions for the DFL platform, and had many
sub-caucuses to choose delegates for the State DFL Convention.
(Mpls Issues List)
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Stumble It!
It's attorney Bobby Joe
It's attorney Bobby Joe Champion, founder of the Excelsior Gospel Choir, who got endorsed on the 4th ballot today in 58B over Rep Willie Dominguez.
Peggy Flanagan and Joe Mullery agreed after 3 ballots to take it to the streets. Other challengers John Munger and Jonathan Palmer dropped after the first ballot and threw their support to Peggy. Peggy's youth and organizing skills should put her in good stead over old man Mullery.
My apologies ...
My sincere apologies, I'm typing too fast and not paying enough attention. I'll correct it.
Actually, while John and
Actually, while John and Jonathan both dropped after the first ballot, only John threw his support to Peggy. Jonathan encouraged people to "vote their conscience" which I actually respected more considering the amount of new people involved and the interesting insider politics at play.
More on SD58...
On the A side, from the looks on Joe Mullery's face he expected to do much worse. On the B side, Bobby Joe Champion won by getting his supporters to pack the caucuses. It's troubling that almost all of his support came from the african american community, and it had the sickly smell of a black versus brown battle for ghetto/barrio political turf. I'm white, and Bobby Joe and his campaign never even talked to me... and we have no idea where he stands on GLBT issues, etc.. In the senate race, the Franken folk were so worried that campaign honcho Andy Barr tried to get the convention adjourned before any delegates could be elected. They ended up splitting the 16 delegates with Jack and Uncommitted.
I know Peggy loosely through
I know Peggy loosely through acquaintances and I work with Mullery. I have to say, I'm not surprised about the dead-lock. Though Peggy profiles Joe as not representative of the people in his district and not in the community enough, he is pretty likable, very approachable and always votes the right way. He also seems trustworthy and humble, and Peggy is young, pretty and energetic.
Shoot! This race is goin' to give me a headache until the primary because I know and like both of them.
new and old ethnic political machines on the Northside...
I was literally born into the old Irish Northside political machine- reportedly considerable political hackery happened on the sidelines of mom and dad's wedding in '48. Joe Mullery is one of the last remnants of that dying political machine. The last time Joe was challenged a few of my aunts reappeared at the convention to give Joe their faithful votes, even though they'd moved to Robbinsdale. Those aunts and surely much of the old Northside Irish machine have passed on, and it's no surprise Joe's political fortunes are passing too.
Meanwhile, on the B side a new African American political force flexed it's muscles. At least after the first ballot one would expect uncommitted delegates such as myself would expect some persuasion from the leading candidate as he tries to reach the 60% endorsement threshold. There I was, wearing no buttons, stickers, etc. of either candidate and no one from the sizable Champion campaign contingent even tried to make small talk with me. Bobby Joe won the endorsement on the 4th ballot and I'll support him, but I wonder if the door to his office will be open to all constituents as it was when Dominguez, Ellison, Grey, and Jefferson occupied that office.
Bobby Joe Champion
Maybe you could have reached out to Bobby Joe Champion's motivated, passionate contingent instead of waiting for them to initiate "small talk" with you. I was a delegate at 58B and spoke with Bobby Joe twice and with quite a few of his supporters. Prior to the convention, Bobby Joe left messages on my answering machine asking me to call him to discuss issues four or five times, even though I live in the Warehouse District -- outside his base of support in North Minneapolis.
I went into the convention representing one of the precincts most solidly for Willie Dominguez. I was myself a supporter of Willie (he's done a good job for our district) and stuck with him through the first two ballots. The fact is that Bobby Joe made a better case for his candidacy as did the people who spoke for him -- including Keith Ellison, who argued that Bobby Joe could increase turnout on the North Side and thus help to elect a Democratic U.S. Senator and President. Willie and his supporters mostly based their appeal on his being an incumbent and able to bring state funds to the district. Bobby Joe actually articulated a vision for downtown, for the North Side, for education, and for the environment. I saw no sign he wouldn't be inclusive; indeed, just the opposite.
The great organizers lose again
It always make me chuckle when the TakeOverMN crowd crows about blocking an endorsement of a DFL incumbent.
When they first start out they say "we will out organzie the tired, old opponent". Then they come in second and say it is a victory because the prevented their party from making an endorsement.
If I was Mullery, I would add a tag line to my campaign literature that said something like "Preferred by a majority of Democrats".
Three ballots confirm that.
Perhaps the TakeOver crowd should focus on defeating some suburban and rural Republicans, rather than eating up valuable resources chewing up fellow DFLers.
More Liberal--It's clear to
More Liberal--It's clear to me that you know very little about TakeAction Minnesota. The organization's had serious and significant legislative victories in both the suburbs and in rural parts of the state. In 2006, they won 61 of 68 races they entered. Can you name a single organization that's had that kind of electoral success in the state?
I like Peggy's chances in the primary. I'll be on the doors for her, and I know other TakeAction leaders will be as well. Yesterday's battle was a draw (An incumbent in the legislature as long as Joe Mullery should've easily won on the first ballot with more than 70%. That's standard in an urban district like this one. The fact that he didn't win 60% indicates that things are changing in the district.) I don't think the primary will be that close.
Top down decision
It is hard to imagine that party leadership did not know of and support the challenges to both candidates. These kind of challenges are so rarely successful without at least tacit support from those higher up the flow chart. The fact that it was these two legislators in particular makes it seem even more likely.
None of that is really a bad thing as part of the responsibility of party leadership is to decide who deserves what kind of support. If the goal was real little "d" democracy we wouldn't need parties or party leadership.
Republcans enjoy DFL in-fighting in SD 58
Oh Anonymous,
Please don't spend all your summer working for one Democrat to beat another.That's what the Republican want you to do.
Maybe you should spend the time you plan to be doorknocking for Peggy Flanagan in one of the many districts where Republican won by less than a few hundred votes in 2006, or where DFLers only won by a few hundred votes and need your help this time around.
Because when it is all said and done Mullery and Flangan would both vote to re-elect Margaret the Speaker and will have votes close to 95% (or greater) the same.
What we really need is a veto proof majority in the House, and wasting resources on Democrats eating other Democrats alive are be better used in defeating Republicans.
TakeOverMN's record is great. I applaud them. But let's focus our fire on Republicans.
Playing musical chairs in District 58 won't override Pontius Pawlenty.
How many new Democratic voters could you register if you used your time productively?
A vote is a vote
How many democratic voters could you register if you used your time productively? My guess is a much higher number in north Mpls than in places like White Bear Lake or Edina.
I understand the desire to throw all efforts into close House races. I also understand the desire for communities, especially north Mpls, to have a representative that engages the constituency in a meaningful way. Peggy Flanagan and her high-energy, grassroots campaign could register hundreds of new voters for the primary election. Come November, these folks will be out voting for senate and president, but more importantly, they will be engaged in their community. Hardly seems like a waste to me.
How are they going to be
How are they going to be engaged in their community, when Peggy's not? If you want to support Peggy, then go for it, but let's not paint this as some sort of big upset or movement. Out of the hundreds of races they could be involved in, TakeAction endorsed in only two races in January, 38B (where they only screened the DFL candidate) and 58A which is a safe democratic seat, they didn't even screen for the B side. Incidentally, Peggy used to be on their board. Moreover they endorsed against an incumbent who has a 100% voting record with them!!! Peggy wanted the endorsement because she needed the endorsement to win and now she'll take it to the streets, but she'll meet Joe's people who have lived there all their lives and didn't move in shortly before the caucus like many of her supporters or 2 years ago to run for this seat. And on that streets she's going to have to address her involvement in the community...namely voting to close 7 Northside schools...and nothing else. If she couldn't stand up for schools on the Northside on the School Board, how is she going to stand up for the District in the House. I'll be supporting Joe, but I would have taken either of the other two because they at least have experience on the issues...what does Peggy have besides her connections?
A Primary in All Minneapolis Districts!
Well, using the logic of the previous poster, we should be supportive of primary challenges in each and every DFL held house district in Minneapolis and Saint Paul! It will boost turnout in November.
Incumbents DFLers should shun the party's endorsemnet and recruit candidates to run against themselves to help the over-all ticket in November. Yeah, that's the ticket. We will all be stimulated.
I hope that Rep. Dominguez doesn't drop out because he didn't get DFL endorsment in his race. It will just negate all the voter turnout we are stimulating in the adjacent district with the battle between DFLers.
By the way, it is okay to register new voters anywhere, not just in suburban and rural districts. But you don't need a wasteful DFL primary fight to do it. In fact, there is an important presidential race this year, I think. This should be more stimulating than a house district race that will be decided in September, not when the real election occurs in November.