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Alexander, Fleischmann finish first in primaries

Posted at 1:58 pm August 8, 2014
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Lamar Alexander and Johnny Alley

U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander, left, a Tennessee Republican, campaigns at Dean’s Restaurant and Bakery in Oak Ridge on Wednesday, one day before he beat Tea Party challenger Joe Carr, a state representative from Middle Tennessee, in the seven-candidate GOP primary. Alexander is pictured above with Anderson County Property Assessor Johnny Alley.

 

U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander

Lamar Alexander

Ninth District judicial race close; Supreme Court justices retained

U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander finished far ahead of a Tea Party challenger in the Republican primary on Thursday, and Representative Chuck Fleischmann narrowly beat Weston Wamp, the son of former Congressman Zach Wamp, in the second battle between the two men.

Alexander’s top opponent in the seven-candidate GOP primary was State Representative Joe Carr of Middle Tennessee. Alexander, who lost in his home district of Blount County, had 329,929 votes, compared to 269,883 for Carr, according to unofficial results posted by the Tennessee Secretary of State.

George Flinn, a Memphis radiologist and radio station owner, finished a distant third, with 34,568 votes.

Alexander, a former Tennessee governor and University of Tennessee president, will face Democrat Gordon Ball in the November 4 general election. [Read more…]

Filed Under: 2014 Election, Federal, Federal, Government, Morgan County, Roane County, Slider, State, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County Election Commission, Bill Haslam, Caitlin Nolan, Charles Brown, Chuck Fleischmann, Cornelia Clark, Democrat, Dennis Powers, District 36, Fifth District, Gary Wade, George Flinn, GOP primary, Gordon Ball, governor, House District 33, Jason Zachary, Jim Tracy, Joe Carr, John J. Duncan Jr., John Ragan, Lamar Alexander, Mary Headrick, Mike Pemberton, Ninth Judicial District, November 4 general election, Randy McNally, Representative, Republican, retention election, Scott DesJarlais, Scotty Mayfield, Sharon Lee, Supreme Court justices, Tea Party, Tennessee Secretary of State, Tennessee Senate, Terry Adams, Third District, Tom McFarland, U.S. senator, Virgil Kidwell, Weston Wamp, Zach Wamp

Supreme Court justices campaign to stay on bench

Posted at 2:29 am August 6, 2014
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Tom Beehan and Gary Wade

Tennessee Supreme Court Chief Justice Gary Wade, right, talks to reporters during a campaign stop at Razzleberry’s Ice Cream Lab and Kitchen on Thursday. Also pictured is Oak Ridge Mayor Tom Beehan.

 

In most elections, voters don’t pay much attention to the retention elections for judges.

This year, though, the decision on whether to keep three of the five Tennessee Supreme Court justices on the bench is one of the most closely watched races in the state. More than $1 million has already been spent.

The three judges facing retention elections this Thursday—Chief Justice Gary Wade and Justices Sharon Lee and Cornelia Clark—were in Oak Ridge last Thursday trying to convince local voters to let them keep their jobs for another eight years.

Appointed by former Governor Phil Bredesen, the justices said they’re fighting out-of-state money and inaccurate portrayals of their work. They’re battling back against what they consider an attempt to introduce partisan politics into the courtroom.

“Partisan politics has no role in courts of law,” Wade said.

“We want to preserve fair and impartial courts,” Lee said. “When you put politics in the courtroom, you push the Constitution out.” [Read more…]

Filed Under: 2014 Election, Government, Slider, State, Tennessee, Top Stories Tagged With: Affordable Care Act, AFP, Americans for Prosperity, Beth Harwell, Bob Cooper, campaign, Charles Koch, chief justice, Constitution, Cornelia Clark, courtroom, David Koch, fair and impartial, Gary Wade, judges, Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission, justices, Obamacare, partisan politics, Penny White, Razzleberry’s, retention election, Riley Anderson, Ron Ramsey, Sharon Lee, Tennessee Bar Association, Tennessee Forum, Tennessee Supreme Court

Guest column: Tennessee retention elections explained by LWVTN

Posted at 12:34 am August 6, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Guest Columns Leave a Comment

By League Issues: Making Democracy Work

On August 7, Tennesseans will vote in a statewide retention election for appellate judges. Included are three of the five Tennessee Supreme Court justices as well as judges currently sitting on the Court of Appeals and Court of Criminal Appeals.

The August 7 retention election represents the last such election under the much-respected Tennessee Plan—the 40-plus year plan for merit selection and retention of appellate judges. The plan was designed to reduce partisanship and outside influences in electing and retaining our appellate judges. The final phase of the plan—merit retention—expired June 30, 2014.

This year’s retention election is particularly important. Fair and impartial court supporters in our state—including Governor Haslam—are concerned about media reports that the three Supreme Court justices seeking retention in Tennessee might become the targets of heavily financed campaigns organized by groups outside the state. There have been reports of such campaigns targeting high court justices in several other states across our nation.

What does merit retention mean? [Read more…]

Filed Under: Guest Columns, Opinion Tagged With: appellate judges, Attorney General, Cornelia Clark, court advocates, Court of Appeals, Court of Criminal Appeals, fair and impartial, fair and impartial courts, Gary Wade, job performance, JPEC, Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission, justices, League of Women Voters, League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge, Mary Ann Reeves, merit retention, merit selection, Patrick Bryan, retention election, Sharon Lee, Supreme Court, Tennessee Plan, Tennessee Supreme Court

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Classifieds

Public Notice: NNSA announces no significant impact of Y-12 Development Organization operations at Horizon Center

AVAILABILITY OF THE FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE OFFSITE HOUSING OF THE Y-12 DEVELOPMENT … [Read More...]

ADFAC seeks contractors for five homes

Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties (ADFAC) is a non-profit community based agency, … [Read More...]

Public notice: Draft environmental assessment for Y-12 Development Organization at Horizon Center

AVAILABILITY OF THE DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE OFFSITE HOUSING OF THE Y-12 DEVELOPMENT … [Read More...]

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