Daily Brew: First successful judicial recall in California since 1932

June 6, 2018

Good Morning, Good Morning. It's great to stay up late. Good Morning, Good Morning to you.   Locally supported candidate Cindy Axne defeats Sanders-backed candidate in IA-03 Democratic primary Martha Roby and Bobby Bright advance to runoff in Alabama's 2nd Congressional District Republican primary Cheers to an extra cup of coffee this morning! Here are two results from yesterday’s busy primary day to start us off:  Small business owner Cindy Axne (D) defeated political organizer Pete D'Alessandro (D) and teacher Eddie Mauro (D) in the Democratic primary for Iowa's 3rd Congressional District. She had support from former state legislators and councilmen, while D'Alessandro was endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and progressive organizations Justice Democrats and Our Revolution. Axne will face incumbent Rep. David Young (R) in the general election.  Incumbent Martha Roby (R) and former Rep. Bobby Bright (R) were the top two finishers in the Republican primary to represent Alabama's 2nd Congressional District. Because no candidate received a majority of the vote, Roby and Bright will advance to a runoff election on July 17. Roby, who has represented the district since the 2010 elections, faced four challengers in the Republican primary. Opponents criticized her for critical comments of President Trump (R) during the 2016 election. Bright had formerly represented the district for one term as a member of the Democratic Party before he was unseated by Roby in the 2010 election. Ready for the rest of the results from last night? Get June 5 election results here         Click here to sign up for The Heart of the Primaries and get more election details in your inbox later today! Judge in Brock Turner sexual assault case recalled; first successful judicial recall in California since 1932 Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Aaron Persky was recalled for his 2016 decision to sentence Stanford student Brock Turner to six months in jail after he was convicted of sexual assault. Recall supporters led by Stanford professor Michele Dauber argued that the sentence was too lenient and that Persky consistently ruled in favor of white male athletes accused of violence against women. Persky’s supporters argued that Persky should not be recalled over one decision and that doing so would threaten judicial independence and lead to harsher sentences for persons of color. Persky is the 19th successful recall Ballotpedia has tracked in 2018. Learn more→ Rep. Keith Ellison will not for re-election to U.S. House, will instead seek state Attorney General post Rep. Keith Ellison (D) announced Tuesday that he would not seek re-election to his seat representing Minnesota's 5th Congressional District, instead seeking the state attorney general seat currently held by Lori Swanson (D), who announced a run for governor yesterday. Ellison, who has represented the safely-Democratic district since the 2006 elections, was a contender for the Democratic National Committee's chairman position in the 2017 election, losing on the second round of voting to former U.S. Secretary of Labor Tom Perez. Following Ellison's announcement, eight Democratic candidates filed to seek the party's nomination ahead of the Tuesday afternoon deadline, including state Sens. Patricia Torres Ray and Bobby Joe Champion, state Rep. Ilhan Omar, and former state House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher. Ellison is the 55th U.S. Representative in the 115th Congress to announce that he will not seek re-election in 2018, joining 17 other Democrats and 37 Republicans. Five statewide filing deadlines remain in the 2018 election season. Learn more→