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State Legislative Tracker: New York Speaker under investigation
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January 5, 2015
Edited by Joel Williams
This week’s tracker includes a look at a legislative leader under investigation in New York.
Weekly highlight
- New York: Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (D-65) is being investigated by federal authorities for large payments he received from a law firm, according to the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, both of which cited a source close to the investigation.[1] The law firm in question, Goldberg & Iryami, is a small law firm that "seeks real estate tax reductions for commercial and residential properties in New York City."[2] According to the New York Times, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara and the F.B.I. are trying to determine what work Silver was doing for Goldberg & Iryami. Prosecutors and agents of the F.B.I. also discovered that the law firm has issued payments to Silver for the past decade, but that he did he not list that income on his annual financial disclosure forms.[2] Jay Goldberg, an attorney for the firm, told the Wall Street Journal, "Nothing illicit is going on here."[3] In his professional life, Silver is a personal injury lawyer and acts as "of counsel" for the law firm Weitz & Luxenberg.[3] In 2013, Silver said that he made from $650,000 to $750,000 from outside work including, though not limited to, Weitz & Luxenberg. This is in addition to his $121,000 Assembly salary.[3] It is unclear what kind of work that Silver does for the real estate law firm. As a personal injury lawyer, Silver is not known to have any expertise in the area of law in which Goldberg & Iryami practices.[2] The investigation into Silver came from the work of the Moreland Commission, a state ethics commission created by Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D), to identify corruption in state politics.[1] The Moreland Commission was disbanded last March after Cuomo made a deal to secure the state's budget that included tougher laws on bribery, corruption and improved enforcement of election law. Bharara publicly criticized the decommissioning, took the remaining files from the panel and vowed to complete its work.[4]
- Washington: The chief justice of the state Supreme Court has been known to appear before the legislature to deliver a State of the Judiciary address in odd-numbered years since the 1990s. This year will be an exception, and some believe it has to do with the ongoing discord between the two branches.[5] Barbara Madsen will not be giving the biannual speech after the legislature did not allocate time for it, with lawmakers citing low attendance and the need to accommodate other joint sessions. Some believe the lack of an invitation comes as retaliation after the court found the legislature in contempt for failing to pass an education funding plan last year. In 2012, the court ruled that the legislature violated the "paramount duty" clause of the state constitution by not adequately funding public education.[6] Recent Republican proposals rising from the conflict include electing justices on a partisan basis and reducing the number of court members.[7] Senate Majority Leader Sharon Nelson (D) had concerns about optics, asking, "[W]ill it look like a conflict that we are trying to create with the Supreme Court?" Nevertheless, both the House and Senate dropped the speech with no objections. House Majority Leader Pat Sullivan (D) recently told Madsen in person that the legislature did not skip the speech on political grounds.[6] Madsen expressed disappointment in a statement, calling the speech "a positive tool to inform the Legislature and the public about the state of Washington's justice system." Sen. Don Benton (R) came to an opposite conclusion, saying "most people think it's a horrible waste of time."[8] Madsen will instead deliver her report in written form, as has been the case in even-numbered years.[9]
Sessions
Regular sessions
- See also: Dates of 2014 state legislative sessions
- Click here to see a chart of each state's 2014 session information.
Currently three out of 50 state legislatures is meeting in regular session.
The following states have convened their 2015 regular session:[10]
- December 1, 2014: California
- December 3, 2014: Maine
In recess
As of today, January 5, there are two state legislatures currently in recess.[11]
- California: Returns January 6
- Maine: Returns January 7
2015 Legislative Elections
- See also: State legislative elections, 2015
A total of seven of the 99 chambers will hold state legislative elections on November 3, 2015.
There seven chambers in four states with elections in 2015. They are:
- Louisiana (Senate and House)
- Mississippi (Senate and House)
- New Jersey (Assembly)
- Virginia (Senate and House)
The New Jersey senate also typically holds elections in odd years, but all members were elected to four-year terms in 2013 and are not up for election again until 2017.
Of 1,972 state senate seats in the country, 131 are up for re-election in November 2015, and 407 of the country's 5,411 state house seats are up for re-election. Altogether, 538 of the country's 7,383 state legislative seats are up for re-election on November 3, 2015.
Primary Information
The state legislative filing deadlines and primary dates are as follows:
Filing Deadlines
- Louisiana: September 10[12]
- Mississippi: February 27[13]
- New Jersey: TBD
- Virginia: March 9[14]
Primary Dates
- Louisiana: October 24[12]
- Mississippi: August 4[13]
- New Jersey: TBD
- Virginia: June 9[14]
Special Elections
There are eight special elections scheduled this week: three in Texas, two each in Georgia and Virginia and one in Iowa.
Georgia House of Representatives District 50
Kelly Leigh Stewart (R), Royce M. Reinecke (R), Bradford Jay Raffensperger (R), Christine A. Austin (L) and Paul Troop (I) faced off in the special election on January 6, 2015.[15] Since no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two vote-getters, Stewart and Raffensperger, met in a runoff election on February 3, which Raffensperger won.[16][17]
The seat was vacant following Lynne Riley's (R) resignation to become Commissioner of the Department of Revenue.[18]
A special election for the position of Georgia House of Representatives District 50 was called for January 6, with a runoff on February 3. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was November 21, 2014.[19]
| Georgia House of Representatives, District 50, Special Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Bradford Jay Raffensperger |
52.8% | 1,510 | |
| Republican | Kelly Leigh Stewart | 47.2% | 1,351 | |
| Total Votes | 2,861 | |||
- January 6 Special election candidates:
Kelly Leigh Stewart- Royce M. Reinecke
- Bradford Jay Raffensperger
Christine A. Austin
Paul Troop
Georgia House of Representatives District 120
Republicans Debbie Bartlett, Jesse Copelan, Gary Gerrard, Jesse Johnson and Trey Rhodes faced off in the special election on January 6, 2015.[20] Since no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two vote-getters, Rhodes and Copelan, met in a runoff election on February 3, which Rhodes won.[21][17]
The seat was vacant following Mickey Channell's (R) scheduled retirement on January 15, 2015.[22]
A special election for the position of Georgia House of Representatives District 120 was called for January 6, with a runoff on February 3. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was December 10, 2014.[23]
| Georgia House of Representatives, District 120, Special Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Trey Rhodes |
53.4% | 2,713 | |
| Republican | Jesse Copelan | 46.6% | 2,366 | |
| Total Votes | 5,079 | |||
- January 6 Special election candidates:
- Debbie Bartlett
- Jesse Copelan
- Gary Gerrard
- Jesse Johnson
- Trey Rhodes
Iowa House of Representatives District 4
John Kooiker (R) defeated John Buntsma (D) in the special election on January 6, 2015.[24][25][26]
The seat was vacant following Dwayne Alons' (R) death on November 29, 2014.[27]
A special election for the position of Iowa House of Representatives District 4 was called for January 6. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was December 23, 2014.[28]
| Iowa House of Representatives, District 4, Special Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | John Kooiker |
81.9% | 2,064 | |
| Democratic | John Buntsma | 18.1% | 456 | |
| Total Votes | 2,520 | |||
- January 6 Special election candidates:
John Buntsma- John Kooiker
Texas State Senate District 26
Trey Martinez Fischer (D), José Menéndez (D), Al Suarez (D), Alma Perez Jackson (R) and Joan Pedrotti (R) faced off in the special election on January 6, 2015.[29] Since no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two vote-getters, Fischer and Menéndez, met in a runoff election on February 17, which Menéndez won.[30][31]
The seat was vacant following Leticia Van de Putte's (D) resignation to run for Mayor of San Antonio.[32]
A special election for the position of Texas State Senate District 26 was called for January 6, 2015. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was December 22, 2014.[32]
| Texas State Senate, District 26, Special Runoff Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | José Menéndez |
59% | 13,891 | |
| Democratic | Trey Martinez Fischer | 41% | 9,635 | |
| Total Votes | 23,526 | |||
| Texas State Senate, District 26, Special Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Trey Martinez Fischer |
43.3% | 8,232 | |
| Democratic | José Menéndez |
25.4% | 4,824 | |
| Republican | Alma Perez Jackson | 20.5% | 3,892 | |
| Republican | Joan Pedrotti | 7.5% | 1,427 | |
| Democratic | Al Suarez | 3.4% | 644 | |
| Total Votes | 19,019 | |||
- January 6 Special election candidates:
- Trey Martinez Fischer
- Jose Menendez
- Al Suarez
- Alma Perez Jackson
- Joan Pedrotti
Texas House of Representatives District 17
Shelley Cartier (D), Ty McDonald (D), John Cyrier (R), Brent Golemon (R) and Linda Curtis (I) faced off in the special election on January 6, 2015.[33] Since no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two vote-getters, Cyrier and Golemon, met in a runoff election on February 17, which Cyrier won.[30][31]
The seat was vacant following Tim Kleinschmidt's (R) resignation to become general counsel for Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller.[32]
A special election for the position of Texas House of Representatives District 17 was called for January 6, 2015. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was December 22, 2014.[32]
| Texas House of Representatives, District 17, Special Runoff Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | John Cyrier |
52.1% | 4,149 | |
| Republican | Brent Golemon | 47.9% | 3,821 | |
| Total Votes | 7,970 | |||
| Texas House of Representatives, District 17, Special Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | John Cyrier |
46.1% | 3,520 | |
| Republican | Brent Golemon |
24.5% | 1,867 | |
| Independent | Linda Curtis | 13.7% | 1,046 | |
| Democratic | Ty McDonald | 11.9% | 907 | |
| Democratic | Shelley Cartier | 3.8% | 291 | |
| Total Votes | 7,631 | |||
- January 6 Special election candidates:
- Shelley Cartier
- Ty McDonald
- John Cyrier
- Brent Golemon
- Linda Curtis
Texas House of Representatives District 123
Melissa Aguillon (D), Diego Bernal (D), Walter Martinez (D), Nunzio Previtera (R), Paul Ingmundson (G) and Roger V. Gary (L) faced off in the special election on January 6, 2015.[34] Since no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two vote-getters, Bernal and Previtera, met in a runoff election on February 17, which Bernal won.[30][31]
The seat was vacant following Michael Villarreal's (D) resignation to run for Mayor of San Antonio.[32]
A special election for the position of Texas House of Representatives District 123 was called for January 6, 2015. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was December 22, 2014.[32]
| Texas House of Representatives, District 123, Special Runoff Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Diego Bernal |
63.7% | 5,170 | |
| Republican | Nunzio Previtera | 36.3% | 2,950 | |
| Total Votes | 8,120 | |||
| Texas House of Representatives, District 123, Special Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Diego Bernal |
47.5% | 3,372 | |
| Republican | Nunzio Previtera |
21.3% | 1,512 | |
| Democratic | Melissa Aguillon | 17.7% | 1,257 | |
| Democratic | Walter Martinez | 11% | 780 | |
| Libertarian | Roger V. Gary | 1.4% | 103 | |
| Green | Paul Ingmundson | 1.1% | 81 | |
| Total Votes | 7,105 | |||
- January 6 Special election candidates:
- Melissa Aguillon
- Diego Bernal
- Walter Martinez
- Nunzio Previtera
Paul Ingmundson- Roger V. Gary
Virginia House of Delegates District 34
Kathleen J. Murphy (D) defeated Craig A. Parisot (R) in the special election on January 6, 2015.[35][36][37]
The seat was vacant following Barbara Comstock's (R) election to the 10th Congressional District of Virginia.[38]
A special election for the position of Virginia House of Delegates District 34 was called for January 6. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was November 16, 2014.[38]
| Virginia House of Delegates, District 34, Special Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Kathleen J. Murphy |
51.3% | 6,419 | |
| Republican | Craig A. Parisot | 48.7% | 6,093 | |
| Total Votes | 12,512 | |||
- January 6 Special election candidates:
- Kathleen J. Murphy
- Craig A. Parisot
Virginia House of Delegates District 63
Joseph Preston (D) defeated W. H. "Mouse" Jones Jr. (I) in the special election on January 6, 2015.[39][36][40]
The seat was vacant following Roz Dance's (D) election to the Virginia State Senate in November 2014.[41]
A special election for the position of Virginia House of Delegates District 63 was called for January 6. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was December 3, 2014.[42]
| Virginia House of Delegates, District 63, Special Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Joseph Preston |
81% | 1,213 | |
| Independent | W. H. "Mouse" Jones Jr. | 19% | 285 | |
| Total Votes | 1,498 | |||
- January 6 Special election candidates:
- Joseph Preston
- W. H. "Mouse" Jones, Jr.
Recent results
☑ Iowa State Senate District 12
Mark Costello (R) defeated Steven L. Adams (D) and Don W. Brantz (L) in the special election on December 30.[43][44][45]
The seat was vacant following Joni Ernst's (R) election to the United States Senate on November 4, 2014.[46]
A special election for the position of Iowa State Senate District 12 was called for December 30. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was December 16.[47]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Mark Costello |
74.7% | 3,138 | |
| Democratic | Steven L. Adams | 22.2% | 932 | |
| Libertarian | Don W. Brantz | 3.1% | 132 | |
| Total Votes | 4,202 | |||
- December 30 special election candidates:
- Steven L. Adams
- Mark Costello
- Don W. Brantz
Looking ahead
Upcoming special elections include:
- January 13 Texas House of Representatives District 13
- January 13: Virginia House of Delegates District 74
- February 17: Florida House of Representatives District 13
See also
- State legislative elections, 2015
- 2015 state legislative calendar
- Signature requirements and deadlines for 2015 state government elections
- State legislative special elections, 2015
- State legislative recalls
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Gothamist, "Feds Reportedly Investigating Powerful Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver," December 30, 2014
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 NY Times, "U.S. Said to Investigate Sheldon Silver, New York Assembly Speaker, Over Payments," December 29, 2014
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Wall Street Journal, "Feds Probe N.Y. State Assembly Speaker Silver Over Income," December 30, 2014
- ↑ CBS New York, "U.S. Attorney Blasts Gov. Cuomo’s Decision To Shut Down Anti-Corruption Commission," April 10, 2014
- ↑ The Seattle Times, "Lawmakers nix the session’s State of the Judiciary speech," December 29, 2014
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 The Olympian, "Legislature won’t let state Supreme Court chief justice give State of the Judiciary speech," December 29, 2014
- ↑ The Spokesman-Review, "Legislators won't be hosting talk by chief justice," December 30, 2014
- ↑ Associated Press, "Washington Legislature doesn't invite state's chief justice to give traditional opening speech," December 30, 2014
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedsea - ↑ Stateside Associates, " Session Calendar 2014," accessed January 5, 2015
- ↑ StateNet, " Daily Session Summary," accessed January 5, 2015
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Mississippi Secretary of State, "2015 Elections," accessed January 2, 2015
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Mississippi Secretary of State, "2015 Election Calendar," accessed January 2, 2015
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Virginia State Board of Elections, "2015 November Election Calendar," accessed January 2, 2015
- ↑ patch.com, "Five Candidates Qualify for State House District 50 Special Election," November 21, 2014
- ↑ patch.com, "House District 50 Race Heads To Runoff," January 6, 2015
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Georgia Secretary of State, "Official election results," accessed February 25, 2015
- ↑ Patch.com, "Lynne Riley Resigns From Georgia House, Will Serve As State Revenue Commissioner," November 7, 2014
- ↑ Peach Pundit, "Special Election Set for House District 50 (Lynn Riley’s Seat)," November 12, 2014
- ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "Official candidate list," accessed December 31, 2014
- ↑ Athens Banner-Herald, "Election for District 120 set for Feb. 3 runoff," January 7, 2015
- ↑ Peach Pundit, "Representative Mickey Channell Retiring From Legislature," November 28, 2014
- ↑ timesunion.com, "Special election scheduled for Georgia House District 120," December 1, 2014
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "Official candidate list," accessed December 31, 2014
- ↑ The Iowa Republican, "Kooiker Wins HD4 Special Election," January 7, 2015
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "Official election results," accessed January 28, 2015
- ↑ The Des Moines Register, "Special election set for northwest Iowa House seat," December 4, 2014
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "State Representative District 4 - 1/6/2015 Special Election," accessed December 5, 2014
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "Official candidate list," accessed December 25, 2014
- ↑ 30.0 30.1 30.2 Texas Tribune, "Three Elections, No Winners Yet," January 6, 2015
- ↑ 31.0 31.1 31.2 Texas Secretary of State, "Official election results," accessed February 25, 2015
- ↑ 32.0 32.1 32.2 32.3 32.4 32.5 Houston Chronicle, "Perry sets 3 special elections for Jan. 6," December 15, 2014
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "Official candidate list," accessed December 25, 2014
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "Official candidate list," accessed December 25, 2014
- ↑ Virginia State Board of Elections, "Official candidate list," accessed November 21, 2014
- ↑ 36.0 36.1 WTVR, "Murphy, Preston win special elections in 34th, 63rd House of Delegates districts," January 6, 2015
- ↑ Virginia Department of Elections, "Official election results," accessed January 28, 2015
- ↑ 38.0 38.1 Washington Post, "Democrat and two Republicans lining up to replace Comstock in Va. House of Delegates," November 11, 2014
- ↑ Virginia State Board of Elections, "Official candidate list," accessed December 8, 2014
- ↑ Virginia Department of Elections, "Official election results," accessed January 28, 2015
- ↑ Richmond Times-Dispatch, "Special election to fill Dance's House seat set for Jan. 6," November 24, 2014
- ↑ Virginia Department of Elections, "2015 Special Elections," accessed November 25, 2014
- ↑ Omaha.com, "Republican Mark Costello wins special election to replace Joni Ernst in Iowa State Senate," December 31, 2014
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "Official candidate list," accessed December 17, 2014
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "Official election results," accessed January 14, 2015
- ↑ Quad-City Times, "Special election set for Ernst’s Statehouse seat," December 1, 2014
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "State Senate District 12 - 12/30/2014 Special Election," accessed December 3, 2014
