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After years of hard work by many people (especially this election) but none more so than himself, from narrow defeat (2006) to being one of the new faces of Michigan Democratic politics (2008), it brings me great pleasure to post this.
You are cordially invited to attend
the swearing in for
Michigan House of Representatives
STATE REPRESENTATIVE ELECT
DAN SCRIPPS Presiding over the swearing in will be state Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth Weaver
Please join us at
11:00 AM on Monday, December 8, 2008
at the
Leelanau County Government Center
8527 E. Government Center Dr.
Suttons Bay, Michigan
In the expanding universe of the juggernaut that is the Michigan blogosphere comes a new voice. Today is the official launch of Rainbow Mittens, which will serve as the main LGBT wing of our community. The blog is currently run by MichLib Front Pagers and DailyKos alumni PerfectStormer and JPowers155.
Our first step is to get organized, and that's the goal of Rainbow Mittens. Rainbow Mittens is to be a meetinghouse for the free exchange of ideas and information between members of Michigan's LGBT community and their allies. It is to be a marketplace of ideas, a source of information, a safe space for conversation and coordination. I hope that in the days and months ahead, we use this space as a place to put our heads together and come up with a strategy for winning and to execute that strategy.
Stop by, create an account and bookmark to read daily!
Lisa and I will be here at the Manistee Dems Victory Party in the Northern area of our blog coverage with updates throughout the night. We'll try to get to as many races as we can. Bear with us as we're also doing in house vote updates.
"Dan Scripps is a strong candidate and has moved toward the center on a variety of issues. He has run a clean, comprehensive and positive campaign...There is such a thing as a legislative temperament that helps an effective lawmaker build coalitions to get legislation passed or issues resolved. Scripps seems to have more of that temperament than Franz. Scripps seems to have the stuff to be able to do the job."
It also should be noted that the recent Franz mailer did hurt his chances of endorsement from LDN staff:
He (Franz) says what is on his mind, but as a recent campaign mailing demonstrated, maybe he shouldn't always do that so bluntly. Franz is likely more conservative than the district is - but he's made no effort to move to the center, or it seems, to consider other views.
The tables were set. The name placards and tags were out. The moderator was gathering questions from the audience. One problem. Ray Franz decided not to show up. No notice. The League of Women Voters of Leelanau County, a decidedly nonpartisan group had confirmation from Franz that he was going to attend. The LWV has been holding these forums across the district to better educate voters for the upcoming election. I've attended their forums. They run them straight up the middle. So here's the question. If Ray Franz can't answer questions from the citizens of this district now, how are we to expect him to be responsive if he were to be elected?
Ray Franz says that he will represent the people of this area, but then he sends out a nasty, hate filled mailer demeaning a group of people he would have to represent! Franz is running to represent the fringe far right in the 101st District. Not me, not you.
Dan Scripps has been talking to the people of this district for a long time now. He and his campaign go directly to their doors, face to face and talk about the change they want to see. The future of our area and the state of Michigan. Dan Scripps has run a positive, issues based campaign. So while people are concerned and struggling, Ray Franz plays the politics of hate and fear. And ducks out of being held accountable.
The Manistee News Advocate Editorial Board endorsed Dan Scripps for the 101st State House seat on Saturday. The endorsement comes on the heels of the nasty mailer by the Franz campaign. Did the mailer cost Ray Franz the endorsement of his home county newspaper? Perhaps. But in their endorsement of Dan Scripps the board lays out very clearly why Dan is the best candidate for the seat without mentioning Ray.
"It is our thought that Dan Scripps will be fighting for the best and highest good of the people of this district. Not business. Not Lansing. Not Dan Scripps. All of us out here, who are living our lives, waiting for the other shoe to drop."
"We need someone with a broad perspective, and a few fresh ideas to go to Lansing and make a difference on our behalf. Dan Scripps is that person."
The choice couldn't be clearer. Vote Dan Scripps November 4th. For jobs, schools and the great outdoors. For a New Michigan Now!
Dan Scripps, Democratic Candidate for the 101st State House District will take part in many debates during October. There is at least one debate in every county of the District(and some regional!) for supporters to attend. So, mark your calendars and help count down the days to Progressive change.
Continuing his people powered campaign, this week Dan Scripps launched his "Standing Up For Seniors" campaign at regional senior citizen centers.
"Michigan seniors should be able to enjoy their retirement years with peace of mind and dignity. In the midst of a turbulent market, many Michigan seniors fear that the money they have saved for retirement may not be enough. Local seniors deserve a State Representative who will stand up for them.
My plan will ensure a secure retirement for all Michigan seniors, hold drug companies accountable and add needed protections from predatory lenders that threaten the ability of seniors to hold on to their homes. Finally, state government must be reformed to ensure accountability to Michigan taxpayers."
Coalition For Progress is airing this ad and similar ads for State House candidates in West Michigan in the 101st for Dan Scripps (above), 61st for Julie Rogers and the 91st for Mary Valentine. You can help keep them on the air by donating here.
This is the first of what I suspect will be a lot of independent ads and support in our House races.
From small-group coffee klatches to big town-hall forums, if you want to meet the new elected leaders we'll send to Lansing come January, the Center for Michigan is the way to do it. We're adding new events every week as we seek to bring the citizens' Common Ground Agenda to those running for the state House of Representatives.
OCTOBER 6
Traverse City-Interlochen
7 p.m.
Interlochen Center for the Arts - Dendrinos Chapel
101st-104th State House District Candidates
Dan Scripps, Ray Franz,
Roman Grucz, Wayne Schmidt
Call or email to RSVP:
616 460 6455
aguilfoyle@thecenterformichigan.net
Dan Scripps held a press conference yesterday in Manistee at City Hall to announce the "New Michigan Now" campaign. This campaign focuses on a six point action agenda to move Michigan forward.
• Creating good-paying jobs and protecting Michigan workers.
• Reforming state government, cutting government spending and cutting taxes for homeowners.
• Strengthening education to create the new workforce for the 21st century.
• Building our energy independence and creating jobs.
• Protecting Michigan's land, air, water and quality of life.
• Strengthening health care and protecting Michigan residents.
WMR was invited (Dan's campaign rocks!) along with print and radio media.
Video courtesy of the Scripps campaign on the flip...
Update: After the recount in Manistee County yesterday, Mike McManus gained 1 vote and Ray Franz gained 10 additional votes, bringing his total to 18 votes over McManus. The recount continues today in Benzie and Leelanau Counties.
The recount of the 101st republican primary began yesterday in Mason County with a bit of high drama. The Ludington Daily News is reporting that two boxes containing ballots were open.
Sandy Prenger of the Michigan Secretary of State Bureau of Elections demonstrated how the lid of one of the boxes - which was sealed with a clasp - could still be lifted along the edge.
"If you can put your fingers in it, you could put a ballot in," she said.
Sue McRill of the Bureau of Elections, who is overseeing the recount in Mason, Manistee, Benzie and Leelanau counties, said at 9:30 a.m. that she is waiting for word from Lansing about whether or not the votes in the disputed ballot boxes will be counted. There were sealed bags in the sealed containers and the question is: Can the votes in the bags be counted.
If the votes in the disputed precincts cannot be counted, Prenger said the previous results for the precincts recorded by the Mason County Board of Canvassers would be used for the recount.
The results of the Mason County recount added one vote for McCraner, McManus and Franz, leaving the race still at a 9 vote lead for Ray Franz out of 24 of the 25 precincts that were "recountable".
The recount continues today in Manistee County at Stronach Township Hall, and Thursday in Benzie County at the Benzie County Court Annex and in Leelanau County at the Leelanau County Building.
Mike McManus filed for a recount in the 101st State House District race immediately following the certification from the State Board of Canvassers. 17,300 ballots were cast in the Republican primary for the 101st State House. A full recount of all four counties at a cost of $10 per precinct will take place starting August 26th in Mason County and be finished by the 28th or 29th. Ray Franz holds a razor thin margin of victory with 9 votes in the Republican primary. The winner of the primary after the recount will face Michigan netroots hero Dan Scripps in November.
Tuesday, Mariah Power moved one step closer to making the manufacturing of it's Vertical Axis Wind Turbine, The Windspire, in Manistee a reality. I was able to get some background information on the project and what lead to the imminent deal in an email interview with Manistee County Commission Chairman Allan O'Shea:
In early June and during the American Wind Enenrgy Association Conference (Mr. O'Shea was one of the original founders and first president of the AWEA)I was given a lead about a company called Mariah Power looking for a state to settle in and a perminant home for their manufacturing operations. The lead came from a very credible source and I jumped right on it. I started to follow up the lead and due my search, due diligence, research, etc. on the company and its principle owners. During that phase I was called by an affiliate of Mariah Power in the Detroit area (Southern Exposure Renewable Energy), who asked for assistance in putting up a Mariah WES at the Michigan Energy Fair. Mr. Jim Bates and myself went way back and had a similar passion for Michigan and renewable energy systems. I told him "Just let me know and and I will take care of your needs".
During that time he indicated that he had never installed a Mariah Windspire VAT (Vertical Axis Turbine) and neither had I, so I put two of my sons on the project. Devon, who is the renewable energy manager for Contractors Building Supply and an engineer and it so happened that I had my oldest son Aaron O'Shea coming to help at the MEF. Aaron is a IEEBW union electrician in Minneapolis, Minn. The two of them readied a base and with Jim Bates help installed the system at the Manistee Fair grounds. Mariah Power was contacted and we worked with their engineering, shipping and others to make something happen for them at the MEF and Michigan. The WES was shipped and was installed for the fair and it was the hit of the fair since none of the other wind systems would work during the fair and the Mariah never stopped working.
During that time work continued behind the scenes with the MEDC, Governor Granholm , Senator Levin, Michigan Works and many others that were positive towards green renewable energy systems and their place in Michigan. During this time I called in our support team the Alliance for Economic Success and asked Rene' Islandfeldt to summon the 'Manistee County Rush Team' and see if we couldn't get the principal owner of Mariah to visit and talk to our team. Rene' took the ball and ran and not only convinced the owner of Mariah to come for a visit but assembled a super bunch of support 'rapid response team' memebers to collaborate with our Alliance and make THINGS HAPPEN AND QUICKLY!!!
Mariah Power was looking, at this time, at four States and none of them, was Michigan. Ohio with a 1.8 interest free loan commitment and other offers from three other states (Colorado, Nevada and Iowa). Well the rest of this story is quiclkly becoming a reality....There is a ways to go but we have made progress and are now the number one choice for the Mariah Power production facilities and that is a fantastic team effort by Mastec MFG. in Manistee and Mariah Power engineering.
It takes a team to make things happen and a team we have. Our team is of Olympic quality and this three month saga is not over yet but has come along way in world record time. This is due to the unbelievable effort that Rene' and the State of Michigan put into the request by a entrepreneur for Manistee County and the the renewable energy industry. This is just the beginning of the new era that Manistee County is entering. We are starting to go through our 21st Century Rennisance in the county and northern Michigan.....Hang on for a wild ride....
Tuesday night the Fred Johnson for Congress campaign held their Northwest general election campaign kickoff in Manistee at the Manistee County Democratic Party Headquarters. Fred Johnson gave a lengthy speech covering many topics including education, health care, veterans benefits, the economy, jobs and the environment.
Here's a campaign press release:
Fred Johnson For Congress Kick-Off Rallies Draw Hundreds
Holland, MI - August 14, 2008 - Hundreds of supporters attended four general election kick-off rallies featuring Democratic Congressional Candidate Fred Johnson and other local candidates.
"We finally have a clear choice," said Johnson. "Do we want more of the same, or do we want a new direction. Do we want more of the same foreign policies that have compromised our reputation in the world? Or do we want a new direction where we use our military power wisely and judiciously?"
"Do we want more of the same environmental policies that have left us with contaminated ground water and invasive species that steadily threaten the Great Lakes? Or do we want a new direction that emphasizes environmental stewardship and looks toward a future where green technologies create jobs that restore the earth rather than ravage its fragile ecosystem?"
"Do we want a part-time representative who's more interested in running for Governor than he is representing the people of the 2nd District? Or do we want a new direction that gives us representation and ensures that our voices will be heard?"
The Fred Johnson Campaign held rallies in Muskegon, Cadillac, Manistee, and Holland to mark the beginning of the general election season. Local Democratic state house candidates also spoke or were represented, including State Rep. Mary Valentine (91st District), State Rep. Doug Bennet (92nd District), and candidates Dan Scripps (101st) Nate Heffron (102nd), Tim Winslow (89th), and Tom Clark (88th).
District 20 Kalamazoo Robert Jones District 21 Berrien, Cass, Van Buren
Scott Elliott District 24 Allegan, Barry, Eaton
Michelle DiSano District 28 Kent (part)
Robin Golden District 29 Kent (part) David LaGrand District 30 Ottawa
John Chester District 34 Muskegon, Oceana, Mason, Newaygo Mary Valentine District 35 Northwest LP Roger Dunigan District 37 Grand Traverse & north Bob Carr
Michigan State House Candidates
District 59 (St. Joseph & Cass Counties)
Carol Higgins District 60 (Kalamazoo) Sean McCann District 61 (Kalamazoo) Thomas Batten District 63 (Kalamazoo)
David Morgan District 70 (Ionia & Montcalm Counties) Mike Huckleberry District 72 (Kentwood & Cascade)
Brian Bosak District 73 (Kent County)
Jerrod Roberts District 74 (Ottawa County)
Leon Chase District 75 (Grand Rapids) Brandon Dillon District 76 (Grand Rapids) Roy Schmidt District 77 (Wyoming)
Scott Baron District 78 (Berrien County) Cindy Ellis District 79 (Berrien County) Julee Laurent District 80 (VanBuren) Tom Erdmann District 86 (Kent County)
Frank Hammond District 87 (Barry & Ionia Counties)
Greg Grieves District 89 (Ottawa County)
Donald Bergman District 91 (Muskegon)
Ben Gillette District 92 (Muskegon)
Marcia Hovey-Wright District 100 (Newaygo, Lake, and Oceana Counties)
Donald Bergman District 101 (Northwest) Dan Scripps
County Commissions Candidates
Allegan County Commission
9 Fritz Spreitzer (I)
10 April Carvalho
Barry County Commission
1 Bob Dickinson
Benzie County Commission
3 Kristin Hollenbeck (I)
4 Anne Damm (I)
6 Donald Tanner (I)
Berrien County Commission
3 Marletta Seats (I)
4 Mamie Yarbrough (I)
10 Andrew Vavra (I)
11 Jess Minks
12 Michael Ringler
13 John Klimek (I)
Cass County Commission
1 Ed Goodman (I)
7 David Taylor (I)
9 Judy Helpingstine
11 Clark Cobb (I)
12 Minnie Warren (I)
13 Johnie Rodebush (I)
14 Debbie Johnson (I)
Grand Traverse County Commission
1 Bernol Soutar
Ionia County Commission
1 Lynn Mason (I)
4 Mark Vroman (I)
Kalamazoo County Commission
1 Jack Urban (I)
2 Carolyn Alford (I)
3 Robert Barnard (I)
4 John Taylor (I)
5 Brian Johnson (I)
6 Mike Seals
7 David Buskirk (I)
9 Chuck Vliek
10 Michael Quinn (I)
11 Barb Hammon
12 Scott McCormick
13 Harvey Hanna
15 Leroy Crabtree
16 Thomas Post
17 Jerry Rudolph
Kent County Commission
1 Mary Lauka
2 Patricia Kramer
3 James Black
4 Fred Clowney
6 James Rinck
7 Al Nielsen
8 Keith Courtade (I)
9 Duane Sprague
10 Albert Abbasse
11 Russell Duffin
12 Pete Hickey (I)
13 Kyle Hinton
14 Carol Hennessy (I)
15 Dick Bulkowski (I)
16 Jim Talen (I)
17 Candace Chivis
18 Richard Tormala
19 Bob Synk (I)
Leelanau County Commission
3 Jason Harrall
6 David Marshall (I)
7 Karl Dungjen
Manistee County Commission
2 Marlene E. Wood-Zylstra
3 Glenn Lottie (I)
4 Ervin A. Kowalski (I)
5 Karl R. Waitner
6 Jim Krolczyk (I)
7 Carl Rutske (I)
Montcalm County Commission
1 Ronald C. Blanding (I)
Mason County Commission
5 Jerome Rybicki (I)
8 David Fonnesbeck
Musekgon County Commission
1 Kenneth Mahoney (I)
2 Charles Buzzell (I)
4 James Derezinski (I)
5 Carl Wentzlof
6 Lew Collins (I)
7 Scott Plummer
8 Anthony Longmire
9 Rillastine Wilkins
10 Benjamin Cross
11 John Jurkas
Newaygo County Commission
1 Barbara Geno (I)
5 Rick Werkema
Oceana County Commission
1 David Spitler
5 Evelyn Kolbe (I)
Ottawa County Commission
3 Jeff Williams
Van Buren County Commission
1 Claudia Maddox
3 Al Hughes
The tables were set. The name placards and tags were out. The moderator was gathering questions from the audience. One problem. Ray Franz decided not to show up. No notice. The League of Women Voters of Leelanau County, a decidedly nonpartisan group had confirmation from Franz that he was going to attend. The LWV has been holding these forums across the district to better educate voters for the upcoming election. I've attended their forums. They run them straight up the middle. So here's the question. If Ray Franz can't answer questions from the citizens of this district now, how are we to expect him to be responsive if he were to be elected?
The 
