Judge Rules Against Mississippi GOP, Orders Special Senate Race Moved Up on Ballot

[brooklynite]

Source: CQ Politics

A Mississippi judge ruled Friday that the state’s highly competitive Senate special election must be moved to near the top of the Nov. 4 ballot. The ruling gave at least a temporary victory to state Democrats and other critics, who argued against a decision by Republicans who head the state’s government to place the contest at the bottom of the ballot beneath low-profile races for local offices.

...snip...

Democrats argue that placing the election at the bottom of the ballot would make it more difficult to find for voters who want to replace Wicker.

That view received the concurrence of Judge Tomie Green — who presides in circuit court in Hinds County, which includes the state capital of Jackson — in her ruling that the bottom-of-the-ballot placement violated state law. “This Court can see no justifiable reason for moving any U.S. Senate race from its common category of candidates for National office, except to secrete the U.S. Senate race or to confound the voters,” Green wrote in her judgment.

Green ordered the official state sample ballot, first released on Wednesday, to be revised or amended to place the Senate special election, near the top of the ballot with other “national” races. These include the presidential contest between Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama and this year’s regularly scheduled Senate race in Mississippi in which five-term Republican incumbent Thad Cochran is an overwhelming favorite over Democratic challenger Erik Fleming.

Read more: http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?docid=news-000002949934

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Next stop, the (Republican dominated) Mississippi Supreme Court

[LonelyLRLiberal]

1. That judge better watch her back in that snake-pit of racist Republicans. nt

[pleah]

2. You got that right! n/t

[Name removed]

3. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[pinto]

4. Good call. Pretty blatant attempt at smoke and mirror obfuscation.

[Catch22Dem]

5. I'm sorry to be the one to say it

But position on the ballot ain't gonna mean shit in this election.

[scarface2004]

6. hey even if they win they already lost!!

all the publicity should alert most voters to the shit the republicans are trying to pull!!!

[yellowcanine]

7. Heh. Haley Barbour gets caught with his fat hairy thumb on the scale.

[Alexander]

8. Maybe Musgrove can actually win this one.

Taking Trent Lott's Senate seat would be hilarious.

[tooeyeten]

9. weak on scruples

The acts of the unscrupulous.