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§ 7557A. Complaint procedure; unlawful election activity altering result of election.
(a) A citizen of a municipality may submit a written complaint to the State Election Commissioner regarding any aspect of that municipality’s election activity that is contrary to state or federal law which altered or is reasonably likely to have altered the result of the election. Such complaint shall be filed no later than 20 days after the result of the municipal election shall have been certified by the municipality’s Board of Elections.
The complaint shall state with particularity:
(1) The action or activity that is contrary to state or federal law; and
(2) The specific basis for the complainant’s belief that such activity altered or is reasonably likely to have altered the result of the election…..
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The election law is very clear and is designed to prevent an outside group with lots of money from dominating and one-siding an election before anyone has any idea it is being done…
This law was put in place for the protection of the majority of a municipality’s citizens. It has been a long standing tradition grounded in Delaware election law, that every candidate, PAC, or group trying to influence an election file finance reports. The first deadline is 30 days. The second one is 8 days. Then the final one gets filed at the end of the year.
There was still a window under old law, where a person could spend from the 7th day onward, and the election would be over two months old before any accountability would be mustered. One could then see that one’s official was not the real choice of the people, but perhaps the choice of someone willing to put up a lot of money…
That window was closed by Tony DeLuca last year. After the 7th day, every large expenditure has to be reported in 24 hours… thereby giving the public decent time to acknowledge its influence and use that as part of the electioneering decision.
Polly’s campaign spent $5000 on winning the election. The PAC spent $45,000… That is a big expenditure. Nine times what any other candidate spent.
The PAC did not acknowledge its existence until 14 minutes before the Election Office closed on the eve of the election….
At points beforehand,
- they had previously made calls to organize.
- Got promises of financing.
- Designed and approved proofs of printing.
- Put down a deposit for the printer.
- Called and acquired manpower for their distribution
- Paid in full all those who distributed the pamphlets.
- Paid for gas for those vans distributing the pamphlets.
Every one of these acts is in violation of existing election law…
The (a) provision is fulfilled.
Now for the (b) provision…
(b) The State Election Commissioner shall review the complaint and such other materials as he or she deems necessary or appropriate. If, following such review, the Commissioner determines there is reasonable probability that conduct in violation of state or federal law altered or is reasonably likely to have altered the result of the election, then the Commissioner shall file suit in Superior Court on behalf of the complainant to invalidate the result of the election or such other relief as shall be appropriate.
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As one can see from the text it is up the the subjectivity of the commissioner. Which means if she chooses to ignore the overt influence caused by 9 times what any other campaigner spent across the municipal election, all of which was purposefully not legally reported, … she is free to do so.
She apparently taken that choice, and has chosen instead to reflect upon the sidebar of there being little evidence of misdirected voters, instead of a blatant gross violation of election law. She has thereby reinforced the continuance of actions, this law was expressly passed to forbid.
One can never know who showed up at their regular polling place, which of course would be in its normal business operation as a school, office, etc, and seeing no polling signs, then left….
Could it have possibly been 116 people? That is indeterminable. But at a ratio of only 19 per district if falls within the areas of possibility, and we do know that in the districts where this literature was reported being hung, all voted overwhelmingly for the other candidate…. In fact, it appears that this entire $45,000 expense was not to promote a Data Center among voters most likely to be negatively impacted by its creation in their own back yards, particularly in the two districts where it was distributed, …but to instead, confuse and obfuscate the proper location of the polling places in order to cut down the number of supporters who would actually vote, which if they did could overwhelm the election in favor of the candidate who was against the building of the power plant.
This leaves two overwhelming clouds of doubt. It leaves a cloud of doubt over the Commissioner of Elections… Is she kowtowing to the pressure to overrule common sense and allow this vote to continue? A doubt will always remain. This decision also casts doubt upon the current winner. Is she the real choice of the voters, or was she put in solely by illegal methods despite the voters choice of a different direction?
When clouds of sulfurous gases, rare earth elements, and radioactive particles begin descending upon the patio furnature, pets, cars and children of Newark, the clouds of this election will become even more important….
The clouds of doubt need to be removed.
That is why the subjective will of the commissioner needs instead to nullify this election, for the very reason that all appearances portend that illegal activities have “perhaps” caused a mis-election…. The commissioner has taken great pains over the past to keep the aura of trust that Delaware’s elections are honest and open… Now with one fell swoop, she is throwing that out of the window?
Nine times the amount spent by any candidate, was dumped into this election… 9 times the amount… Campaign finance laws were broken, and based on the time line we can almost ascertain, done so with intent….
The only proper thing which would put this past behind us… would be to have a runoff election between the two top candidates…. it could be held in two weeks…
Only then, would we know… for sure…
As the job reports came out, Republicans were quick to jump up Obama’s butt.
Mitt Romney: “He’s going to have a hard time putting perfume on this pig,”
In the past that is what would have been reported. But, since the Occupy groups have pointed out the hyprcrisy in the press, many of the major new organizations are finally steering back to the age old tradition of reporting facts…
When facts get thrown around, Republicans look pretty shabby.
Fact 1: If one separates the private sector away from the public sector jobs being formed, the economy looks rather good. For 21 straight months, the number of private-sector jobs has grown, by a total of 2.9 million. The reason for the growth has been federal stimulus funneling money back into the economy…..
Fact 2: The prime factor for the entire unemployment figure being steady and unchanging, is the loss of 603,000 government employee jobs over the same period. That loss is because of the Tea Party Republicans refused to pass any legislation, even if critical, until they got the right to start closing departments. If Republicans are not eliminated completely out of power, this trend of losses would continue.
Thereby adding Fact 1 and Fact 2, we see how bad Republicans are for the economy on two fronts. One, their policies kill jobs in the private sector, as well as cut jobs in the public sector….
Put bluntly, what happens when you fire a teacher and she goes to work for McDonald’s at 30% of what she once made? The entire local economy suffers…
Here we have the Republicans keeping America from getting back to work, and blaming Obama for their actions creating a bad economy…. The best way to get the economy roaring gangbusters, is to have a House of Representatives that is 100% Democratic, and a Senate ( it can’t be 100% because not all Senators are up for Election)… that is… 63% Democratic…
Then watch the economy take off……
But what is far more interesting, is now that along with me and the foreign press, since the Occupy Movement struck a chord in America’s soul, major American journalists are now getting back on the bandwagon of truth.
Ok…. so I decided to try out Delaware’s best voter’s guide ever, (already #2 on Google) to see just how good it was… Just to give it a qualifying run, you know, to see if it needed any tune up or additional work… Basically I just wanted to see what it could do…. Since I was discussing the Fourth Representative’s race on Down With Absolutes new site… I decided to carry it over here and put it through its paces…
We’ll approach this challenge alphabetically…. start with Brady..
So we go to the page at the top of my blog listed, I believe as 2008 Delaware’s Voter’s Guide… and let’s see we scroll down past the words until we see a long list of names…. whoops too far…. back it up a bit……State Rep 17…. go up a little more… there…State Representative 4…. Tyler Nixon and Gerald Brady….. Click on Brady and presto…..we have a google page of all Brady….
Oh look who’s on top? Dana Garrett at Delaware Watch with a story about how Gerald Brady kicked Gary Fulcher out of his campaign event… When Fulcher stammers….”when did this event become private….” he gets the proverbial answer….” just now…” And this is the guy who represented the fourth district for the past two years…..All too often we think of those for whom we vote, to have high personal and moral standards….. They don’t. Actually they are a lot like you and I… See the details here…
Ok..move on to the number two spot… Its Gerald Brady’s Legislative Hall dossier… Oh… That’s what he looks like… Looks like he was in the sun a bit too long with sunglasses on… Kind of looks like a backwards raccoon, wearing a light mask, not a dark one….(lol) So lets see what legislation he sponsored…If he is going up against Tyler, it must be earth shattering to be sure….
Wow… looks like he has a thing about dead people……hmmm. that’s different…
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 20, DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO BURIAL IN A DELAWARE VETERANS CEMETERY. HB 55
AN ACT TO AMEND CHAPTER 2, TITLE 12 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DISPOSITION OF A PERSON’S LAST REMAINS. HB 156
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 20 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE BURIAL OF WAR VETERANS. HB 281
AN ACT TO AMEND CHAPTER 2, TITLE 12 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DISPOSITION OF A PERSON’S LAST REMAINS. HB 384
Ok so lets see what else Gerald Brady is capable of…. He got hearing aids for children to be covered by insurance companies.. He got liens against property to be valid for ten years, instead of the previously approved five, he got additional paid leave for state employees who were assigned by the military to a position overseas… he got cities and municipalities the power to place a lien against your property based on the allusion that you owed someone, something… He also tried to get those in Homeless shelters to apply for a free fishing license…
So we check his occupation…. Oh, look! He’s the state director for the AFL-CIO…. Oh look… he is on the Land Use Committee… I wonder where he stands on eminent domain and workforce housing….? No doubt he is in line with DeLuca who came from IBEW and was the only person to stand in favor of developers taking your home by eminent domain, until Minner vetoed it…and the Senate Democrats refused to overturn her veto….
Ok, next site… Oh, I see Tommywonk is happy (although he doesn’t say it directly… you just have to know how to read him..) that Brady represents him…
Oh, look at this… the Hockessan CommunityPub.com has a piece on Gerald Brady.. Let’s see… they got all that from his Official State website, which we just looked at… oh..here we have something in first person….Let’s see…he wants to build up infrastructure..as well as transportation… Uh..how does that stack up during our current budget crises? Storm Drains need upgraded.. water supply needs upgraded due to new development… um… no mention of developers picking up the cost… I guess it fall on us taxpayers again….
Oh…He knew I was coming… Someone tipped him off! He knew I was going to be poking around…! The final Bluewater Wind contract, along with the legislation establishing “sustainable energy units” (SEUs) was the best possible deal for Delawareans, a fact which is confirmed by the recent drastic turbulence in the various markets. Careful consideration should be focused on contracting and permitting process to ensure project is satisfied in a timely fashion. Oh well, can’t argue with truth… That’s a mark for his good side…
Another mark.. Open government… That doesn’t squire to well with his relationship with the Senate’s Adams and DeLuca, but here he champions Open Government… A good thing…I speak with special conviction and demonstrated this by consistently voting in favor of all open government bills during my two years as a state legislator. (What about this one?) “Say” and “Do” aren’t lining up on the same side here, are they?
And fiscal crises….we should focus on maintaining national leadership in this area by funding core priorities, such as excellence in public education, health and cancer prevention programs as well as aggressive economic programs that continue to attract jobs to our state. My priorities would be to continue funding education reforms, increase resources for police and homeland security needs and secure additional capital funding for surface water drainage needs in and around the City.
Next Link.. Ha! There’s a Gerald Brady holding some office in North Dakota.. Not our Gerald Brady.. moving on.. Let’s see what’s on the next page… Oh… Here we go Project Vote Smart… Lets see where Brady stands.. Ok, his list of organizations is here….
Leader, Boy Scouts of America Troop #285
Member, Delaware’s Workforce Investment Board
Board President, Graham Senior Center
Executive Board Member, Greater Wilmington Convention and Visitor’s Bureau
Executive Board, Friends of Woodlawn Library
Board Member, Wilmington Free Library
Past President, St. Ann’s Home and School Association
Former Member, St. Ann’s Church Parish Council.
So how did he vote?
He voted for the budgets as they were dropped on the desk…
He voted for an alcohol tax increase…
He voted for State Employee Collective Bargaining.
He voted against an admendment that required State Employees to know whether their wages were attached beforehand…
He voted for an increased cigarette tax….
He voted against an amendment that waives state employees’ and institutions’ immunity from those provisions of SB 29 (the Child Victim’s Act), which repeals the statute of limitations on civil suits involving child sexual abuse. (Worried more about liability… than children)
He voted yes to bring sports betting into Delaware.
Next, we have Steve Newton, professor extraordinaire or Delaware Libertarian, poking around the campaign finances of Gerald Brady.. Of course being head of the AFL-CIO he will have SOME union contributions… Steve wonders whether it should be a illegal, or at least a conflict of interest to solicit or collect money from those groups you are overseeing…. in a word… no.. I would certainly support my boss were he to run for some office… My guess, when put from that perspective… so would he? But everyone should know that were a choice needed in order to decide on developers right’s to eminent domain, to decide on developers bonuses for short cycling our current highway structure, and educational capacities, and water and sewage capacities, ….. we know which way Gerald Brady will go… Pro development.
Oh, here we go… Someone with the same name, Gerald Brady, who lists himself as CEO of Liberty Cab company, obviously somewhere in Houston TX, last election gave $550 to Bush and as of February… has given $330 to of all people….Obama… This bit of random information solidifies the view that Americans all over recognize that Obama better represents those American values previously believed to have been better represented by the Republican Party… You know… instead of debating whether they are Democratic or Republican values… we should all bury the hatchet and recognize that Obama represents middle class values… The rich can go to hell.
Ok so back to the race at hand… let’s see here is something from Delaware Way… Gerald Brady and Hazel Plant, has sponsored legislation, HB 161, that would allow the City of Wilmington to change its charter and make Wilmington residents responsible for the maintenance and repair of sidewalks and curbs adjacent to their property. [I have heard that Helene Keeley is removing her co-sponsorship of this bill. There may be others who are second-guessing their support for Baker’s initiative]
So Gerald Brady tried to get Wilmington’s homeowners to be responsible for the upkeep of the sidewalks in front of their house.. The same sidewalks that the city of Wilmington has neglected to repair since their creation (almost). Therefore, the city plans on sending out inspectors, to look at the sidewalks they haven’t fixed, and issue you, the homeowner, a fine they they spend elsewhere, and you still have to pay a “union” laborer money to fix your sidewalk…..
Brady sponsored this bill.. Lets see how much of Brady’s district lies in Wilmington? What all of it? That’s not good.
Ok, now here is something from the Community Pub.com again from Hockessan (he’s got to lose that picture) … Brady said his focus during his second term would be to make the presence of alternative energy sources a reality in Delaware. Brady said he also hoped to see the passage of recycling legislation that helps divert waste from the state’s landfills. “I had a major role in bringing recycling to the City of Wilmington so I know it works,” he said. Brady said he was proud that all 10 pieces of legislation he introduced during his first term passed in the House of Representatives. He said he was particularly proud of legislation that requires health insurance providers to offer as much as $2,000 to children and young adults for hearing aids. Brady, who suffers from hearing loss, said ensuring proper hearing during developmental years was important. “Studies have shown that those with hearing loss are an average of two years behind their age group developmentally,” he said.
Here is his resignation from Wilmington’s City Council, upon his last election two years ago… And here is a copy of an email sent to Dave Breakiron and ABATE regarding the current status of motorcycle helmet laws in Delaware. (I didn’t know Mike Castle wanted helmets worn by every motorcyclist?) And here is a piece by Steve Crockett, now joined at the hip with Dana Garrett of Delaware Watch in Democratic Talk Radio…mentioning Brady’s assistance in getting project CLEAN off the ground in its efforts to deal with toxic chemicals in the employee environment… (I didn’t know Steve was from Earleville, Maryland…)
OK, Let’s Check Out “The Other Guy”.
Click on Tyler Nixon:
First listing is his own website… lets click and see.…
Wow, this is a help.. There is a lot here… Obviously this candidate is savvy with us who use the electronic media to research candidates… We have two of the CommunityPub highlights of his campaign, and we have a recent Comcast Newsmaker Interview detailing his candidacy, and further down, we have the WHYY blurb on last years sidewalk responsibility crises….one his opponent was directly responsible…. and Tyler makes the case that the city…should be the one responsible for the maintenance of sidewalks.. WE HAVE AN ISSUE, HERE. Also we have links to donate or volunteer for Tyler’s campaign…
On single factor is apparent from the beginning.. Whereas we had to scramble through many postings of Gerald Brady just to find the essence of the man, on one sight at the top of Tyler’s list, we can feel the strength of who he is…..Wilmington Native – Attorney – Small Business Owner – Public Service and Reform Activist – U.S. Army Combat Veteran
Also spread out are the agenda which he plans to progress if elected into General Assembly….
Jobs, Jobs, Jobs by Attracting Clean Energy Technology Companies to Delaware
Þ Clean, Renewable Energy Independence for Delaware
o Invest in renewable energy on all state facilities and for fleet vehicles
o Allow households and communities to join in “bulk-buying” when state government purchases renewable energy systems
o Create statewide hydrogen infrastructure for motor vehicles
o Property tax rebates and incentives for private investment in renewable energy systems
o Remove any local administrative or legal barriers to clean energy entrepreneurs and installers
o Public-private partnerships to demonstrate new technologies like tidal power
o Exempt all DMV fees and costs for zero emission vehicles
Þ Protect Delaware’s Environment with Enforcement of Real Penalties for Violators
Þ Quality Choices in Education – Consolidate and eliminate top-heavy bureaucracies
Þ Protect Property Rights – Eminent Domain Reform
Þ Reform and Accountability – Open Government
o End the “desk drawer veto”
o Make the legislature subject to Freedom of Information
o Pass transparency legislation – make finances available online
Þ Initiative and Referendum So CITIZENS Can Directly Make or Repeal Law by Election Ballot
Þ Constitutional Limits on Incumbency Time for All Public Officials in Delaware
Þ State Inspector General with Prosecutorial Powers
Þ Eliminate ALL Taxes and Fees For Lower Income Households
Þ Hold Counties, Cities, and Towns Accountable to Citizens
o No more heavy-handed schemes for parking and other fines
o No more “double” licensing for businesses with State licenses
o No more “instant” ticket schemes that deny due process
Þ Protect Citizen Rights from Government Abuse & Encroachment
Þ Eliminate Mandatory Minimum Sentences – Drug Policy Reform
So what are others saying about Tyler Nixon… Ok, we have some nut (I kill me) from 2006 ranting on his view of a comment Tyler made about the JFK assassination plot…which instead of looping Tyler into a conspiracy theory, casts considerable doubt upon the Warren Commission’s report… here is Tyler’s reply….
When I was in the Army Infantry I was (even in spite of being slightly near-sighted) a sniper-quality marksman, always hitting 38-40 out of 40 pop-up targets as far out as 300 meters at every qualification round. I consistently carried firearms almost every day of the week, 24 hours a day, for over 2 years while on active duty. These included the M16A2, the M249 SAW (Squad Automatic Weapon), and the M60 7.62mm machine gun. I have handled firearms of all varieties since fairly young and have fired at least 100 different types, from the best to the worst, including the 6.5 mm Italian Carcano rifle identical to the one purportedly used to murder President Kennedy. I also know, from experience, what it takes to hit a moving target, even with a superior firearm and under ideal conditions. Having said that, the Carcano rifle purportedly used is one of the worst, most inaccurate, and shoddy rifles I have ever handled. The one I fired was so shoddy, even as a rather pristine specimen, that we simply couldn’t get it properly sighted and zeroed no matter what we tried.
Next we have a collection of the most popular blogging apparatus, WordPress, collection of posts tagged Tyler Nixon… We see him connected to the Public Meeting against the Unified Development Code, that the the Libertarian Party endorsed him as well, we see he was linked to the blockage of Harris McDowell’s secret attempt to steal the profits from the SEU, we see he would have made Theodore Roosevelt proud, we see Tyler’s acknowledgment that Republican in Congress, are just as morose as the General Assembly’s democrats, showing non-partisan fevor in correcting governments wrongs…
WE see Delaware Watch come out with this Republican’s comment back in 2006….“Perhaps it’s this capacity that prompted one Republican to say to me, “The problem with Tyler Nixon is that he is ahead of his time” and still another to opine “Nixon’s progressivism won’t sit well with some Republicans.” That was then.. Today is now… The past has done us no good… forward thinking needs to placed out of “neutral”, and into “drive”. “He not only possesses the vision of what we need in Delaware, but he also tells us how to actualize the vision.”
Next we see Shirley, our favorite Curmudgeon (unfortunately still under the spell that Copeland cast upon her at the Brandywine Hundred Meeting) is reverentially supporting Tyler Nixon.
We have the Libertarian Party saying they endorse him as their candidate.
Whoops… That’s not his facebook.….
We have an old interview… from Delaware Watch… He is a Gulf War Veteran, a graduate of University of VA Law School, an advocate for solar; wind power, opposes nuclear power
and supports extending Delaware’s FOIA Open Meeting laws to the Delaware Legislature.
We next have an old archived piece again from Delaware Watch, describing the political forum held again in 2006 against Tyler Nixon and Harris McDowell, who if he were running this term would carry the epithet “most hated man in Delaware” but because of that one fact.. he is not running, Charlie Copeland must bear that heavy burden… as being the one person who tried to kill offshore wind from coming to Delaware…. here is a moment of revelation dawning in the mind of its author: Dana Garrett. Tyler Nixon repeatedly pointed out. It’s time for a change. It’s time for a new generation of leadership. Although Nixon is almost a generation younger than me, I realized that night for the first time that he was correct. My generation and the generation before me have left Nixon’s generation a mess, environmentally, economically and socially. And after I’m long gone, Nixon’s generation will still be dealing with the mess my generation left them. Since it will be their burden, it’s time now to left the Tyler Nixons take charge. It’s time for the Harris McDowells to retire.
Another blog, DelawareLiberal.net points out Tyler’s sense of humor… this time regarding the sidewalk issue…
What? The Tyler Nixon Band? One of them even looks a little like Tyler… lol
Finally we have the News Journal version of the Sidewalk controversy,a win for property owners, and a loss for city government, at its defeat… Tyler Nixon led the charge… Here is one of the early exchanges that may have led him in that direction…
So after a brief perusal of three Google pages each on the two candidates, you, by now should have a solid feel of which candidate will better represent you during the next two years in Dover… To all citizens everywhere, if we have learned anything from this election’s extended season, it it that voting matters.. IT REALLY MATTERS WHO WE PUT INTO OFFICE… Each voter has a serious responsibility to pick the person representing the way he wants this nation, state, county, district to go…. We can ill afford to put Joe Schmoe in because he says “hi” to our kids….and walks in a parade.
The Inevitable Conclusion?
That depends entirely upon you… But if you want my brief synopsis, here is how it appeared to me as I plowed through this task.. Both candidates appear to be motivated, and basically extremely good guys.. They agree on energy management, open government, and bringing jobs to Delaware. (of course who would ever campaign on the opposite).. So now the question depends upon degree… Who will move us forward faster…
Those of us who deal in state government know how the current power structure animates downward from the “closed drawer” of the Senate… Any threat by the owner of that drawer, stifles good legislation from going forward… Right now, if Delaware is to move forward…. that drawer needs to be opened so a majority of bills opening up government can move forward.. Gerald Brady by his union connection is joined at the hip with fellow Unionists Tony DeLuca, Terry Spence, Dori Conner, Bob Marshall, Harris McDowell, Mike Mulrooney, David McBride, Margarette Rose Henry, Bethany Hall-Long, Hazel Plant, Dennis Williams, John Viola, as well as by nature connected to those of county government embedded in the Union’s plan: Chris Coons, Mike Kosikowski, Bill Bell, Penrose Hollins, and George Smiley…and Ruth Minner, in keeping the shennigans of government from being seen too clearly…
Nothing can change, until that switch at the top takes place… So having a nice guy support the Evil Empire, or having a tribal warrior fighting for the Jedi, is our choice in the Fourth District…
If you like how things went down during the Minner administration then Gerald Brady is your man..
If you want to take a stab at making it better, you cannot go wrong with Tyler Nixon. From all the evidence around, he is the one on your side of the “big battle”.
kavips 