Tomorrow is election day, and voters in several states will be choosing their attorney general.
Mississippi: Republican Mike Hurst is challenging long-time Democratic incumbent Jim Hood. Hood, sometimes called “the last Democrat in Dixie,” is running on a record of law enforcement and consumer protection, whereas Hurst has criticized him for siding with the Obama Administration, and for pushing state contracts to his political contributors. Hood has found a way to fend off all of his previous Republican challengers, but Hurst is a stronger candidate than those previous challengers, and Mississippi has turned even redder in recent years, so stay tuned.
Kentucky: Republican Whitney Westerfield faces Andrew Beshear, the son of popular governor Steve Beshear. In recent weeks, both candidates have weighed in with their plans for fighting a heroin epidemic in northern Kentucky. Beshear has led in the most recent public polls, but neither candidate is very well known in the state, and most of the attention has focused on the gubernatorial race at the top of the ticket, where Republican Matt Bevin and Democrat Jack Conway are in a dead heat. If Bevin performs anywhere near as well as Senator McConnell did in his most recent election, don’t be surprised if Westerfield pulls this one off. But if the race for governor stays as close as it has been, don’t be surprised if Beshear wins on the strength of his father’s name ID and reputation.
Louisiana: The Louisiana election won’t take place for another few weeks, on November 21, but it is shaping up to be the most intense of the cycle. Incumbent Republican Buddy Caldwell failed to secure a majority in the recent jungle primary, while his Republican Challenger, former conservative Congressman Jeff Landry, finished just a few points behind. The Louisiana GOP has endorsed Landry, and, oddly enough, so has the Democratic AG candidate (who lost in the primary). Caldwell won’t give up easily, but with his support well below 40% in the primary, and conservatives and the business community rallying to Landry, don’t be surprised if Louisiana soon has a new AG.
Looking ahead to 2016:
Missouri: The Republican primary for attorney general pits state senator Kurt Schaefer against law professor Joshua Hawley. Hawley, who recently secured an endorsement from conservative leader Ken Blackwell, reported that he had broken the first-quarter fundraising record for an AG candidate in Missouri, but Schaefer still maintains a significant cash advantage. Two Democrats are seeking their party’s nomination: Teresa Hensley, former Cass County Prosecutor, and St. Louis County Assessor Jake Zimmerman.
North Carolina: In North Carolina, prosecutor Jim O’Neill and state senator Buck Newton are running for the GOP nomination, while state Sen. Josh Stein and practitioner Tim Dunn run for the Democratic nomination.
Pennsylvania: It would be putting it nicely to say that Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane is embattled. In summary, Kane has been indicted for violating grand jury secrecy rules, obstruction of justice, and other crimes connected with alleged retaliation against officials who disagreed with the decision to shut down public corruption investigations. After the Pennsylvania Supreme Court suspended Kane’s law license in response to the indictment, Kane released emails from a Pennsylvania Supreme Court justice who had used a private email account to engage in what she alleged was misconduct, even though he had been cleared by the state’s Judicial Conduct Board last year. Kane had previously announced an intention to seek re-election next year, but she is currently reconsidering that move in light of her suspension, which would disqualify her from the ballot. Meanwhile, a bipartisan committee established by the Pennsylvania state Senate is examining whether Kane can be removed from office now that her law license has been suspended. These events have opened up more opportunities for two Republicans who have announced their intentions to seek the office of attorney general.






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