Along with 26 statewide measures on the ballot, tomorrow's elections bring two more recalls of state legislators.
Arizona: Senate President Russell Pearce faces another Republican, Jerry Lewis, in a recall election tomorrow. This recall was triggered by opposition to Arizona's immigration enforcement law, which Sen. Pearce sponsored. This is the first-ever recall election for a legislator in Arizona. A recent poll gave Lewis a 46-43 lead over Sen. Pearce, which is within the poll's margin of error. The candidate who wins tomorrow's recall election assumes the Senate seat. Read the local media coverage here.
Michigan: The recall election for Representative Paul Scott in Michigan is attracting less national attention. More than two dozen recall efforts against Michigan legislators have been launched since last summer; the Rep. Scott recall is the only one to reach the ballot so far. The politics behind this recall effort are not as clear-cut, but appear to stem from K-12 education funding cuts and a teacher tenure reform measure (Rep. Scott chairs the House education comittee). Michigan's recall process works differently -- if the recall vote tomorrow is successful, then the parties will nominate candidates for a February special election to fill the seat, and Rep. Scott will remain in office until the special election results are certified. An early November poll showed that 42 percent of voters favored recalling Rep. Scott, 50 percent wanted him to stay in office, and 8 percent remained undecided. Read local media coverage here.
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