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Sunday, July 08, 2007
Ind. Gov't. - Still More on: 2nd NW Indiana legislator backs out of resignation
Following up on this ILB entry from yesterday, John Byrne of the Gary Post Tribune has a report that begins, aptly:
Once again, Northwest Indiana is a statewide trendsetter in political weirdness.Joyce Russell of the NWI Times has a story today headlined "Caucus tonight for 10th District."The recent will-he-or-won't-he-leave-the General Assembly vacillations of Sen. Sam Smith and Rep. Duane Cheney had state Democratic officials scratching their heads and consulting the statute books.
"I can tell you none of us knew the particulars of the resignation rules until we looked them up," state Democratic Chairman Dan Parker said. "We have not encountered this before."
Smith, D-East Chicago, set a new standard Monday when he pulled back his planned resignation and announced he would return to Indianapolis.
Smith said he reconsidered at the urging of his wife and constituents who wanted him to stay, though cynics contend he opted to remain in the senate when he realized his wife didn't have the political support necessary to win the caucus to replace him.
If that is the case, Smith smartly sat back and read the tea leaves after announcing his intention to retire from the General Assembly, without officially filing his resignation letter.
The seat therefore remained Smith's to reclaim, according to Parker.
Cheney, D-Portage, actually filed his resignation papers after purchasing a house near Bloomington he plans to move into with his wife whether or not he continues representing the people of Porter County.
So when Cheney followed Smith's lead and took a mulligan on his retirement Thursday, state party officials told him he would need to reapply for the position.
Posted by Marcia Oddi on July 8, 2007 01:17 PM
Posted to Indiana Government