The third featured speaker at the Washington State Democratic Convention is Mark Parkinson.Who?He's the lieutenant governor of Kansas.But beyond that, he's a pretty good speaker, which is why State Chairman Dwight Pelz asked him to come west for the evening.
Sen. Patty Murray, one of the state's first endorsers of Hillary Clinton, made a spirited pitch for Barack Obama Friday evening as she brought Washington Democrats to their feet over issues ranging from opposing the war to supporting veterans when they come back."I feel change…
Political conventions include a significant amount of down time.Time between Workshop A and Workshop B. Time for lunch. Time between Workshop C and the general discussion on being a good progressive.Time for the pre banquet reception.Time between the pre banquet reception and the banquet, which,…
One of the most noticeable differences between the Democrats and the Republicans in their conventions this year is likely to be their platforms.As adopted two weeks ago, the Republicans have a platform that fit neatly on three sides of standard size paper. Each section was…
There's no doubt who this convention is designed to boost.Sure, there are cardboard cutouts of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in the grand hallway, and paraphernalia for candidates of all levels. But the Washington Democrats, like their Republican counterparts two weeks ago, are focusing on…
Staff writer Erica Curless reports from Sandpoint that Idaho Republicans have ousted three Ron Paul delegate from North Idaho because of questions over their nominating meeting. Read about it here. The resolution committee also passed a statement opposing legalized marijuana, even for medical purposes. Read…
Washington state Democrats are meandering in to the Spokane Convention Hall for a morning that isn't exactly jam packed with excitement.They have meetings by the Platform, Rules and Credentials committees that started at 10 a.m., and workshops on campaigning. Unlike the Republicans two weeks ago,…
Erica Curless reports from Sandpoint: The sun is shining here as the GOP is gathering at the Bonner County Fairgrounds for the first day of real action at the state convention. Read her convention reports at Huckleberries.
Staff writer Erica Curless looks for Ron Paul delegates, the revolution, and entertainment at the Idaho Republican Convention. Read about it by clicking here.
Boise burea chief Betsy Z. Russell weighs in on the start of the Idaho Democratic convention.Hundreds of Democrats are standing in wide lines to check in for the state party convention today, campaign signs and buttons galore are promoting not only election candidates but also…
Brought to you by the folks behind Obama Girl, with an eye on this weekend's big movie opening.
Today's video: McCain on troops in Iraq, oil prices and other things...the full interviewA political weekend is coming up, with Washington state Democrats conventioning in Spokane, Idaho Republicans in Sandpoint and Idaho Democrats in Boise. The Spokesman-Review and spokesmanreview.com will be following all three events.Catch…
Democratic incumbent Chris Gregoire and presumptive Republican challenger Dino Rossi are having a little back and forth over one of the most important issues of the gubernatorial campaign. Money. As in, who's doing the best job of raising it.The Rossi campaign announced Tuesday that'd he…
Presidential years bring out the best and the worst in the nation's entrepreneurial spirit. Ever since candidates started putting their mugs on buttons, the nation has seen a wide range of campaign collectibles _ just about any kind of jewelry imaginable in the shape of…
Filing week is behind us, but a few questions remain about those petitions the candidates filed.Among them: Is there a difference between candidates who filed their party preference as "Republican" and those who filed "GOP" or "R"? Could there be some secret signal to the…
As expected, Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, two superdelegates who were among Hillary Clinton's earliest supporters, announced today they are switching to Barack Obama.In press releases shortly after Clinton suspended her campaign and endorsed Obama, the two Washington state senators praised Clinton for running…
With less than five hours left to file for office in Washington state, the list of candidates continues to grow.New additions to the list (other than Curt Fackler's name, which was recounted earlier) include:Mohammad Hasan Said of Ephrata, running for governor and listing "No party…
Spokane's Curt Fackler was added to the list of candidates for office this morning as the Secretary of State's office processed his electronically filed paperwork to run for state Insurance Commissioner.That's not a huge surprise, considering Fackler ran for the office four years ago and…
Another candidate has jumped into the 5th Congressional District primary.Randall Yearout of Otis Orchards filed this afternoon as a member of the Constitution Party.Not to be confused with Kurt Erickson of the Republican Party, who bills himself as 100 percent Constitutional. (Perhaps Yearout is 110…
Today's video: Slate's counter to Hillary Clinton's "popular vote" argumentHere are the headlines in the presidential campaign from The Associated Press:Clinton to end historic candidacy and announce she is supporting Obama for presidentDean stays as DNC chair; bans lobbyist, PAC money consistent with Obama’s positionMcCain…
The Associated Press says Clinton is telling people she's officially dropping out of the race on Saturday, and supporting Obama:WASHINGTON (AP) — Hillary Rodham Clinton has decided to end her historic presidential campaign while leaving her options open to retain her delegates and promote her…
Two similar questions (which may have two very different answers):Should Barack Obama pick Hillary Clinton as his running mate?Will Barack Obama pick Hillary Clinton as his running mate?Weigh in by clicking here.
At close of business Wednesday, here's the list of candidates Spokane area voters will see on their primary ballots in August:
U.S. Sen. and former Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry will be the keynote speaker at the Washington State Democratic Convention later this month, party officials confirmed today.Although Kerry may have slipped a few notches from an "A" list guest compared to 2004, he did carry…
Locally:Monday is the first day of filing week. Anyone who hasn't decided yet whether to run for office has until 5 p.m. to spit or get off the spot. For more on filing week, click here.McCain uses speech to pro-Israel group to criticize Obama on…
The Spokesman-Review's political team keeps a critical eye on local, state and national politics.
