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Abortion: Is a local candidate's position relevant? |
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By Ocala.com Election Coverage on
5/2/2008 8:50 AM
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We asked the heads of the local Democratic and Republican parties the following question: Candidates for local and state offices often include their positions on abortion in their platform. Since these candidates do not vote on U.S. Supreme Court justices, are their positions on abortion relevant?
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Wright all wrong for Obama's campaign |
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By Ocala.com Election Coverage on
4/29/2008 11:10 AM
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One thing seems obvious about the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr: the only thing bigger than his mouth is his ego.
Wright continues to haunt Sen. Barack Obama's presidential campaign.
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Is it time to open Florida's primaries? |
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By Ocala.com Election Coverage on
4/22/2008 8:00 AM
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The heads of the local Republican and Democratic parties were asked this question: Do you think Florida should hold open primaries, allowing voters to cast their ballots for any candidate they choose?
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School Board candidates: Who's running and who's earning |
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By Ocala.com Election Coverage on
4/22/2008 8:00 AM
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Candidates are lining up to run against Marion County School Board member Steve Hering this fall.
As of today, Hering had four opponents for the nonpartisan District 2 seat: Eleanor J. Drakeford, Jacqueline Porter, Bernard LeCorn and Johnathan Raymon Connell. Although Hering is the incumbent, he has yet to report any campaign contributions or spending, while Porter has contributed $30,000 of her own money to her campaign.
Hering isn’t the only elected school official with competition. Bobby James, who was appointed to fill Kurt Kelly’s unexpired term when Kelly won a seat in the Florida Legislature, has two opponents: Mark Gamoneda and Karen Francis-Winston.
A third School Board member, Judi Zanetti, is opposed so far by attor ...
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Congressman wants answers about Bear Stearns bailout |
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By Ocala.com Election Coverage on
4/16/2008 4:49 PM
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U.S. Rep. Cliff Stearns, R-Ocala, expressed concern Wednesday about the proposed bailout of troubled Bear Stearns, which would cost taxpayers at least $30 billion.
In a letter to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, Stearns said he was concerned that the Fed had taken "unilateral action" in providing about $30 billion in loan guarantees to J.P. Morgan Chase to take over Bear Stearns.
See the letter here.
Stearns letter.pdf
-- Tom McNiff
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Media should stop rooting for political candidates |
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By Ocala.com Election Coverage on
4/2/2008 10:37 AM
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There's an unwritten rule about reporters who cover sporting events: No cheering in the press box!
So why is it that when it comes to something infinitely more important than a baseball game -- like a presidential election -- so many in the national media feel free to root for candidates.
Fair and balanced? My eye. Hardball? Puh-leeeease!
The cable networks trot out political cheerleaders every night, dress them up like real reporters and turn them loose on prime-time audiences with their sound-bite journalism and witty banter.
And what are they talking about? Are they offering side-by-side comparisons of the health care plans put forth by Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama? Are they analyzing the details of John McCain’s economic stimulus package?
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Local party leaders respond to Obama controversy |
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By Ocala.com Election Coverage on
3/27/2008 7:53 AM
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The heads of the local Republican and Democratic parties were asked: Barack Obama has drawn fire for his affiliation with a fiery Chicago minister. Should candidates – local or national – be judged by the company they keep?
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Ocala sells the old library to a high-tech institute, but one city councilman is not convinced it was wise |
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By Ocala.com Election Coverage on
3/5/2008 12:21 PM
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When the Ocala City Council sold the old downtown library to the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition Tuesday night, Councilman Kyle Kay cast the only "no" vote.
Why?
Kay said this morning he would have liked to open up the process to see what other suitors might be willing to offer for the site. Perhaps another developer or entrepreneur would have offered more.
IHMC got the building and land for $700,00, about a half million dollars less than its appraised value. Add to that $300,000 in economic incentives that IHMC will get, and the city has about $800,000 invested in this project.
And Kay isn’t convinced that IHMC will be the economic development catalyst it aims to be.< ...
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A guide to winning the Independent vote |
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By Ocala.com Election Coverage on
2/19/2008 8:51 AM
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The Star-Banner asked the heads of the local Democratic and Republican parties the following question: What does your party have to do at the national level to win the important Independent vote in November?
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North Florida Presidential Primary Results |
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By Ocala.com Election Coverage on
1/30/2008 10:19 AM
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One can spend a lot of time browsing this interactive graphic from The New York Times showing county-by-county election results from Tuesday's Florida presidential primaries.
While John McCain and Hillary Clinton both won the I-4 corridor, South Florida and the statewide popular vote, many North Florida counties went against the statewide trend. Marion Republicans went for Mitt Romney -- and Romney, Mike Huckabee, Barack Obama and John Edwards each bagged a number of North Florida counties.
- Brian Thornton
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Democrat or Republican: Who should occupy the White House? |
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By Ocala.com Election Coverage on
1/30/2008 10:13 AM
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Recently, the Star-Banner asked the heads of the local Democratic and Republican parties if they’d be interested in participating in this blog. The response was a resounding yes. So, each week, we will pose a question about local, state or national politics and will publish their unedited responses promptly.
There are very few rules here: Answers can be as long or as short as they want, and the party heads can delegate the responsibility of answering a question to another member of the party if they choose.
This Week’s Question: Why should voters elect a Republican/Democrat to the White House in November?
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