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Abernathy Strategies
RepublicanGazette
Wednesday, February 13, 2008 "When news breaks, we fix it" Published daily except some days
Submissions welcome
The Republican Gazette welcomes Emails to the Editor and press releases. All submitted items must include the name and contact information for the author of the article, and all articles will only be published with the author's name included. Thank you for reading and participating in The Republican Gazette, another of West Virginia's most biased publications.
All opinions are those of The Republican Gazette and its editor, Gary Abernathy, except letters or commentary signed by others, and do not reflect the views of anyone else, including clients of Abernathy Strategies.
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Having Fun With Mojo
The excitement about my campaign is palpable! That means something really good, I'm pretty sure!
Mitt, Rudy, Ron stay on Primary ballot
Deadline passes to withdraw, so WV Republicans will have chance to vote for them, McCain or Huck; Edwards stays on Democrat side
Just when you thought the interesting part was over, the passing of a little known Tuesday deadline has left some suspense in the GOP presidential race in West Virginia.Despite ending, or, in some cases, "suspending" their campaigns, Mitt Romney, Rudy Giuliani and Ron Paul will all appear on West Virginia's presidential Primary election ballot, as will Democrat John Edwards.None of those candidates filed the forms necessary with the Secretary of State's office by Tuesday's deadline to be removed from the May 13 ballot.Along with the candidates themselves, the 27 West Virginia Republicans -- three per candidate per congressional district -- who signed up as delegates for each of those GOP candidates will also show up on the ballot. Fred Thompson dropped out of the race prior to the January 26 filing deadline and therefore did not file for the Primary election.So what happens if, say, Mitt Romney wins the state's 2nd Congressional District on May 13? Despite the fact he announced the suspension of his campaign, do his three delegates in the 2nd District get to go to the Republican National Convention in September? Yes, because he is still a candidate in West Virginia.West Virginia has a total of 30 delegates to the national convention. Eighteen of them were awarded to Mike Huckabee in the recent presidential convention in Charleston. Three are set aside for the state GOP chairman and two members of the national committee, leaving nine -- three per congressional district -- to be awarded in the May 13 Primary.Technically, it would appear that the GOP's delegation to the convention could be an interesting bunch. As mentioned, 18 of them will be pledged to Huckabee. But if a different candidate wins in each of the state's threeDespite ending or "suspending" their campaigns, Mitt Romney, above left, Rudy Giuliani, above, and Ron Paul, left, will appear on West Virginia's Primary ballot on May 13, along with the West Virginia delegates pledged to them.
congressional districts, there could be three McCain, three Romney and three Giuliani delegates joining the Huckabee crowd.
Or, one candidate could sweep all three districts, meaning, say, nine McCain delegates could be traveling to Minneapolis, or nine Romney, or nine Giuliani, or -- most unlikely -- nine Ron Paul delegates.Or, one candidate could win two districts, giving him six delegates, with another candidate winning three from the remaining district.Or, Huckabee himself could pick up some or all of the remaining delegates with big Primary wins. He, too, will be on the ballot, even if he ends his campaign before then. The names of the candidates will appear with their selected delegates in each congressional district, so the delegates themselves could sway the outcome. Also on the GOP presidential ballot will be Alan Keyes and Jerry Curry of Haymarket, Va. McCain's sweep puts Huck in hot seat
John McCain's sweep of Virginia, Maryland and Washington D.C. on Tuesday puts Mike Huckabee in the position now of either staying in the race purely as a spoiler, or clearing the path for the beginning of an effort to unite the GOP behind McCain.Mitt Romney's gracious exit from the race last week showed a devotion to his party and his nation over himself. Whether Huckabee will follow suit will be important for the partymoving forward. After victories in Kansas and other states in recent days, Huckabee could not be blamed for hanging around. But despite performing well in Virginia, his failure to actually win, and McCain's collection of all the winner-take-all delegates, puts it all in a different light.
If Huckabee joins Romney in stepping aside for the greater good of the party's chances in November, he'll win more goodwill from voters in the long run, and for his future political goals. (Press Release) The campaign season is here again, and Lisa Peana needs your help! After much discussion with family and friends, Lisa has filed as a candidate for the House of Delegates from the 17th District. Please join Lisa and her supporters for an upcoming campaign kick-off fundraiser. Feel free to bring a friend, spouse, neighbor, or someone who normally does not get involved in the political process. We must spread the word that West Virginia needs change, and Lisa would be honored to be your advocate of change at the Legislature.Campaign Kick-Off FundraiserRocco's Ristorante252 Main Street, Ceredo, WVMonday, February 18th 2008Reception 6:00pm Dinner 7:00pm Your financial contribution will enable the campaign to reach out to voters. Will you help us begin changing West Virginia today? Contributions of $1,000, $500, $250, $100, $50, $25, or any amount, will be greatly appreciated. This race will be very difficult and time consuming. Lisa believes whole-heartedly we can change our state, and she will put every effort into creating a better West Virginia.Lisa Peana fundraiser February 18 in Ceredo
West Virginians are hard-working, compassionate and loyal. They deserve like minded advocates in the Legislature. The most important challenge facing our state is the creation of good paying jobs. Lisa Peana's plan to reduce regulation and the immense burden of taxes on our small businesses will finally make West Virginia competitive.If you send Lisa to the Legislature, she will work tirelessly to pass legislation that protects the key values of West Virginia families. Lisa's passionate belief in protecting our children goes far beyond the pro-life movement; we must also work to ensure a safe environment for our children in the home, schools and neighborhoods.PLEASE JOIN US ON MONDAY FEBRUARY 18th AT ROCCO'S IN CEREDO!In attendance will also be candidates for local and state-wide office to include:- Russ Weeks, Candidate for Governor
- Kim Wolfe, Candidate for Mayor of Huntington
- Marty Gearheart, Candidate for Congress – 3rd District
You may RSVP by email or phone: SuzetteRaines@aol.com or 304-437-1306.Hey kids! Mojo here! Well, I officially kicked off my re-election campaign on Monday! Did you hear about it? No? Read about it? No? Well, I did! And I had almost as big a crowd to open my new campaign headquarters as Kelli Sobonya had at her fundraiser last week! So I'm feeling pretty good! The invitations said Jay Rockefeller was going to be there! But, well, something must have come up! Anyway, we had a great time, and people are very excited! Now, what we have to do is lower expectations! As everyone knows, I'm one of the most popular governors in the universe! So people think I'll win by a landslide! Trouble is, even if I win, everybody will claim I really lost if I don't win with 70 or 80 percent of the vote! In fact, I gotta win with about 90 percent in my own Primary election, or they'll claim dissention within my own party!
Did you hear about my new slogan? "Not Your Average Joe!" Good, huh? Came up with that myself! My first choice was -- "Joe Manchin: Open for Business!" That one's available now, you know! But nobody much liked it except me! So we went with my second choice! It'll be great! Nothing will motivate voters like being assured I'm not average! Voters across the state will be saying, "I'm voting for Joe! He's above average!" I should work in advertising!