Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, incumbent Dem Rep, goes down in MI primary, sixth lawmaker to be ousted

[Freddie Stubbs]

Source: NY Daily News

Another incumbent just got the boot.

Seven-term Michigan Democrat Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick — mother of disgraced ex-Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick — lost in an upset defeat in Tuesday's primary.

The loss made her the sixth incumbent lawmaker — and fourth in the House — to be snubbed by a frustrated electorate this year.

State Sen. Hansen Clarke beat the veteran lawmaker, stressing the legal woes surrounding her son, who resigned in 2008 after pleading guilty to obstruction of justice.



Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/08/04/2010-08-04_carolyn_cheeks_kilpatrick_incumbent_dem_rep_goes_down_in_mi_primary_sixth_lawmak.html

[robcon]

1. Her connection to her son, a convicted felon, was her downfall.

n/t

[rpannier]

2. Considering who her son is I'm not sure it's that big an upset

If an upset at all

There are probably a lot people who assume she's as crooked as he is.
Whether that's true or not is open for debate. I don't know.

But it happens

Thanks for posting this story

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

3. Kwame's father's legal woes probably didn't help either

I don't remember any charges against Rep Kilpatrick, so it's all "guilt by association".

I also don't remember that she helped the district very much, so we probably won't notice her absence.

:hi:

[Tempest]

4. Michigan has open primaries

Although she had her family problems, we won't know how many Republican cross over votes Clarke received.

[Romulox]

5. "Open" meaning one can vote in either Dem or Rep. primaries (not both)

Not "open" in the sense that people outside Kilpatrick's solidly democratic district can vote on her race. Besides which, there was a hot primary vote for the republican candidate for governor that they couldn't participate in if a republican voted in the democratic side of the primary vote...

[Tempest]

6. I'm not sure what your intention was

But there's a long history of candidates encouraging their supporters to cross over to vote for a weaker candidate in an open primary so they would have an easier time in the general election.

We saw it recently with Greene and a candidate in my district tried to do the same thing but failed.

[Romulox]

7. To provide specific facts to fill out your thinking out loud...

:hi:

[ButterflyBlood]

9. That obviously wasn't the case here

There is no chance of a Republican winning this district. And even if there was Kilpatrick would've been the weaker candidate with her affiliation with such a crook.

[UrbScotty]

8. She barely survived in 2008. It wasn't a "frustrated electorate" this time

...but rather, the fact that her son has been prone to scandal.

Other than her and a county commissioner here in Kent County (who himself was convicted of a crime), I do not know of a single incumbent who lost their renomination bid last night.