Special primary held for South Carolina House district
Kansas lawmaker battling cancer will resign his seat
One year ago: Dallet and Screnock advance in first round of Wisconsin Supreme Court voting
Virginia General Assembly selects next supreme court justice
On February 14, the Virginia General Assembly appointed Virginia Court of Appeals Judge Teresa M. Chafin to succeed Elizabeth McClanahan on the Virginia Supreme Court. The Senate voted 36-0 and the House voted 97-0. Chafin will join the state supreme court on September 1, 2019. Both chambers of the Virginia General Assembly have Republican majorities.
Selection of state supreme court justices in Virginia occurs through legislative selection. Judges are selected by a majority vote of the Virginia General Assembly (the combined House of Delegates and Senate). Supreme court justices serve for 12 years and are subject to reappointment to additional terms by the legislature. Virginia is one of only two states in the country, the other being South Carolina, where judges are selected this way.
Chafin began serving on the Virginia Court of Appeals in May 2012. She was a judge on the 29th Judicial Circuit from 2005 to 2012. She was also a judge on the Tazewell County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court from 2002 to 2005. Chafin received her J.D. from the University of Richmond School of Law in 1987.
She is the sister of state Sen. Ben Chafin (R-District 38). Chafin, a member of the Senate Courts of Justice Committee, abstained from voting.
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Former Alaska lieutenant governor dies at 93
Former Alaska Lieutenant Governor Jack Coghill passed away on February 13, 2019. He died of natural causes at the age of 93. Coghill was living with his son, state Sen. John Coghill (R), at the time of his death.
His son said in a statement, “Dad was a firm believer in utilizing Alaska’s natural resources to build a strong economy and provide good paying jobs for Alaska. He had the same passion for Alaska, even at 93.”
The elder statesman was born in Fairbanks in 1925 and grew up working at his family’s store in Nenana. After graduating from Nenana High School, he served as a staff sergeant in the U.S. Army during WWII in the Aleutians from 1943 to 1946.
Coghill was a political leader during Alaska’s push for statehood. He was elected to the territorial House of Representatives in 1952 and served until 1957. He was one of the 55 framers of the Alaska Constitution at the 1956 convention and was the third delegate to sign the document. Former state Sen. Vic Fischer is the last surviving delegate of the convention.
Coghill went on to serve in the state Senate from 1959 to 1964 and again from 1985 to 1990. He also served as the mayor of Nenana from 1962 to 1985. In 1990, Coghill became lieutenant governor and served until 1994 with Gov. Walker Hickel.
This time four years ago: Oregon prepares for transition of power following John Kitzhaber’s resignation
At this time four years ago, Oregon Secretary of State Kate Brown (D) was preparing to succeed four-term Gov. John Kitzhaber (D), who had announced his resignation on February 13 over allegations that he had been involved in influence peddling.
Kitzhaber, who was first elected in 1994 and won re-election in 1998, 2010, and 2014, had been the subject of three ethics complaints filed the previous year over conflicts of interest stemming from his fiancée Cylvia Hayes’ role as both an informal advisor and as a paid consultant. Hayes had acted as a consultant on energy and economic issues while advising Kitzhaber on the same topics.
Kitzhaber’s resignation took effect on February 18. Secretary of State Kate Brown (D) was first in the line of succession, as Oregon is one of five states without an office of lieutenant governor. Brown was elected to complete the remainder of Kitzhaber’s term in 2016 and elected to a full term in 2018.
The Oregon Government Ethics Commission investigation found that Kitzhaber had committed 10 ethics violations in a report released on February 14, 2018. Kitzhaber negotiated a settlement with the commission in which he agreed to pay $2,000 for each violation. The commission also found that Hayes had committed 22 ethics violations, with a potential fine of $5,000 for each. As of February 2019, Hayes and the commission have not reached a settlement.
Alaska House elects Bryce Edgmon speaker, ending 30 days of deadlock
- All 15 House Democrats,
- independent Daniel Ortiz,
- and Republicans Louise Stutes, Gabrielle LeDoux, Jennifer B. Johnston, and Charles M. Kopp.