Ship Deborah Poritz To Texas

Apparently, since the old switcheroo is only allowed if you have a (D) next to your name, Tom DeLay's name will be on the ballot in the 22nd district in Texas. A Texas court ruled that if you don't submit a replacement candidate by the time prescribed by the law, you can't change the name on the ballot at the last minute just because it's politically disadvantageous to your party. But it looks now as if DeLay may actually stay and fight.

As part of their plan to take control of the House from Republicans, Democrats have targeted Mr. DeLay's seat in a strongly Republican district in the suburbs of Houston.

Earlier this month, a federal judge ruled in favor of the Texas Democratic Party's lawsuit to prevent Republicans from substituting another candidate for Mr. DeLay, who in March won 62 percent of the 22nd District's vote in the Republican primary.

That decision is being appealed, but the dispute may not be resolved in time to allow Republicans to mount a strong campaign on behalf of another candidate, prompting speculation that Mr. DeLay may choose instead to make an all-out fight for what would be his 12th term in Congress.

Apparently the judges in TX don't give a f**k about a "meaningful choice" for the voters of the 22nd, but rather have more desire to actually apply the law. Not like here in New Jersey...

Lautenberg unexpectedly returned to politics in 2002, when the other New Jersey senator, Democrat Robert Torricelli, withdrew his candidacy for reelection, because of corruption charges. It was rumored, however, that Lautenberg was the second choice to run, the first choice being former Senator Bill Bradley, who turned it down.

The New Jersey Republican Party challenged the replacement of Torricelli's name on the ballot with Lautenberg's, arguing that it came too late according to state election laws. The ballot name change was upheld by the New Jersey Supreme Court, and the U.S. Supreme Court declined to take up the case. Lautenberg won the election, thus becoming one of very few people in recent times to return to the Senate after leaving it.