LANSING – With the two gubernatorial candidates set for November, one of their immediate focuses turns to the task of selecting a lieutenant governor nominee, and the question of drawing to each party’s base has already emerged as a key factor in making a decision.
For Republican Rick Snyder, the questions are two: whether he selects someone with legislative or state government experience, and whether he chooses a known conservative.
For Democrat Virg Bernero so far the focus has been mostly on whether his selection needs to be black, since every statewide ticket the Democratic Party has chosen since 1970 has had at least one African-American candidate.
Names have started to surface to the top speculation pool for both candidates. And one person that was mentioned as a possible candidate by Bernero himself, Carol Goss of The Skillman Foundation in Detroit, said Wednesday she was not interested in running for the post.
On the Democratic side the names that have surfaced so far are former Detroit Deputy Mayor Freman Hendrix, Detroit City Councilmember Ken Cockrel Jr. (who was mayor of the city for eight months), Detroit City Councilmember Gary Brown, Southfield Mayor Brenda Lawrence, Rep. Alma Wheeler Smith of Salem Township and Sen. Tupac Hunter of Detroit.
On the GOP side, there is a larger list depending on a variety of factors. If Mr. Snyder decides to choose someone that will muster conservative support then it includes his former gubernatorial rival Oakland Sheriff Mike Bouchard, Sen. Patricia Birkholz of Saugatuck, Sen. Nancy Cassis of Novi, Sen. Tony Stamas of Midland and Sen. Michelle McManus of Lake Leelanau (who is running for secretary of state). Other names that have been suggested, less conservative but known as top former state legislative leaders are former Speaker Paul Hillegonds, former Senate Majority Leader Dan DeGrow and former House Appropriations Chair Don Gilmer.
If Mr. Snyder were to follow his own track and go outside of government background, and focus on naming someone else from business, Cynthia Pasky, founder and CEO of Strategic Staffing Solutions was named.
And one person suggested that Snyder also consider Democrats on the ticket, including current Lt. Governor John Cherry Jr. and current budget director Bob Emerson.
Speaking to reporters following the GOP’s unity luncheon, Snyder said his work on selecting a running mate is very preliminary.
“We’re just starting that process and we’ve got until the convention to come up with some good people and there’s a lot of good potential people there,” he said.
Snyder said he wants someone who can do the job and matches his vision. He said whether or not someone has experience in state government would not be a disqualifying factor one way or the other.
“Are they on board with the vision we have about creating a new era, our 10-point plan?” he said of one of the factors. “And then finally and very importantly, the values. We ran a values-oriented campaign about honesty, teamwork. And so we’ll be looking at those things as major criteria to ask people. And I just want to find the best most qualified person.”
But the fact that Snyder was not supported by some 63 percent of Republican voters who backed his more conservative opponents was driving the thoughts of some GOP backers. They argue that only by doing so can he rebuild the party base to support him.
Tom Shields of Marketing Resource Group said that naming a conservative could help bring conservatives, who now say they are reluctant to support Snyder, “back to the tent.”
But Shields also said that Bernero as the Democratic nominee would help unite Republicans more than any other factor.
One element most observers agreed, however, was that Snyder should name someone with government experience who has knowledge of the governing process and who can work with fellow legislators.
Former Sen. Joe Schwarz said Snyder needs someone who is knowledgeable about the state’s budget process and can act as a counselor to legislators, since there will be so many new members of the 96th Legislature when it begins in January.
And he rejected the idea that Snyder needed to name a conservative to the post. Snyder “has an unbelievably good opportunity to restructure state government,” he said. Snyder won the nomination in part to refute what has happened in government to this point and to “transcend some of this vile partisanship.”
As a lieutenant governor, Snyder needs “someone who can minister and counsel,” which makes the idea of naming even a Democrat to the post not out of the question, Schwarz said.
On the Democratic side, a spokesperson for Bernero could not be reached for comment on the lieutenant governor search. While Bernero did some television and radio interviews, he did not hold a general press conference. Supporters said he was in meetings during the day.
While the focus has been on naming an African-American to the post, one official said should the Democrats name a black jurist as their candidate for the Supreme Court that could meet the party’s diversity tradition.
Black political leaders are saying it is more critical to them that the ticket win in November than it fit an established profile, the official said.
On Tuesday, Bernero suggested Goss as a possible candidate. As head of The Skillman Foundation she has been involved in major efforts to improve education in Detroit, and she said Wednesday she does not want to leave that effort.
“I really have a mission, an agenda in Detroit on behalf of children and I’m very committed to working on that,” she said.
But she said there are plenty of leaders in the Detroit area who could fit the bill as lieutenant governor.
This story was provided by Gongwer News Service. To subscribe, click on Gongwer.Com
a>>
