Landrum Taylor ousted as head of Senate Dem caucus

Arizona has a new top Democrat.

The Senate Democratic caucus overthrew its leadership team in a surprise move Tuesday, tossing the minority party into turmoil.

Sen. Leah Landrum Taylor of Phoenix, the state's highest-ranking Democrat, was ousted as Senate minority leader. She will be replaced by Sen. Anna Tovar of Tolleson.

Landrum Taylor, who is running for secretary of state next year, appeared stunned by developments and said she was furious with the decision.

"They said I could not possibly run for state office and serve as the leader in the Legislature," she said, adding that prior male leaders have done just that numerous times. "It's disgusting and degrading."

Landrum Taylor also alluded to possible racial motivations, saying some had alleged that she represents too small a percentage of Arizona voters. Landrum Taylor is the state's only African-American state lawmaker. Tovar is a Latina.

The Arizona Legislature's 13 Democratic senators had scheduled a caucus meeting to replace Assistant Minority Leader Linda Lopez of Tucson. Lopez had previously announced she was voluntarily stepping down from leadership to deal with new job responsibilities.

Tovar, the minority whip, was expected to move up into that spot but declined the nomination.

Sen. Steve Gallardo of Phoenix then nominated Tovar to be minority leader, replacing Landrum Taylor.

Tovar won the position by an 8-5 vote. Landrum Taylor and four of her supporters walked out of the meeting.

Sen. Lynne Pancrazi, D-Yuma, was then voted in as assistant minority leader, and Gallardo became the new minority whip.

Landrum Taylor said she may push for a revote, noting that members of the community are calling for the same.

"The community is outraged," she said.

When asked for a reason behind the move, Pancrazi said, "(The) caucus just decided to move in a new direction.

"We have a lot to do this session. Tovar is full of energy. She's very dynamic."

Tovar said she was saddened by allegations that the change was based on Landrum Taylor's race or gender.

"Many of our caucus is minority, and many of them are women," she said. "That is not a relative issue to why this transpired."

She said there were a "multitude of things that transpired" leading up to the vote.

"Each caucus member has their own perspective on why they came to this decision," she said. "As a whole, we chose to move forward in a positive direction."

Tovar said she looks forward to working with the entire caucus, including Landrum Taylor, next session. She said they will continue to focus on education, job creation and health care.

Gallardo said the move wasn't personal and was intended to take Democrats in a different direction for the 2014 election. "Personally, I'd like to see us be a bit more aggressive on many of these key issues," said Gallardo, who is among the most outspoken legislative Democrats.

He said the best way for the minority party to win on an issue is often by swaying public opinion. "It's about messaging," Gallardo added.

Sen. Olivia Cajero Bedford, D-Tucson, was among the lawmakers who walked out with Landrum Taylor.

"They talked about what a strong caucus we were last year and then said Leah could not run for state leadership and still be the legislative leader," she said. "The logic is a detriment to the Democratic Party. It was ridiculous."

She said she has lost respect for the members of her caucus behind the coup. "We'll see if they can produce any better than Leah did last year," Cajero Bedford said, alluding to successful efforts to unite with more moderate Republicans and pass Medicaid expansion.

Cajero Bedford said she fears the Senate Democrats next session may find themselves in a predicament similar to the Republicans this past session, with a massive split in the caucus that crippled their voting power.

"We've been gloating about what has been going on with the Republicans, and now look," she said. "It's a shame."

Pancrazi dismissed those concerns.

"Caucus decisions will be made as a whole, and I look forward to a wonderful caucus," she said. "Our goal is to get through this session and get good, strong people elected."

Tovar said there will likely be hurt feelings for a while, but she hopes the caucus can put the division behind them and focus on the state and their constituents.

The infighting quickly became campaign fodder for Republicans. Arizona Republican Party Chairman Robert Graham glommed onto the allegations of racism and sexism.

"Again we see the elites in the Democrat Party using gender and race criteria to drive people away from participation in their party's decisions," he said in a statement.

Conservative political consultant Constantin Querard wondered what the development means for Landrum Taylor's chances in the race for secretary of state.

"Fair to say that today's events show that Leah Landrum Taylor's run for #AZSOS will not enjoy a united Democrat base supporting her?" he said on Twitter.

Copyright 2013 The Arizona Republic|azcentral.com. All rights reserved.For more information about reprints & permissions, visit our FAQ's. To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.

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Landrum Taylor ousted as head of Senate Dem caucus

Arizona has a new top Democrat.

The Senate Democratic caucus overthrew its leadership team in a surprise move Tuesday, tossing the minority party into turmoil.

Sen. Leah Landrum Taylor of Phoenix, the state's highest-ranking Democrat, was ousted as Senate minority leader. She will be replaced by Sen. Anna Tovar of Tolleson.

Landrum Taylor, who is running for secretary of state next year, appeared stunned by developments and said she was furious with the decision.

"They said I could not possibly run for state office and serve as the leader in the Legislature," she said, adding that prior male leaders have done just that numerous times. "It's disgusting and degrading."

Landrum Taylor also alluded to possible racial motivations, saying some had alleged that she represents too small a percentage of Arizona voters. Landrum Taylor is the state's only African-American state lawmaker. Tovar is a Latina.

The Arizona Legislature's 13 Democratic senators had scheduled a caucus meeting to replace Assistant Minority Leader Linda Lopez of Tucson. Lopez had previously announced she was voluntarily stepping down from leadership to deal with new job responsibilities.

Tovar, the minority whip, was expected to move up into that spot but declined the nomination.

Sen. Steve Gallardo of Phoenix then nominated Tovar to be minority leader, replacing Landrum Taylor.

Tovar won the position by an 8-5 vote. Landrum Taylor and four of her supporters walked out of the meeting.

Sen. Lynne Pancrazi, D-Yuma, was then voted in as assistant minority leader, and Gallardo became the new minority whip.

Landrum Taylor said she may push for a revote, noting that members of the community are calling for the same.

"The community is outraged," she said.

When asked for a reason behind the move, Pancrazi said, "(The) caucus just decided to move in a new direction.

"We have a lot to do this session. Tovar is full of energy. She's very dynamic."

Tovar said she was saddened by allegations that the change was based on Landrum Taylor's race or gender.

"Many of our caucus is minority, and many of them are women," she said. "That is not a relative issue to why this transpired."

She said there were a "multitude of things that transpired" leading up to the vote.

"Each caucus member has their own perspective on why they came to this decision," she said. "As a whole, we chose to move forward in a positive direction."

Tovar said she looks forward to working with the entire caucus, including Landrum Taylor, next session. She said they will continue to focus on education, job creation and health care.

Gallardo said the move wasn't personal and was intended to take Democrats in a different direction for the 2014 election. "Personally, I'd like to see us be a bit more aggressive on many of these key issues," said Gallardo, who is among the most outspoken legislative Democrats.

He said the best way for the minority party to win on an issue is often by swaying public opinion. "It's about messaging," Gallardo added.

Sen. Olivia Cajero Bedford, D-Tucson, was among the lawmakers who walked out with Landrum Taylor.

"They talked about what a strong caucus we were last year and then said Leah could not run for state leadership and still be the legislative leader," she said. "The logic is a detriment to the Democratic Party. It was ridiculous."

She said she has lost respect for the members of her caucus behind the coup. "We'll see if they can produce any better than Leah did last year," Cajero Bedford said, alluding to successful efforts to unite with more moderate Republicans and pass Medicaid expansion.

Cajero Bedford said she fears the Senate Democrats next session may find themselves in a predicament similar to the Republicans this past session, with a massive split in the caucus that crippled their voting power.

"We've been gloating about what has been going on with the Republicans, and now look," she said. "It's a shame."

Pancrazi dismissed those concerns.

"Caucus decisions will be made as a whole, and I look forward to a wonderful caucus," she said. "Our goal is to get through this session and get good, strong people elected."

Tovar said there will likely be hurt feelings for a while, but she hopes the caucus can put the division behind them and focus on the state and their constituents.

The infighting quickly became campaign fodder for Republicans. Arizona Republican Party Chairman Robert Graham glommed onto the allegations of racism and sexism.

"Again we see the elites in the Democrat Party using gender and race criteria to drive people away from participation in their party's decisions," he said in a statement.

Conservative political consultant Constantin Querard wondered what the development means for Landrum Taylor's chances in the race for secretary of state.

"Fair to say that today's events show that Leah Landrum Taylor's run for #AZSOS will not enjoy a united Democrat base supporting her?" he said on Twitter.

Copyright 2013 The Arizona Republic|azcentral.com. All rights reserved.For more information about reprints & permissions, visit our FAQ's. To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.

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Will Wisconsin Republican Gov. Walker Be Ousted in a Recall? (ContributorNetwork)

ANALYSIS | Wisconsin Democrats are attempting to oust Gov. Scott Walker as result of the messy debate over unions earlier this year. They are emboldened by recent recall elections and an Ohio referendum, but history shows it won't be so easy.

The Dairy State was treated to a fight over proposed new government powers to curtail union rights. We saw the spectacle of Democrat politicians fleeing the state to avoid a vote, Republicans going the extra mile to drag them back, and protesters disrupting the state capitol in a preview of "Occupy Wall Street." The GOP got its legislative victory, but Democrats struck back. Two Republican legislators (Dan Kapanke and Randy Hopper) were recalled in special elections. In other states, two more Republicans were booted in recall elections in November, while an anti-union measure was slammed by Ohio voters.

Democrats hope to bag their biggest prize: Scott Walker himself. The recall movement kicks off less than a week after the November election. Polls show several Wisconsin Democrats (Russ Feingold, Tom Barrett) would beat Walker in an election. But Democrats may well fall short.

Hopper and Kapanke may have gone down to defeat, as did Russell Pearce and Paul Scott, but not all recall elections are successful. Analysis of the National Conference of State Legislatures data reveals that such a strategy has only worked 17 times against state legislators. In 15 cases, it didn't. This includes several GOP state legislators in Wisconsin this year (and a few Democrats in the state, as Republicans retaliated unsuccessfully).

Recall supporters point out that other politicians have been ousted, but that list includes only two governors: Republican Lynn Frazier in North Dakota in 1921 and Gray Davis in California in 2003. Many other attempts to dump governors, mayors, and municipal politicians have fizzled.

On many occasions, petitioners have tried to oust Federal officials (mostly for political reasons rather than any real malfeasance) without success, as the Constitution has no such provision (though the Founding Fathers kicked around the idea).

Recalls bids have a spotty record at best. When enough petitions are gathered, the ousting rate is barely 50 percent, and that doesn't include failed court challenges or cases where organizers couldn't muster the minimum number of petitions. And while Walker may have higher disapproval ratings and less popularity than Feingold and Barrett, a slight majority doesn't support a recall at this time. So even though Democrats are on a hot streak, they have their work cut out for them in a recall effort against Walker.

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