In “The Distinguished Gentleman,” Eddie Murphy’s character won a congressional election on name recognition alone after his predecessor with a similar name died in office. Murphy’s character, Thomas Jefferson Johnson, shortened his name after Rep. Jeff Johnson died, staying out of the media and running on the slogan “the name you know.”
Since the Supreme Court of the United States’ 2010 decision in polarizing Citizens United decision, pundits have pontificated about the potential effect of unfettered spending on our presidential and congressional elections. And, of course, if you don’t watch everything on television from a DVR, you’re seeing those effects. (One thing is evident: the Moroun family has a lot of money to spend on television ads).
But perhaps not enough was made on the potential effect on local elections, where candidates generally aren’t funding their campaigns with million (or should I say billions) of dollars of other people’s money. A person with a lot of money to burn could tilt the balance of an election by allowing a candidate to flood the media with ads that the opponent couldn’t possibly match.
According to Detroit Free Press columnist Brian Dickerson, that may be happening in Oakland County circuit judge elections.
We know some anonymous donor is trying to buy himself a couple of seats on the Oakland County Circuit Court.
We know he’s dishonest.
We know he’s a coward.
We know he’s prepared to spend upward of $1.2 million on behalf of two little-known candidates who have made themselves scarce on the campaign trail and appear to have raised little or no campaign funds of their own.
The two candidates supported in advertising bought by the anonymous donor are both members of Attorney General Bill Schuette’s staff, William Rollstin and Deborah Carley. Both Rollstin and Carley are former Detroit area prosecutors. Carley was the chief deputy prosecutor under former Oakland prosecutor David Gorcyca. She left the office shortly before current prosecutor Jessica Cooper took over. Rollstin was a drug prosecutor in Wayne County.
Carley and Rollstin seem to have taken a page from Jeff Johnson: Their ads are plastered all over airwaves, but the candidates themselves are lying low.
Neither has made many public appearances since a political action committee bankrolled entirely by three conservative GOP donors based in Pennsylvania, Oregon and Virginia paid for the collection of petition signatures and other organizing expenses earlier this year. And neither participated in a videotaped candidates forum sponsored by the Oakland County League of Women Voters, the Oakland County Bar and the Free Press earlier this month.
Dickerson said neither of them responded to his calls or emails seeking comment.
The groups paying for the ads are “Americans for Job Security” and “Judicial Crisis Network.” Of the five judges running for re-election, the ads seem to be specifically targeting Oakland Circuit Judge Phyllis McMillen. Three of the other four judges were appointed by John Engler. The fifth judge, Leo Bowman, was appointed by Jennifer Granholm.
The Michigan Lawyer 