THE DUDDINGSTONS: THE BRAINS BEHIND THE RECALL OF MAYOR RANDY KELLY?
In a previous post, I stated that I would post the names of the people organizing the recall of St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly.
David and Daniel Duddingston have been indentified as the ring-leaders of the recall of St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly (see article below).
The Duddingstons own National Account Services, a collections business in Minneapolis and this seems to be their first foray into politics.
I will post more information as it becomes available on the Duddingstons and other Recall Randy leaders on this blog.
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Saint Paul Pioneer Press
August 20, 2004
Two start drive to recall Kelly;
Twin brothers say DFL mayor's Bush endorsement a betrayal of trust
By Robert Ingrassia
They're identical twins who share an identical goal. David and Daniel Duddingston, a pair of self-described political novices, want to overcome extremely long odds to recall St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly.
The brothers announced an effort Thursday for a petition drive that, if successful, would force Kelly to face a recall election. The Duddingstons said outrage over Kelly's recent endorsement of President Bush sparked the crusade.
"Randy Kelly should be representing the city in a nonpartisan way," David Duddingston said. "He has betrayed the trust of the city by endorsing a candidate."
Kelly, a former state lawmaker and a longtime member of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, endorsed Bush on Aug. 1, stumped the next day with Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty and introduced the president Wednesday at a rally in St. Paul.Though the possibility of a recall election is remote, the mayor's office isn't taking the effort lightly.
On Thursday, Deputy Mayor Dennis Flaherity brandished a 1959 Minnesota Supreme Court decision that upheld language in the state constitution limiting recall of local officials to instances of "malfeasance" or "nonfeasance" while in office.That ruling, which pertained to a recall of a councilman in Fridley, remains the law of the land, Flaherty said.
The constitution and the state Supreme Court trump the city charter, which does not dictate the conditions for recalling elected officials, he said."Going out and getting signatures is only part of the equation," Flaherty said. "Because an elected official endorsed another elected official would not under anybody's definition rise to the level of malfeasance."
The Duddingstons, 36, who grew up in and attended school in Highland Park and then went to the University of Minnesota, own and operate a small credit and collections business. They said they have more than 100 volunteers ready to go door-to-door to gather signatures. They said they plan to kick-off the petition drive Saturday at Harriet Island.
Under the city charter, the anti-Kelly group must submit a petition signed by registered voters equal to at least 20 percent of the number of votes cast in the most recent mayor's race, in this case, 11,972 signatures.
"Nothing like this is easy," said David Duddingston, a Ramsey Hill resident. Duddingston himself doesn't qualify to sign his own petition, at least not yet. Ramsey County records show that he is not registered to vote in St. Paul. He said he recently moved to St. Paul from Minneapolis and plans to register in time to qualify as a signer.
Staffers in the city clerk's office and the Ramsey County elections office, as well as longtime City Hall insiders, said they could not recall any previous recall drives. A petition would be submitted to the county elections office, which would determine whether the number was adequate and whether all were registered to vote in St. Paul, said Joe Mansky, the county elections manager.The petition would then be forwarded to the City Council. If the council finds the petition "sufficient," it would be required within 10 days to order a special election within two months.
Mansky said his understanding of the charter is that his office advises the council whether a recall petition is sufficient. He said he didn't believe the council could deny an election if the petition met all the charter requirements.If voters approved the recall, the mayor's post would be considered vacant and a special election to replace Kelly would be held.
Veterans of other petition drives and community organizing campaigns see a daunting, if not impossible, task ahead of the anti-Kelly group."It's a huge thing to do, even if you think most people agree with you," said Elizabeth Dickinson, co-chair of the Green Party of St. Paul.
Earlier this year, the Green Party teamed with anti-stadium activists to launch a drive to force a referendum that would limit any city subsidy of a ballpark. That effort got off to an energetic start, but has since cooled, in part because the lead organizer, Patrick Hill, unexpectedly lost his job and began focusing his attention elsewhere.
David and Daniel Duddingston have been indentified as the ring-leaders of the recall of St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly (see article below).
The Duddingstons own National Account Services, a collections business in Minneapolis and this seems to be their first foray into politics.
I will post more information as it becomes available on the Duddingstons and other Recall Randy leaders on this blog.
##
Saint Paul Pioneer Press
August 20, 2004
Two start drive to recall Kelly;
Twin brothers say DFL mayor's Bush endorsement a betrayal of trust
By Robert Ingrassia
They're identical twins who share an identical goal. David and Daniel Duddingston, a pair of self-described political novices, want to overcome extremely long odds to recall St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly.
The brothers announced an effort Thursday for a petition drive that, if successful, would force Kelly to face a recall election. The Duddingstons said outrage over Kelly's recent endorsement of President Bush sparked the crusade.
"Randy Kelly should be representing the city in a nonpartisan way," David Duddingston said. "He has betrayed the trust of the city by endorsing a candidate."
Kelly, a former state lawmaker and a longtime member of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, endorsed Bush on Aug. 1, stumped the next day with Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty and introduced the president Wednesday at a rally in St. Paul.Though the possibility of a recall election is remote, the mayor's office isn't taking the effort lightly.
On Thursday, Deputy Mayor Dennis Flaherity brandished a 1959 Minnesota Supreme Court decision that upheld language in the state constitution limiting recall of local officials to instances of "malfeasance" or "nonfeasance" while in office.That ruling, which pertained to a recall of a councilman in Fridley, remains the law of the land, Flaherty said.
The constitution and the state Supreme Court trump the city charter, which does not dictate the conditions for recalling elected officials, he said."Going out and getting signatures is only part of the equation," Flaherty said. "Because an elected official endorsed another elected official would not under anybody's definition rise to the level of malfeasance."
The Duddingstons, 36, who grew up in and attended school in Highland Park and then went to the University of Minnesota, own and operate a small credit and collections business. They said they have more than 100 volunteers ready to go door-to-door to gather signatures. They said they plan to kick-off the petition drive Saturday at Harriet Island.
Under the city charter, the anti-Kelly group must submit a petition signed by registered voters equal to at least 20 percent of the number of votes cast in the most recent mayor's race, in this case, 11,972 signatures.
"Nothing like this is easy," said David Duddingston, a Ramsey Hill resident. Duddingston himself doesn't qualify to sign his own petition, at least not yet. Ramsey County records show that he is not registered to vote in St. Paul. He said he recently moved to St. Paul from Minneapolis and plans to register in time to qualify as a signer.
Staffers in the city clerk's office and the Ramsey County elections office, as well as longtime City Hall insiders, said they could not recall any previous recall drives. A petition would be submitted to the county elections office, which would determine whether the number was adequate and whether all were registered to vote in St. Paul, said Joe Mansky, the county elections manager.The petition would then be forwarded to the City Council. If the council finds the petition "sufficient," it would be required within 10 days to order a special election within two months.
Mansky said his understanding of the charter is that his office advises the council whether a recall petition is sufficient. He said he didn't believe the council could deny an election if the petition met all the charter requirements.If voters approved the recall, the mayor's post would be considered vacant and a special election to replace Kelly would be held.
Veterans of other petition drives and community organizing campaigns see a daunting, if not impossible, task ahead of the anti-Kelly group."It's a huge thing to do, even if you think most people agree with you," said Elizabeth Dickinson, co-chair of the Green Party of St. Paul.
Earlier this year, the Green Party teamed with anti-stadium activists to launch a drive to force a referendum that would limit any city subsidy of a ballpark. That effort got off to an energetic start, but has since cooled, in part because the lead organizer, Patrick Hill, unexpectedly lost his job and began focusing his attention elsewhere.
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