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  Stunning development: Possiblity of two Illinois Senate elections on Nov. 2
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ContributorRP 
Last EditedRP  Jun 30, 2010 11:59am
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CategoryLegal Ruling
AuthorLynn Sweet
News DateWednesday, June 30, 2010 01:45:00 PM UTC0:0
DescriptionA little-noticed federal appellate panel ruling may trigger two elections for an Illinois Senate seat on Nov. 2 -- one to fill a new six-year term and, in a stunning development, another to elect someone to finish the remaining days of Barack Obama's original Senate term.

"There is still time to do it right," said Marty Oberman, the former Chicago alderman who is the lead attorney on the case. He argued that the 17th Amendment was violated by not having an election.

Oberman's lawsuit was not aimed at Sen. Roland Burris (D-Ill.), but would have the practical effect of slicing a few weeks off of his Senate tenure, which was set to expire when a new senator from Illinois is sworn in on Jan. 3, 2011.

"Election officials are shellshocked" at the possibility of the concurrent -- and potentially costly -- elections, Chicago Board of Election Commissioners spokesman James Allen told me Tuesday.
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