Hogan Announces Candidacy; Attacks Nate

Banking and real estate mogul will make another bid for the House

BERIVIAN, DES--Former delegate candidate Richard "Boscoe" Hogan announced Sunday he plans to run for delegate again in 2008 as a Democratic Reformist. The 51-year-old banking and real estate executive previously ran back in 2006 as a DR, but came in third place after incumbent Brown Mourray (NAT) and Conservative opponent Sharon Kelley.

This time, Hogan says, he will run a more aggressive campaign. Speaking to the Prince County Democratic Reformist Party, Hogan said he believes his opponents this time around will be easier to attack than Mourray and Kelley were in the last election.

"In the last election, you had a popular incumbent, and a Conservative opponent with a strong record. It was hard to portray them negatively because there really was not a whole lot negative about them," he told guests.

Hogan will be running for Deschire's third delegate position, the seat currently held by House Maj. Leader Dlg. Joan Fhonda (CNS). He will likely face Congressman Jay Burns (CNS), who currently represents the northern and eastern suburbs of Berivian in Anleigh, Rumley, Courtsman, Kingsman, and Messlin Counties. On the Nationalist side, it is expected Congresswoman Debra Nate will win the nomination. She currently represents eastern Deschire in Congress. Nate formerly served as Assembly Min. Leader until May 2007, when she resigned following the release of a video, which showed her making inflammatory comments about President Byelle. NAT party leaders asked her to step down from her position as a result of the scandal.

Hogan says Nate's corruption makes her more vulnerable and makes voters less likely to vote for her.

"I don't even know why Congresswoman Nate is running, to be frank," Hogan told the audience. "I mean, she is a very volatile, jump-at-the-gun sort of person. She doesn't think before she speaks. She's very impulsive. I think that's what got her in trouble when she was calling the president vulgar names and obscenities."

Hogan says she has no chance at winning the election.

"I don't know why she's running because the people of Deschire are not going to elect a corrupt, partisan creature like her. She's everything the people don't want. She's dishonest, she's rude, she's partisan, she's flamboyant, she's prideful, she's just not fit to represent our state in the House of Delegates. Maybe the third [congressional] district likes her, but the rest of the state has had enough."

Congresswoman Nate did not directly reply to Hogan's comments, but her campaign spokeswoman responded to GNN News via e-mail.

"If Mr. Hogan is planning on saying things like this the rest of the campaign season, it's going to be a long year and a half," Julie DeWento said. "If anyone's being partisan, dishonest, rude, and proud, it is Mr. Hogan. All the proof we need of Mr. Hogan's lack of integrity is the fact that when he left his position as CEO at Clefmore Mutual Inc., he took a $20 million payout. I don't think he's ever mentioned anything about his excessive retirement pension that he took without formal agreement from his shareholders."

DeWento was referring to Hogan's retirement from Clefmore Mutual, a financial loan corporation based out of Berivian, in which Hogan took a $20 million bonus when he retired. The deal was not decided by company shareholders, but instead by the company's board of trustees.

GNN News attempted to speak with Congressman Jay Burns's campaign, but did not receive comment back.

Deschire's primary elections are scheduled for April.