LANAKIS -- After two back-to-back losses in close gubernatorial elections, Veroche Conservatives are eager for their next chance in 2020.
Gov. Tom Harper, a Nationalist, is up for re-election in 2020, and there is no shortage of Conservative candidates to take him on as he seeks a second term.
Harper eked out a win over Brad Davidson (C) in 2016, taking 50.4% of the vote to Davidson's 49.6%, respectively.
Since he took office in January 2017, his popularity has been mediocre. While recent polling has shown voters approve of his handling of the state's economy - which was suffering when he took office - Harper is not especially well-liked.
Progressives like his stances on climate change and raising the minimum wage, but the billionaire businessman has come under attack from the left-wing of his party for his wealth.
Conservatives equally detest him, viewing him as a hardcore liberal who represents "Lanakis values" that are more left-wing than the rest of the state.
All this has combined to make Tom Harper a prime target in the 2020 elections.
Several liberal activists, including several who call themselves "socialists," are publicly considering challenging Harper in an NAT primary or running to the left as Liberal Democrats or Independents.
And a whopping 16 Conservative candidates have either expressed interest in challenging Harper or are rumored to be interested.
Topping the list are Lanakis Mayor Dick Scholinger, a socially-moderate Conservative who has ran for statewide office several times in recent election cycles but has often been rebuffed by the more right-wing CNS party base.
Fellow moderate Georgia Waldo Basson, mayor of Tiaugen in the south-central part of the state, is also mulling a bid, as are fellow mayors Andy Hackett (Kanassett), Mac Griffin (Red Leaf), Tom Settler (Collettasville), Jake Girdeaux (DeMara) and Ric Renner (Pendleton).
Assemblymen Vaughn Laudney, Don Christaman, Mike Dallenhall and Rich O'Neil are all considered strong contenders, should they run.
State Rep. Evan Liu of Marronville, state Sen. Mark Holworth of Dishpry, and state Sen. Artemis "Al" Paccioli from Deniece are all three said to be considering running.
Other possible candidates include another billionaire businessman, Bill Enos of Lanakis, who has never held political office before, and Gen. Greggory Hunt Jordan who previously ran the military's Trewallen Academy in central Veroche.
Conservatives like Dick Scholinger and Georgia Waldo Basson have widespread name recognition, but they may struggle to win over the ardent conservatives who live outside liberal Marcialeukia County, which includes much of the Lanakis metro area.
And observers from across the political spectrum worry about the impact of personal wealth in the race.
Harper is worth more than $1 billion, as is Conservative Bill Enos.
Dick Scholinger's net worth is less but still in the hundreds of millions.
"One of our great fears is that the 2020 Veroche's governor's race will become a contest between two billionaire candidates. If big money floods the election, it would be a huge problem for average candidates who don't have those kinds of personal resources, and it would do a disservice to the people of Veroche, they wouldn't get to consider 'normal' candidates who aren't billionaires," said Adam Danforth, president of the Grassadellian Council on Fairness in Elections, a think-tank that seeks to limit the influence of big money in political campaigns.
Harper's vast personal wealth was an issue in the 2016 race, but in campaign ads and debates, he said his personal fortune was evidence he was a good businessman who could bring the economy back.
"Billionaires know how to make money," Harper said. "They know how to create jobs, how to lower unemployment, how to get construction and industry moving, they know how the economy works."
The economy has made strides under Harper's tenure. Unemployment is down to four percent from a high of nearly eight percent under his predecessor Linda Van Auhn. And construction is up in most of the state's major cities.
But the cost of living remains stubbornly high, particularly in the Lanakis-Kanassett-Southwick metroplex.
Harper has also encountered opposition on non-economic issues. He's faced criticism for the state's struggling schools, his hesitation to intervene in the slow-going clean-up of Lake Hutchins, and for raising taxes.
The governor has won praise for his work on infrastructure, however, even from Conservatives.
"The bottom line is: the economy is moving in Veroche again," Jared Donnelly, a spokesman for the Harper re-election campaign, said in an email to GNN.
The economic picture is not as rosy as Harper claims though, Matt Harrell from the Veroche Conservative Party told GNN.
"When people can't afford to pay rent in the L-K-S metro area, when people pay exorbitant taxes and still sit in traffic for hours, when tuition keeps rising every year because Tom Harper and his liberal allies can't manage the state's budget, that's a problem for Veroche families."
Gov. Tom Harper, a Nationalist, is up for re-election in 2020, and there is no shortage of Conservative candidates to take him on as he seeks a second term.
Harper eked out a win over Brad Davidson (C) in 2016, taking 50.4% of the vote to Davidson's 49.6%, respectively.
Since he took office in January 2017, his popularity has been mediocre. While recent polling has shown voters approve of his handling of the state's economy - which was suffering when he took office - Harper is not especially well-liked.
Progressives like his stances on climate change and raising the minimum wage, but the billionaire businessman has come under attack from the left-wing of his party for his wealth.
Conservatives equally detest him, viewing him as a hardcore liberal who represents "Lanakis values" that are more left-wing than the rest of the state.
All this has combined to make Tom Harper a prime target in the 2020 elections.
Several liberal activists, including several who call themselves "socialists," are publicly considering challenging Harper in an NAT primary or running to the left as Liberal Democrats or Independents.
And a whopping 16 Conservative candidates have either expressed interest in challenging Harper or are rumored to be interested.
Topping the list are Lanakis Mayor Dick Scholinger, a socially-moderate Conservative who has ran for statewide office several times in recent election cycles but has often been rebuffed by the more right-wing CNS party base.
Fellow moderate Georgia Waldo Basson, mayor of Tiaugen in the south-central part of the state, is also mulling a bid, as are fellow mayors Andy Hackett (Kanassett), Mac Griffin (Red Leaf), Tom Settler (Collettasville), Jake Girdeaux (DeMara) and Ric Renner (Pendleton).
Assemblymen Vaughn Laudney, Don Christaman, Mike Dallenhall and Rich O'Neil are all considered strong contenders, should they run.
State Rep. Evan Liu of Marronville, state Sen. Mark Holworth of Dishpry, and state Sen. Artemis "Al" Paccioli from Deniece are all three said to be considering running.
Other possible candidates include another billionaire businessman, Bill Enos of Lanakis, who has never held political office before, and Gen. Greggory Hunt Jordan who previously ran the military's Trewallen Academy in central Veroche.
Senator Kit McHenry, fresh off re-election in 2018, has ruled out running for governor. as has Assemblyman Tim Wenbosh and former CNS candidates Steve Leona and Steve Serpino.
None of the aforementioned candidates have announced they're running, but many have quietly begun reaching out to donors, according to sources within the state's CNS party, who were not allowed to comment on internal party discussions.
Conservatives like Dick Scholinger and Georgia Waldo Basson have widespread name recognition, but they may struggle to win over the ardent conservatives who live outside liberal Marcialeukia County, which includes much of the Lanakis metro area.
And observers from across the political spectrum worry about the impact of personal wealth in the race.
Harper is worth more than $1 billion, as is Conservative Bill Enos.
Dick Scholinger's net worth is less but still in the hundreds of millions.
"One of our great fears is that the 2020 Veroche's governor's race will become a contest between two billionaire candidates. If big money floods the election, it would be a huge problem for average candidates who don't have those kinds of personal resources, and it would do a disservice to the people of Veroche, they wouldn't get to consider 'normal' candidates who aren't billionaires," said Adam Danforth, president of the Grassadellian Council on Fairness in Elections, a think-tank that seeks to limit the influence of big money in political campaigns.
Harper's vast personal wealth was an issue in the 2016 race, but in campaign ads and debates, he said his personal fortune was evidence he was a good businessman who could bring the economy back.
"Billionaires know how to make money," Harper said. "They know how to create jobs, how to lower unemployment, how to get construction and industry moving, they know how the economy works."
The economy has made strides under Harper's tenure. Unemployment is down to four percent from a high of nearly eight percent under his predecessor Linda Van Auhn. And construction is up in most of the state's major cities.
But the cost of living remains stubbornly high, particularly in the Lanakis-Kanassett-Southwick metroplex.
Harper has also encountered opposition on non-economic issues. He's faced criticism for the state's struggling schools, his hesitation to intervene in the slow-going clean-up of Lake Hutchins, and for raising taxes.
The governor has won praise for his work on infrastructure, however, even from Conservatives.
"The bottom line is: the economy is moving in Veroche again," Jared Donnelly, a spokesman for the Harper re-election campaign, said in an email to GNN.
The economic picture is not as rosy as Harper claims though, Matt Harrell from the Veroche Conservative Party told GNN.
"When people can't afford to pay rent in the L-K-S metro area, when people pay exorbitant taxes and still sit in traffic for hours, when tuition keeps rising every year because Tom Harper and his liberal allies can't manage the state's budget, that's a problem for Veroche families."
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