The problem with losing an election is that if you really want
to run for another office, you have to figure out how to maintain your
political visibility. Being a loser is not very conducive to that.
The defeated candidate for Secretary of State, described by
some as a rising star in the party, has figured it out.
Look for Jocelyn Benson to announce soon the formation of a
"Citizen's Redistricting Committee.'
A what?
Ms. Benson reports the good folks in Ohio did this and it's
designed to give the citizens some input on the process of redrawing
the voting district lines. "It's a watchdog" role she asserts.
O.K. Its not a barn burner of an issue, but it is a way for
her to lick her wounds from losing the SOS job to Oakland County Clerk
Ruth Johnson and not fall off the political map at the same time.
Benson will co-chair the panel with a Republican to be named
at a later date. As such she can continue to travel around the state,
taking testimony from typical folks who don't know squat about
reapportionment. But it's a way to get some free media on the tube and
keep your name in the newspapers, just in case another run for office
is out there.
And is she interested?
Does a bear, etc.
Benson does not rule out another run for elective office as
long as it allows her to advance the same agenda she tried push against
Ms. Johnson. Benson is all about election and campaign finance reform
and now add redistricting to her "must-do" list.
And while she is doing that, she can also keep her persona in
front of the voters by running the Wayne State University Damon Keith
Center for Civil Rights.
Ms. Benson wants to run for something and she now has two
vehicles to make sure the voters don't forget her.