By Antonio D. French
Filed Saturday, April 14, 2007 at 11:11 AM
PUB DEF EXCLUSIVE — BREAKING NEWS Labels: Democrats, Exclusive, Video_Reports
Sources tell Pub Def that Ken Franklin will be named Executive Director of the Missouri Democratic Party later today.
Franklin is currently an aide to St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay and a former state party staffer. He will be the first African-American to ever hold the influential position.
Check back later for more...
UPDATE: Over the course of several months, a field of 32 potential candidates for the E.D. job was cut down to 16, then 5, then just 3. Of those three candidates, according to Missouri Democratic Party Chairman John Temporiti, Franklin was the unanimous choice of state party officials.
Readers will recall that there was speculation that the sudden resignation of Democratic Party Chairman Roger Wilson back in January was the result of a clash between him, the Legislative Black Caucus, U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill, and Attorney General and Gubernatorial candidate Jay Nixon over who should be the next E.D.
According to sources, all sides agreed that it was time for an African-American director, but who?
Brandon Davis, McCaskill's former political director, interviewed for the job and actively lobbied officials for weeks. But Wilson told Black Caucus members "no way" on Davis.
But it was the manner and tone in which Wilson told the Caucus "no" that some speculate quickly led to his resignation.
In February, Davis accepted a job as political director for the SEIU MO/KS State Council, taking his name out of the running for E.D. (and saving Wilson from embarrassment should Davis had been appointed despite his stern objections).
Today's appointment of Franklin both satisfies one promise to the strongest part of the Democrats' base and places the Party in the hands of a capable, well-liked director who may be able to build bridges across the state to help the Democrats retake the Governor's office next year.
UPDATE 2: It's official. At 12:45 p.m. the Missouri Democratic Party sent out the following press release.
The Missouri Democratic Party today announced that Ken Franklin from St. Louis will be the party's new Executive Director. The selection was made by Party Chairman John Temporiti and approved by the Missouri Democratic Party's Executive Committee at the quarterly state party meeting today in Jefferson City.
Franklin has served since May 2005 as St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay's Deputy Legislative Director and formerly ran Gov. Bob Holden's St. Louis office. Along with his experience in government, Franklin has also served as Political Director for Mayor Slay's successful 2005 re-election, Base Vote Director for Sen. Jean Carnahan's 2002 campaign, and Press Aid for Freeman Bosley, Jr.'s 2001 mayoral campaign. He has also participated in the St. Louis RCGA's Public Policy Council and the St. Louis Downtown Partnership's Legislative Affairs Committee. Franklin previously worked at the Missouri Democratic Party from 2001-2002 as the Director of Voter Outreach.
"Ken's experience both in government and politics in Missouri make him the ideal choice to continue the momentum the Missouri Democratic Party has built over the last election," said John Temporiti, Missouri Democratic Party Chairman. "Ken brings both the background and enthusiasm to help Missouri Democrats win up and down the ticket in 2008 and beyond."
Ken graduated from Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia with a degree in political science. Before entering government and politics, Franklin taught social studies and language arts for two years at Holy Cross School in St. Louis. Ken lives with his wife and one-year-old daughter in St. Louis, where his father, Robert, is a pastor.
He replaces Corey Dillon who left in February to join the U.S. Senate office of Claire McCaskill. Franklin will be the first ever African-American Executive Director of the Missouri Democratic Party when he starts work the week of May 14.
18 Comments:
There are racial factors involved in the 7 member board's challenge to loss of accreditation and the school takeover.
Considering the level of opposition to the takeover headed by matt blunt's choice of Sullivan among voters and their elected officials, how does his relationship to Slay leave things?
Will he be able to discredit the idea that there is something hinky about disenfranchising st. louis voters regarding who will run their schools?
4/14/2007 12:15 PM
kjoe, there are "single-issue voters" and then there are "single-issue voters!". This story has absolutely nothing to do with the takeover of St. Louis Public Schools.
There are plenty of other stories on this site about SLPS and I ask you to keep that discussion on those posts.
Thank you.
4/14/2007 12:52 PM
It was a foregone conclusion that the new party ED would be African American. The real question is whether Franklin will maintain the same level of influence as his predecessors, or whether he will function as a mere figurehead while establishment insiders continue to call the real shots. Quotations from today are meaningless; only time will tell.
In the meantime, I wonder what Franklin thinks (or will do) about all the Democrat senators who "cut and ran" on the Medicaid fight and voted for Blunt's MO HealthNet this past week.
4/14/2007 1:12 PM
I apologize.
I will think about what you said and why you said it.
4/14/2007 2:02 PM
Antonio D. French said...4/14/2007 12:52 PM
kjoe, there are "single-issue voters" and then there are "single-issue voters!". This story has absolutely nothing to do with the takeover of St. Louis Public Schools.
Antonio, you might have been quick to judge kjoe's question. In following the SLPS debate, I cannot distinguish Republicans from Democrats and conservatives from liberals. I think politicans from both parties look the other way when race and class or social justice issues are in their faces. We have no leaders, just politicians who react to corporate dollars.
Will Franklin be any different?
4/14/2007 3:08 PM
Snead, I repeat my earlier sentiment: this story has NOTHING to do with the turmoil in St. Louis Public Schools.
Furthermore, those commenters that DO see this story as another chapter in the schools saga might very well be telling more about their state of mind than they intend.
Take off the SLPS-colored glasses. Not everything is about the schools.
4/14/2007 3:22 PM
"Snead, I repeat my earlier sentiment: this story has NOTHING to do with the turmoil in St. Louis Public Schools."
Antonio,
If this is an answer to my question, then you're looking more and more like a politician everyday.
And I suppose the reference to Medicaid is right on target; pertinent.
Again, is Franklin a Democrat-in-name-only like
Slay? Will he continue the charade?
4/14/2007 3:42 PM
I have a lot of respect for Antonio.
I have to re-examine whether the hostility I feel toward Mayor Slay is too much.
I have to consider whether there is a broad spectrum of issues on which Mayor Slay is pretty good.
I have to think about whether the power structure often referred to regarding decisions made about St. Louis is very real or very meaningful.
4/14/2007 4:29 PM
kjoe,
I'm a systemic thinker. I can easily connect the dots between what Blunt wants to do with Medicaid (along with the Democrats' silence), MOHELA, SLPS and KC public schools. He'll also give us cool highways while public transit is nearly bankrupt. Slay and his appointees have been participants in this from what I can tell. None of the politicians really want us to connect these dots. They'll tell us that one has nothing to do with the other.
I am very skeptical.
4/14/2007 5:03 PM
Button your shirt, Antonio! You're on TV! ;)
4/14/2007 11:25 PM
Congratulations to Franklin. Dislike of Slay should not overshadow this achievement.
4/15/2007 12:48 AM
One must ask if Slay is successful. If so, what part of that is due to Franklin?
Can Franklin bring that success to Jeff City and the State as a whole?
4/15/2007 1:43 AM
Morris said...4/15/2007 1:43 AM
One must ask if Slay is successful. If so, what part of that is due to Franklin?
Can Franklin bring that success to Jeff City and the State as a whole?
i've posted this elsewhere, but IMO Slay is a weak Mayor. He keeps a hidden agenda that was made clear in at the press conference regarding the issue-that-should-not-be-mentioned in this thread. He is beholden to Corporate Progress, oops, Civic Progress and mostly reacts rather than leads. He brought us Ballpark Village at our expense and in my neighborhood we have freshly paved alleys.
So, if Franklin's finger prints are all over Slay's deeds, we can use them as predictors, IMO.
4/15/2007 8:36 AM
St. Louis Oracle,
" while establishment insiders continue to call the real shots."
What does this mean? Who are these people, these "establishment insiders"?
4/15/2007 8:39 AM
"Button your shirt, Antonio! You're on TV! ;)"
That's one of the many freedoms of the Internet, Matty.
Sometimes "breaking news" catches me loafing around the house on a Saturday morning in my underwear and gorilla house shoes.
Be glad I threw on the shirt at all.
;)
4/15/2007 11:00 AM
I am very gald for Mr. Franklin. Hipefully we will get Democrats elected Governor and Lt. Givernor do to his efforts.
4/15/2007 1:09 PM
Sometimes the people appointed are better than the people appointing them. bad presidents have appointed good supreme court justices.
The third person Blunt appointed to dese voted against---oops---let's just say he is from kansas City and he surprised me.
4/15/2007 1:33 PM
I am starting to get a feeling that Antonio might soon be appointed to a small board where he will have great influence in Stlouis.
That would be a good thing for the kids--and the adults.
4/16/2007 2:12 PM
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