Rep. John Conyers' son officially denied a spot on ballot

WASHINGTON -- John Conyers III, the son of former U.S. Rep. John Conyers Jr., D-Detroit, should not have his name listed on the Aug. 7 Democratic primary ballot to replace his father in Congress, Wayne County Clerk Cathy Garrett decided on Monday.

The decision -- which could be final -- was largely based on an earlier review of nominating petition signatures submitted by the younger Conyers which showed him to be short of the 1,000 signatures of registered voters in the district required for his name to appear on the ballot.

It was not immediately known whether Conyers would try to challenge the decision by legal means or attempt a write-in campaign. However, with so many names already on the ballot -- seven other people, including a cousin, state Sen. Ian Conyers of Detroit, are expected to be listed -- a write-in campaign would have long odds of succeeding.

Related:

John Conyers III did not immediately respond to emails or Twitter messages from the Free Press for a response to what he plans next.

The loss of John Conyers III from the ballot could also end a half-century of Detroit-area politics with his namesake moniker appearing as a choice for voters and to bring to a quick conclusion what was shaping up as an intra-family battle for the nomination.

Ian Conyers, a first term state senator, had a challenge filed on his behalf questioning the validity of the other Conyers' petition signatures but a staff report done by Garrett's staff a week ago had already suggested that he didn't have enough valid signatures, with hundreds of names linked to people either not registered to vote or not living in the district.

John Conyers III sought to run for both the brief remainder of his father's term (there will be about two months left after the election is held in November) and a full two-year term to begin in January. But Garrett said Monday that only 894 of the 1,905 signatures submitted for the partial term were valid, and 943 of the 1,914 signatures submitted for the full term were valid.

Last Friday, Garrett said she would reconsider the staff recommendation that John Conyers III be left off the ballot after he sent her a letter claiming that many of the signatures deemed invalid should not have been thrown out and suggesting someone in the clerk's office had wrongly "refused" to accept several other pages of signatures.

State election law limits the number of signatures that can be submitted to 2,000.

A lawyer for Ian Conyers, Peter Ruddell of the Honigman firm in Lansing, sent a letter to Garrett on Monday calling on her to declare John Conyers III ineligible for the ballot immediately, saying his reconsideration request "is a submission solely designed to cause delay (and)... has no basis in Michigan law."

Garrett said a review of the signatures led to some being deemed valid but not enough to qualify him for the ballot. She noted in her letter to him, however, that he could ask the Secretary of State to review that decision or challenge it in circuit court.

Ian Conyers' campaign manager, Jay Shannon, didn't comment directly on the decision but said he is "proud of the strength of his campaign’s grassroots support and to have the opportunity to continue working with the people of Michigan’s 13th Congressional District. ... He looks forward to continuing the conversation with constituents over the coming few month.”

John Conyers Jr., a civil rights legend who was first elected in 1964, resigned in December as the most senior active member of Congress after he was accused of acting inappropriately with women members of his staff, allegations he has denied. At the time of his resignation, Conyers, now 89, endorsed his 28-year-old son John III to replace him.

John Conyers III has not held elected office but, because of his name and its standing in the community was still expected to be a factor in the primary race, which is all but certain to determine who takes the seat in an overwhelmingly Democratic district.

Prior to the filing deadline last month, the race had attracted more than a dozen potential candidates and as of now, the list of those running, besides Ian Conyers, includes Detroit City Council President Brenda Jones; state Sen. Coleman A. Young II, the son of the well-known former Detroit mayor; former state Reps. Shanelle Jackson and Rashida Tlaib; Westland Mayor Bill Wild and former Conyers staffer Kimberly Hill Knott.

Contact Todd Spangler at 703-854-8947 or at tspangler@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter at @tsspangler.