In an article published earlier this year, the Opelika-Auburn News details Commissioner Richard LaGrand’s life, including meeting with celebrities such as Lionel Richie, Charles Barkley and the family of Grammy Legend Michael Jackson.
LaGrand spent his childhood on the tough streets of Chicago’s South Side, where he developed a love for basketball. Perfecting his skills on the court alongside running mate and member of the 1977 NCAA championship team Bo Ellis, LaGrand imagined attending college to pursue his love for the game and to quench his thirst for knowledge.
So, to answer our headline question: Ellis is the connection between LaGrand and the 1977 Marquette Hall of Fame coach, Al McGuire. Coincidentally, Ellis' seats at Marquette are two rows in front of Milwaukee-based Take Back Action Fund President John Pudner's seats and he once playfully chided Pudner for a book he authored where he ranked Ellis as "only" Marquette's second greatest player of all time, following Dwyane Wade.
Today, LaGrand is an elected Commissioner who hosts a popular radio show near Auburn, Alabama on iHeart Radio’s 1520AM Hallelujah, whose listeners on Saturday heard Alabama escape Auburn with a thrilling 4-overtime victory in the Iron Bowl.
Now, listeners have an opportunity to tune in tomorrow, Wednesday, December 1 at 8:30AM central as LaGrand interviews Take Back Action Fund Southern Field Director Ashley Sellers.
Sellers, whose work focuses on election reform and instant runoff, spends her days fighting to preserve the integrity of our nation’s electoral system. As she travels to states where candidates are not required to achieve a majority vote to win, she reports an increasing desire by states and stakeholders to implement a solution that protects the conservative, majority voice while eliminating the risk spoiler candidates pose in splitting the conservative vote between two candidates, often resulting in neither achieving victory while the liberal vote wins the necessary plurality and remains unchecked. This has led to growing momentum to introduce and pass legislation that embraces instant runoffs.