Year: 2021
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A look back at government responses to the coronavirus pandemic, October 5-9, 2020
Although the first case of COVID-19 in the U.S. was confirmed on Jan. 21, 2020, it wasn’t until March when the novel coronavirus upended life for most Americans. Throughout the year, states issued stay-at-home orders, closed schools, restricted travel, issued mask mandates, and changed election dates. Here are the policy changes that happened October 5-9,…
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How Clallam County has voted in recent presidential primaries
Clallam County, Wash., has a long record of voting for the winning presidential candidate. Since 1980, the county has voted for the Republican and Democratic candidates that would go on to become president—Ronald Reagan (R), George H.W. Bush (R), Bill Clinton (D), George W. Bush (R), Barack Obama (D), Donald Trump (R), and Joe Biden…
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SCOTUS accepts 5 cases, Justice Kavanaugh tests positive for COVID-19
On Sept. 30, 2021, the Supreme Court of the United States (“SCOTUS”) accepted five cases to its merits docket for the 2021-2022 term: Federal Elections Commission v. Cruz involves Sen. Ted Cruz’s (R-TX) challenge to federal election law regarding how and when candidates may repay personal loans made to their political campaigns. The case originated…
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Arizona voters to decide local minimum wage increase, bond issues, school budget override, and charter amendments in November
Ballotpedia is covering 11 local ballot measures in Chandler, Gilbert, Scottsdale, and Tucson on November 2, 2021. In Chandler, voters will decide five bond issues totaling $272,685,000: Question 1: Authorizes $72,985,000 in bonds to construct, improve, and acquire city parks and recreational facilities Question 2: Authorizes $25,160,000 in bonds to construct, renovate, and equip city…
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Maine enacts new congressional and state legislative district maps
On September 29, 2021, Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D) signed legislation enacting redrawn congressional and state legislative district boundaries as a result of the 2020 census. The Maine Apportionment Commission approved a final congressional district plan on Sept. 24 and final state legislative district plans on Sept. 27. The Maine legislature unanimously approved the state’s…
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Bold Justice: SCOTUS is back in session!
Bold Justice: SCOTUS begins October term 2021 Welcome to the October 4 edition of Bold Justice, Ballotpedia’s newsletter about the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) and other judicial happenings around the U.S. It’s October and we all know what that means—the court is back in session! The October 2021-2022 term has begun. Let’s…
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Nebraska enacts congressional and state legislative district maps
On Sept. 30, the Nebraska State Legislature approved new congressional and state legislative district maps. Shortly after the legislature’s approval, Gov. Pete Ricketts (R) signed the maps into law. The congressional map was approved by a 35-11 vote, with all dissenting votes coming from Democratic members of the legislature. All Republicans in attendance voted in…
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The five Virginia House districts with the most fundraising this cycle all have Democratic incumbents
Elections for all 100 seats in the Virginia House of Delegates are taking place on November 2, 2021. Democrats hold 55 seats and Republicans hold 45 seats. There are 93 districts with both a Democratic and Republican candidate on the ballot. This is the first election cycle since 1999 with Democrats defending a majority in…