Year: 2021
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Special election for Iowa State House District 37 to be held Sept. 14
The special general election for Iowa State House District 37 is scheduled for Sept. 14. There are currently two candidates competing for the seat. Andrea Phillips was selected in the Democratic convention, and Mike Bousselot was chosen in the Republican convention. As of Aug. 20, no third party or independent candidates had filed. The seat…
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45 years ago, Alaska voters approved measure removing residency requirement for presidential elections
Forty-five years ago—on August 23, 1966—Alaska voters approved a measure permitting the state legislature to shorten the residency requirement for persons living in Alaska who wished to vote only for President and Vice President of the United States. It was the first measure the state legislature referred to the ballot since Alaska received statehood in…
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A look back at government responses to the coronavirus pandemic, August 24-28, 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 August 24-28,…
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BPI Update: With less than a month until the California recall, 73% chance Newsom is retained
On Sept. 14, California voters will decide whether to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom (D). The Ballotpedia Power Index (BPI) estimates that, as of Aug. 20, there is a 73% chance Newsom is retained and a 27% chance that he is recalled. Should he be recalled, Newsom would be the second California governor in history to…
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State and Local Tap: Ballots for Newsom recall mailed to voters
Our weekly summary of state & local news highlights an update in the recall election targeting California Gov. Gavin Newsom and a Florida school district requiring masks in schools, violating the governor’s executive order. Read all about it in this week’s edition of the State & Local Tap. Ballot measures update Thirty-six statewide measures have…
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The Federal Tap: Biden announces plans to offer COVID-19 booster shots
Our weekly summary of federal news highlights Biden’s announcement of plans to offer COVID-19 booster shots and the SCOTUS November argument calendar. Read all about it in this week’s edition of the Federal Tap. Congress is in session The House is in session next week. Click here to see the full calendar for the first…
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New Mexico Secretary of Education Ryan Stewart resigns
Ryan Stewart resigned as New Mexico’s secretary of education on Aug. 20, citing health issues in his family. Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) first appointed Stewart to the position in August 2019. Stewart said he would continue serving at the Public Education Department in an advisory role. Lujan Grisham announced on July 29 that former Los…
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0.8% of absentee/mail-in ballots rejected in 2020
In the 2020 general election, voters cast 70.6 million absentee/mail-in ballots, and election officials rejected 0.8% of them, according to data released by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC). The number of absentee/mail-in ballots cast in 2020 marked a 111% increase over 2016. And by comparison, absentee mail-in ballot rejection rates in 2018 and 2016…