Oregon state Rep. Gary Leif (R) died on July 22, creating a vacancy in the state legislature. County commissioners from Douglas, Jackson, and Josephine counties had originally appointed Leif to the legislature on April 30, 2018, replacing former Rep. Dallas Heard (R) upon Heard’s appointment to the Oregon Senate. Leif defeated Charles Lee (D) to win…
On July 22, the Missouri Supreme Court unanimously ruled that a constitutional amendment enacting Medicaid expansion was constitutional. The decision reversed a lower court’s ruling that found the amendment approved by voters last August to be unconstitutional because it did not include a revenue source for the state to pay for the Medicaid expansion. The…
A recall election against Avon Mayor Sarah Smith Hymes and Councilwoman Tamra Underwood is expected to be on the ballot in November 2021. The recall effort was initiated in August 2020 in response to the Avon Town Council deciding to leave in place a 2% real estate transfer tax, which collects $2.5 million annually. Recall…
The special primary elections for Michigan State Senate District 8 and 28 are on Aug. 3. The major party candidate filing deadline passed on April 20, and the filing deadline for minor party and independent candidates is Aug. 4. The general election is scheduled for Nov. 2. District 8 In the Democratic primary, John Bill…
Seattle voters have just over one week to cast their ballots in the Aug. 3 top-two primaries. A poll released July 16 showed a plurality of voters unsure who they’d choose for mayor and the two at-large city council seats. The Northwest Progressive Institute poll, conducted by Change Research, showed 32% undecided for the mayoral…
Incumbent Pete Holmes, Ann Davison, and Nicole Thomas-Kennedy are running in a nonpartisan primary election for city attorney of Seattle, Washington, on August 3, 2021. The top two candidates will advance to the general election on November 2, 2021. According to a survey conducted by Crosscut, a nonprofit news site, the top issues for voters…
The Republican National Committee (RNC) outraised the Democratic National Committee (DNC) last month for the first time since March, according to July 2021 campaign finance reports filed with the Federal Election Commission on July 20. Last month, the RNC raised $16.3 million and spent $13.4 million, while the DNC raised $11.2 million and spent $8.0…
In this week’s Redistricting Review, we cover news out of New Jersey, New Mexico, and Wisconsin. New Jersey: On July 20,New Jersey Supreme Court Chief Justice Stuart Rabner asked Democrats and Republicans to reconvene and pick a consensus candidate for the 13th member of the state’s congressional redistricting commission. According to state law, the majority…
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) appointed state Sen. Chris Brown (R) to a position in the Department of Community Affairs’ Division of Local Government Services on July 19. The position required Brown to leave the state Senate. Brown started his new job on July 20. Brown first won election to the Senate to represent…
Kentucky state Rep. John “Bam” Carney (R) died while in office on July 17, 2021, due to long-term health issues. Carney was first elected to represent House District 51 in 2008. He most recently won re-election in 2020, defeating Richard Steele (D) 78.6% to 21.4%. He was elected as state House majority leader in 2018…