Welcome to the Monday, November 7, Brew.
By: Samuel Wonacott
Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:
- Our top analyses and resources for Election Day
- Both of New Hampshire’s U.S. House elections are rated as toss ups
Our top analyses and resources for Election Day
Welcome to election week! Tomorrow, on Nov. 8, millions of voters will be heading to the polls. Over the last month, our coverage has focused on battleground races, ballot measure previews, and analyses of what’s at stake for federal, state, and local politics. We’ll be in your inbox all week bringing you resources to help you vote – and then follow the election results throughout the coming days ahead.
So, let’s run through our most important articles and resources for Election Day.
If you’re heading to the polls tomorrow (or voting today), use our Sample Ballot Lookup tool to learn about the candidates and issues on your ballot.
Our Election Help Desk is ready to answer your most pressing questions about tomorrow’s elections. Are you curious why states have different election rules or whether you can take a ballot selfie? Are you wondering when states can begin counting absentee/mail-in ballots and what rules govern recounts? You’ll find answers to those questions and a lot more at the Election Help Desk, which features 30 articles covering six broad categories of questions.
This page is our hub for reporting the results of elections up and down the ballot. You’ll find election updates, battleground election results, an overview of race ratings, and more. Bookmark this page for tomorrow evening, when results start trickling in. We’ll be working late into the morning reporting results.
This is another hub page you’ll want to bookmark. With thousands of elections taking place across the country, we’ll have plenty of analysis articles on outcomes at the federal, state, and local levels. Here’s a sampling of the analysis articles on that hub page:
- U.S. House districts represented by a Democrat in 2022 and won by Donald Trump in 2020
- U.S. House districts represented by a Republican in 2022 and won by Joe Biden in 2020
- State financial officers
- State legislatures
- State supreme courts
- Attorneys General
- Secretaries of State
- Trifecta vulnerability in the 2022 elections
- Historical and potential changes in trifectas
This is our list of top races to watch. It includes congressional and state executive elections (including for governor), and elections for state supreme court judgeships, state legislatures, and mayors.
Top 15 ballot measures to watch
Voters in 37 states will decide on 132 statewide ballot measures that address topics like abortion, marijuana, voting policies, firearms, sports betting, and state constitutional rights. This is our list of the top 15 measures to watch.
Annual State Legislative Competitiveness Report
The national conversation about Election Day tends to overlook state legislative elections in favor of high-profile congressional and gubernatorial races. Our recent report on state legislative competitiveness found a decade-high level of competition in the 6,278 state legislative elections taking place this year. Click here to read about the 28 state legislative chambers that we’ve identified as battlegrounds. Also, last week’s episode of On the Ballot, our weekly podcast, breaks down the state legislative races to watch with CNalysis founder and director Chaz Nuttycombe. Download it wherever you get your podcasts!
If state legislative elections tend to get overlooked in busy election years, then that’s even more true about the elections for state financial officers. These officials—treasurers, auditors, and comptrollers—play an important role in things like auditing other government offices, managing payroll, and overseeing pensions. You can learn all about the elections for state financial officers in your state at the link above.
Happy voting, and we look forward to bringing you results and analysis throughout the week.
Both of New Hampshire’s U.S. House elections are rated as toss ups
Way back on Aug. 29, before the leaves changed colors and before we swapped iced coffee for hot coffee, we ran the first story in our 50 states in 50 days series. Today, on Election Day eve, we’re bringing you the final installment—New Hampshire, the Granite State! Happy voting!
Week One: Pennsylvania, Indiana, South Dakota, Nebraska, North Dakota
Week Two: California, Georgia, Texas, Montana
Week Three: North Carolina, Virginia, New Mexico, Illinois, Idaho
Week Four: Kentucky, Michigan, Arkansas, Minnesota, West Virginia
Week Five: Vermont, Nevada, Wyoming, Arizona, Ohio
Week Six: South Carolina, Iowa, Kansas, Oregon, Tennessee
Week Seven: Colorado, New Jersey, Washington, Alabama, Utah
Week Eight: Mississippi, Maryland, Rhode Island, Oklahoma, Maine
Week Nine: Massachusetts, Wisconsin, Alaska, Hawaii, Florida
Week Ten: Missouri, Louisiana, New York, Connecticut
On the ballot in New Hampshire
At the federal level, New Hampshire voters will elect one U.S. Senator and two U.S. Representatives.
At the state level, the offices of governor and state executive council are up for election.
All 24 seats in the state Senate and all 400 seats in the state House of Representatives are up for election.
None of the U.S. House districts up for election are open. Of the 424 state legislative districts up for election, 126 are open.
Redistricting highlights
New Hampshire was apportioned two seats in the U.S. House of Representatives after the 2020 census, the same number it was apportioned after the 2010 census.
Congressional and state legislative elections will take place under new district lines following the census. Our side-by-side map comparison tool allows you to immediately see what redistricting looks like in your state. Here are the congressional maps in effect before and after the 2020 redistricting cycle in New Hampshire:
To use our tool to view New Hampshire’s state legislative maps in effect before and after the 2020 redistricting cycle, visit our New Hampshire redistricting page.
Partisan balance
- Both of New Hampshire’s U.S. Senators–Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen–are Democrats.
- Democrats represent both of the state’s U.S. House districts.
- Republicans hold a 13-11 majority in the state Senate and a 202-198 majority in the state Assembly. The governor–Chris Sununu–is a Republican.
- As a result, New Hampshire is one of 13 states under divided trifecta control and one of nine states under divided triplex control.
Seats contested by only one major party
In 2022, 59 state legislative seats in New Hampshire, or 13.9% of all seats up for election, do not have major party competition. When a candidate from only one of either the Democratic or Republican parties runs for a state legislative seat, that party is all but guaranteed to win.
Democrats are running in 96% of all state legislative races. 17 state legislative seats (4% of all state legislative seats) lack a Democratic candidate and a Republican is likely to win.
Republicans are running in 90.1% of all state legislative races. 42 seats (9.9% of all state legislative seats) lack a Republican candidate and a Democrat is likely to win.
Key races
- U.S. Senate election in New Hampshire, 2022: Incumbent Maggie Hassan (D), Don Bolduc (R), and Jeremy Kauffman (L) are running. Hassan took office in 2017. Election forecasting sites rate this election Lean Democratic or Tilt Democratic, and recent polls show Hassan and Bolduc competing within the margin of error.
- New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District election, 2022: Incumbent Chris Pappas (D) and Karoline Leavitt (R) are running. Pappas has held this office since 2013. This race is rated as a “toss up” by the Cook Political Report.
- New Hampshire’s 2nd Congressional District election, 2022: Incumbent Annie Kuster (D) and Bob Burns (R) are running. Kuster has held this office since 2013. This race is rated as a “toss up” by the Cook Political Report.
Ballot measures
New Hampshire voters will decide two statewide ballot measures on Nov. 8:
- New Hampshire Constitutional Convention Question (2022): The New Hampshire Constitutional Convention Question is on the ballot as an automatic ballot referral. A “yes” vote supports holding a state constitutional convention. A “no” vote opposes it.
- New Hampshire Abolish Office of Register of Probate Amendment (2022): The New Hampshire Abolish Office of Register of Probate Amendment is a legislatively referred constitutional amendment. A “yes” vote supports eliminating the register of probate offices and references to it within the New Hampshire Constitution. A “no” vote opposes such a change.
A total of 21 ballot measures appeared on statewide ballots between 1985 and 2020. Of that number, seven ballot measures were approved, and 14 were defeated.
Voting
- On Election Day, polling place hours of operation can vary. However, New Hampshire polling places must be open between 11:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. ET, according to state law.
- New Hampshire requires voters to present photo identification at the polls in most cases. For more information about voter ID requirements in New Hampshire, click here.
- New Hampshire does not permit early voting.
- The voting registration deadline in New Hampshire is Election Day, November 8, 2022. Registration can be done in person or by mail.
- New Hampshire voters can only vote absentee by mail if they meet certain requirements. To learn more about these requirements, click here. The deadline to request an absentee ballot is Nov. 7. Ballots can be returned in person or by mail. Ballots must be received by Nov. 8 at 7:00 p.m.
- To check the status of your ballot, click here.
Want to learn more about the elections you’ll be voting in this year? Click here to use our Sample Ballot Lookup tool!