SCOTUS hears Moore v. Harper election administration case
The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Moore v. Harper on Dec. 7, the last day of its December sitting.
Moore v. Harper concerns the elections clause in Article I, section 4, of the U.S. Constitution and whether state legislatures alone are empowered to regulate federal elections without oversight from state courts.
Turnout in the Georgia runoffs was nearly 90% of the general election turnout
On Dec. 6, incumbent U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock (D) defeated Herschel Walker (R) in the runoff election for U.S. Senate in Georgia. Turnout for this year’s runoff was 89.8% of the Nov. 8 general election turnout, in which 3.9 million Georgians voted. That’s a slight decline from 2021, when runoff turnout was 91.3% of the general election turnout, in which 4.9 million people voted.
In school board elections, conflict issues break along existing party lines, incumbents lose at higher rate
Since 2021, we’ve tracked school board elections where candidates took stances on the topics of race in education, COVID-19 responses, and sex and gender.
Our final analysis of the 1,779 seats up for election on Nov. 8 across 545 local school boards shows:
- Candidates who supported measures like equity plans, mask requirements, and gender inclusion won 40% of these seats
- Candidates who opposed those policies won 30%
- Candidates whose stances could not be identified won 27%
Nearly one-third of incumbents lost to challengers in those races. Read the full report at the link below.
Learn about next year’s elections on the latest episode of On the Ballot, our weekly podcast
This week’s episode of On the Ballot is all about the elections taking place in the first few months of 2023. Host Victoria Rose talks with staff writer Doug Kronaizl about two state legislative elections in Virginia, a mayoral election in Chicago, and an election for a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Listen at the link below or wherever you get your podcasts.
Louisiana voters will decide three constitutional amendments on Dec. 10
Tomorrow, Dec. 10, voters in the Pelican State will return to the polls for their general election. In addition to a handful of candidates, three constitutional amendments will appear on this ballot:
- Amendment 1 would prohibit local governments from allowing noncitizens to vote.
- Amendment 2 and Amendment 3 concern the confirmation of State Civil Service and State Police Commission appointees. If approved, these amendments would require Senate confirmation for those gubernatorial appointees.
There are 30 upcoming vacancies among Article III judgeships
According to the latest vacancy data from the U.S. Courts, there are 85 Article III vacancies out of 870 total Article III judgeships, and another 30 upcoming. These 30 positions are not yet vacant but will be at some point in the future, with every judge having announced their intent to either leave the bench or assume senior status.