ICYMI: Top stories of the week


A rundown of the 11 states that held elections on April 2

Eleven states held presidential primaries, runoffs, statewide elections, special elections, or local elections on Tuesday.

  • Four states—Connecticut, New York, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin—held presidential primaries. Delaware canceled its presidential primary because Joe Biden (D) and Donald Trump (R) were the only candidates on the ballots.
  • Mississippi held a Republican primary runoff for its 2nd Congressional District.
  • Alabama, Arkansas, and South Carolina held primary runoffs and special elections for specific state legislative seats, and Wisconsin held elections for its state court of appeals.
  • Voters decided two statewide ballot measures in Wisconsin, and voters in Alaska, Missouri, and Wisconsin decided on local ballot measures.
  • Alaska, Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin held elections for local offices. Ballotpedia identified the mayoral election in Anchorage, Alaska, as a battleground race.

Click the link below for complete election results.

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Check out the 100th episode of On the Ballot, our weekly podcast, featuring Ballotpedia’s CEO and founder Leslie Graves

In our latest episode of On the Ballot, Leslie Graves, founder and CEO of Ballotpedia, joins Ballotpedia Social Media Manager Abby Campbell to discuss a topic close to her heart: how to engage voters. The two discuss everything from how voters can stay informed on key issues and candidates to how they can fact-check the information they find online.

Listen here

State legislatures consider bills changing selection methods for certain offices

Legislators in 15 states have introduced at least 33 bills this year that would alter selection methods for various local and state officials, with a majority changing previously appointed positions to elected ones. One of the 33 introduced bills, Massachusetts’ S2524, was enacted on Feb. 6. 

Twenty-six bills would change previously appointed positions to elected ones, while seven bills would do the opposite, providing for the appointment of officeholders in offices who are currently elected.

Click the link below to explore the bills for yourself.

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State lawmakers more likely in 2024 to advance bills repealing or banning ranked-choice voting (RCV) than implementing it

More ranked-choice voting (RCV) bans and repeals are advancing in state legislatures compared to new authorizations in this year’s state legislative sessions. Forty bills introduced this year would ban or repeal uses of RCV, while 69 would establish a new use of RCV. However, prospective bans make up a greater share of bills that passed at least one legislative chamber as of March 29. 

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