Welcome to the Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025, Brew.
By: Lara Bonatesta
Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:
- Three candidates are running in the nonpartisan primary for Wisconsin’s Superintendent of Public Instruction
- 34 federalism bills introduced in 2025 so far
- In this episode of On The Ballot, inside the governor’s races in New Jersey and Virginia
Three candidates are running in the nonpartisan primary for Wisconsin’s Superintendent of Public Instruction
Incumbent Jill Underly, Brittany Kinser, and Jeff Wright are running in the nonpartisan primary for Wisconsin’s superintendent of public instruction on Feb. 18. The top two finishers will then run in a general election on April 1.
The position is one of seven statewide offices up for regular election across all 50 states in 2025.
PBS Wisconsin’s Steven Potter wrote, “Although the position is described as non-partisan, the job of running the state’s public school system is anything but apolitical. This is largely because of school system funding battles between the governor and the state Legislature, but also due to high-profile contemporary political issues that include transgender student policies, school library book access and bans, police in schools, and other contentious matters.”
Underly was first elected in 2021, defeating Deborah Kerr 57.6%-42.3%. During that election, both candidates were affiliated with the Democratic Party. Four Democratic members of Congress and 29 Democratic members of the Wisconsin State Legislature endorsed Underly. Former Gov. Scott Walker (R) and former state Sen. Alberta Darling (R) endorsed Kerr.
In 2025, Underly is campaigning on increasing funding for Wisconsin schools, saying, “Our state has been underfunding schools for a long time, and we need to make the necessary investments so Wisconsin kids get a great education, and are able to compete in the global economy.” Underly has also campaigned on her request for $4 billion in state spending for public schools, saying it “is what I truly believe the state of Wisconsin owes its public schools.” The Wisconsin Democratic Party has endorsed Underly.
Kinser is an education consultant, former special education teacher, and non-profit executive. She is campaigning to reform the state’s curriculum, saying, “We must prioritize reading, writing, math and science to provide the foundation for meaningful careers and a bright future.” Kinser also said she wants to publish test scores earlier: “It’s being transparent and getting people the information, parent and schools especially, so that they can see what’s working and what’s not working.” Kinser says she does not align with either party and has described herself as moderate. CJ Szafir, CEO of the Institute for Reforming Government, which describes itself as an organization that focuses on ”tax reform, government inefficiency, and burdensome regulation,” said Kinser is “aligned with conservatives and the conservative base.”
Wright is the superintendent of the Sauk Prairie School District. He was a Democratic candidate for Assembly District 51 in 2016 and 2018. Wright’s website says he will make sure Wisconsin’s Department of Public Instruction (DPI) “has a clear and collaborative strategic vision built on solutions that bridge regional, economic and political divides.” Wright also said he would “mak[e] sure that we’re listening to everyone and that we make sure that our doors aren’t closed to people, regardless of their opinion, especially if their children are in our schools.” The political action committee of the Wisconsin Education Association Council has endorsed Wright.
In 2024, following similar changes to standardized tests across the nation, the Department of Public Instruction revised how the state measured student performance with its Forward Exam. The department modified the terms used to describe student performance and lowered the threshold for a positive assessment. Test scores subsequently increased compared to past years after the department implemented the new standards.
Gov. Tony Evers (D) and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R) both criticized the changes. State Republicans have sponsored legislation to restore the standards to what they were previously. Sen. John Jagler (R), a co-author of the bill, said, “These changes were made behind closed doors in advance and revealed only when the test scores were announced. Not surprisingly, the massive uptick in artificial performance gains was confusing at best and misleading at worst. We also lost, because of these changes, the ability to compare performance from previous years.” The bill has become a factor in the race.
Underly says the changes were necessary, writing in an opinion piece, “In recent years, Wisconsin’s standards in various subjects were updated to better reflect what students should know and be able to do in the classroom…This meant the Forward Exam needed to be updated to accurately assess students on those learning goals.”
Kinser supports the proposal to restore the old standards, saying, “I 100% agree with the new proposal for the new bill to ensure that our standards are restored and agree with the governor also that they need to be restored.”
Wright is also critical of new standards and says the bill “is happening because of the absence of system-wide collaboration and open communication…I look forward to working with our Legislature as a nonpartisan problem solver to do what is right for our schools.”
As of Feb. 3, Underly has raised $39,070 and spent $28,131, Kinser has raised $15,000 and spent $0, and Wright has raised $84,793 and spent $5,634. The 2021 election was the most expensive in the state’s history, with a combined $2.98 million spent among all seven candidates and satellite groups across the primary and general elections. To read more about fundraising in this race, click here.
34 federalism bills introduced in 2025 so far
Among the thousands of bills that lawmakers are considering in state capitals and in Congress are several related to the concept of federalism.
Ballotpedia’s Administrative State Legislation Tracker has so far identified 34 federalism bills. These pieces of legislation reflect the ongoing debate about the balance of power between the federal and state governments and address issues from unfunded mandates to federal regulatory authority.
In 2024, at least 61 federalism bills were introduced, and eight were enacted. Here are two examples of such bills that were passed last year:
- Utah HB0470: Requires state agencies to review federal regulations where Chevron deference previously applied and report them to the attorney general. The law allows the attorney general to decide if legal challenges to each federal regulation would succeed and notify the state’s Federalism Commission of any lawsuits filed against the regulations.
- Utah SB0057: Allows the Utah Legislature to prohibit state agencies or officers from instituting a federal directive that the legislature finds to violate state sovereignty
So far in 2025, one bill was introduced in Congress, and 33 bills were introduced or carried over in 18 state legislatures. Virginia lawmakers have introduced the most bills (five), followed by Montana and Washington, with three each.
Of the state-level bill, 15 were introduced or carried over in states with Republican trifectas, 12 in states with Democratic trifectas, and six in states with divided governments. Republicans introduced 17 bills, Democrats introduced 12, two had bipartisan sponsorship, and two did not have listed sponsors.
Here are some key federalism-related bill categories and notable examples. Click on the links for a summary of each bill.
- State Assertion of Authority/Nullification: These bills propose to assert state power against the federal government, often invoking the doctrine of nullification.
- Examples: Kentucky SJR19, Tennessee SB0479, Tennessee HB0441, Texas SB707
- Unfunded Mandates: These bills propose to address concerns about unfunded mandates imposed by higher levels of government. States are seeking to limit the financial burden on states and localities.
- State Control over Local Affairs: These bills propose that state governments assert greater control over local decision-making, particularly in land use, housing, and infrastructure.
- State-Federal Cooperation/Consultation: These bills propose to highlight areas requiring state and federal cooperation.
- Examples: US HR10340, Georgia HB97, Utah SCR003, North Dakota SB2068, Virginia HB2697
Other notable bills and summaries:
- New York A628: Proposes to legalize and regulate certain natural hallucinogens, prohibiting state and local law enforcement from cooperating with federal efforts to enforce conflicting laws.
- Virginia HB2534 & SB1304: Propose to seek federal approval for expanding crisis stabilization services.
- Florida HB1 & SB2: Propose to establish the Office of State Immigration Enforcement.
- Missouri SB116: Proposes to modify election provisions, requiring legislative approval for implementing federal election guidance or accepting federal funds.
- Wyoming HB134: Proposes to prohibit the use of state and federal funds for sexually explicit events.
Click here for a full list of federalism bills. Click here to learn more about the Administrative State Legislation tracker.
Overall, we are following nearly 400 bills (and counting) in state legislatures related to other aspects of the administrative state, such as legislative oversight, judicial deference, regulatory reduction, and agency dynamics.
Ballotpedia’s Administrative State 2024 Legislation Report contains analysis of administrative state-related legislative activity in all 50 states. The report includes information on the total number of bills tracked by legislative status, enacted and vetoed legislation, and noteworthy topics. Ballotpedia tracked 583 bills in 44 states for the report. Click here to read the full report.
In this episode of On The Ballot, inside the governor’s races in New Jersey and Virginia
In this week’s new episode of On The Ballot, host Geoff Pallay and guests Matt Friedman and Brandon Jarvis will talk about this year’s gubernatorial elections.
New Jersey and Virginia will elect new governors on Nov. 4. Incumbent governors Phil Murphy (D) and Glenn Youngkin (R) are both term-limited. Friedman is a reporter for Politico and the author of The New Jersey Playbook. Jarvis is the founder and managing editor of the Virginia Scope and the Virginia Political Newsletter.
As we mentioned in the Dec. 13 edition of the Brew, while multiple candidates are running for the Democratic and Republican nominations in New Jersey, fewer candidates are running in Virginia’s primaries.
Here’s a breakdown of both state’s primaries..
New Jersey’s Democratic and Republican primaries are happening on June 10. The filing deadline is March 24.
- Five candidates are running in the Democratic primary: U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill, U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer, Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop, former state Senate President Steve Sweeney, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, and New Jersey Education Association President Sean Spiller.
- Nine candidates are running in the Republican primary. Among them are former Assemblyman and 2021 Republican nominee Jack Ciattarelli, former NJ 101.5 talk show host Bill Spadea, state Sen. Jon Bramnick, and former state Sen. Ed Durr.
Virginia’s primaries are on June 17. The filing deadline is April 3.
- One Democrat – former U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger – is running so far.
- Two Republicans – Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears and Merle Rutledge – are running.
In 2021, the last time the offices were up, Murphy became the first Democratic governor in New Jersey to win re-election since Brendan Byrne in 1977. Youngkin became the first Republican to win a statewide election in Virginia since 2009.
While New Jersey and Virginia are the only states holding gubernatorial elections in 2025, 36 other governorships are on the ballot in 2026. Click here to see our early Brew coverage of those elections, and click here to see our page on the 2026 gubernatorial elections,
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