Utah joined a growing number of states where congressional district boundaries may change before the 2026 elections. A federal district court judge struck down Utah’s congressional map on Aug. 25, 2025, ruling that the Utah State Legislature violated voters’ right to reform their government when it overrode voters’ chosen redistricting rules. The judge gave the…
Catelin Drey (D) defeated Christopher Prosch (R) in the special general election for Iowa state Senate District 1 on August 26, 2025. The previous incumbent, Rocky De Witt (R), died on June 25, 2025. Leading up to the election, Republicans had a 33-16 majority in the Iowa Senate with one vacancy. Drey’s win meant that…
Emily Dean, Sonda Gaub, Braxton Hudson, Chris Riccardo, and Andy Shirtliff are running in the nonpartisan primary for mayor of Helena, Montana, on Sept. 9, 2025. This election is the first since 2001 in Helena to require a primary for mayor. According to KTVH, state law “requires local governments to hold primaries if at least…
Fifty-one years ago, on August 27, 1974, Alaskan voters approved Initiative 1, a ballot measure that began the process to move the state capital from Juneau to a city in Western Alaska. It was the third measure on the ballot in fourteen years that would have required a change in the capital city. Alaskans have…
Forty-nine states and the District of Columbia require prospective voters to register to vote before casting a ballot. North Dakota, which abolished voter registration in 1951, is the only state that does not require voter registration. While 42 states and the District of Columbia have online voter registration systems, all states (except North Dakota) have…
Democratic and Republican trifectas each averaged 19 ballot initiatives for even-numbered year elections between 2010 and 2024. States with divided governments averaged 15 initiatives. Twenty-six (26) states provide for a statewide ballot initiative process, where citizens place constitutional amendments, statutes, or veto referendums on the ballot. Following the 2024 elections, 22 of the 26 states…