Welcome to the Friday, June 11, Brew. Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:
- Previewing the New York mayoral race
- Ruth Ruggero Hughs resigns as Texas secretary of state
- #Fridaytrivia
Previewing the New York mayoral race
The New York mayoral primaries are on June 22—less than two weeks away. As the date approaches, let’s take a look at what we know about the races.
Sixteen Democrats and three Republicans are running in the primary elections. There will be both Democratic and Republican primaries. The winners will advance to the general election on Nov. 2.
The primary election will feature the first use of ranked-choice voting (RCV) for a mayoral primary in the city’s history. Voters will be able to rank up to five candidates on their ballot in order of preference. A candidate must receive a majority of votes cast to win the election, and votes for eliminated candidates are redistributed based on the next preference on the ballot. Official tabulations are not expected until the week of July 12, due to the deadlines for voters to submit absentee ballots and fix mistakes they may make on their ballots, such as forgetting to sign them.
Among the Democratic candidates, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, former New York City Sanitation Commissioner Kathryn Garcia, former Wall Street executive Raymond McGuire, New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer, former mayoral counsel Maya Wiley, and entrepreneur Andrew Yang have received the most media attention and noteworthy endorsements.
The three Republicans are the New York State Federation of Taxi Drivers founder Fernando Mateo, retired NYPD officer William Pepitone, and financier Sara Tirschwell.
Garcia topped an Emerson College poll of 570 likely voters conducted May 23-24 with 21% support in the first round and 55% support in the eleventh and final round of ranked-choice voting. The margin of error was 4.1%. Adams and Yang, who led in earlier polls, rounded out the final three.
Garcia’s performance in polling has improved following endorsements from The New York Times and the New York Daily News. Other recent key endorsements in the race include Rep. John Liu (D-N.Y.) for Yang, Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.) for Wiley, and Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.) for Adams.
Stringer, who lost endorsements following allegations of sexual misconduct that Stringer denied, received a boost from the United Federation of Teachers and the American Federation of Teachers in May through a $4 million television and digital ad campaign.
Additional key spending in the race includes $500,000 from investor George Soros to a pro-Wiley super PAC and $1 million from oil executive John Hess to a pro-McGuire group.
Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) is not running for re-election. De Blasio was first elected in 2013 and won re-election in 2017 with 66% of the vote. Including de Blasio, four of the previous six mayors were Democrats.
Mayoral elections are being held in 31 of the 100 largest U.S. cities in 2021. The mayors of 64 of the country’s 100 largest cities are currently affiliated with the Democratic Party.
Ruth Ruggero Hughs resigns as Texas secretary of state
Ruth Ruggero Hughs resigned as Texas secretary of state effective May 31, after the Nominations Committee of the Texas State Senate did not take up her nomination for another term. Since Texas is one of eight states where the governor selects the secretary of state, Gov. Greg Abbott (R) will appoint Hughs’ successor. Abbott has appointed four secretaries of state so far since he took office in 2015.
Governor Abbott appointed Hughs on August 19, 2019, to succeed David Whitley (R) after he did not receive enough confirmation votes from the state Senate to remain in office. At least two-thirds of the Senate must vote in favor of a secretary of state’s nomination in order for a nominee to be confirmed. Hughs previously served as the chair of the Texas Workforce Commission.
The Texas secretary of state serves as the chief election officer, assists election officials at the county level, and ensures that election laws are uniform throughout Texas. Additionally, the secretary publishes government rules and regulations and commissions notaries public.
Here are a few fun facts about the office of secretary of state:
- The secretary of state is a state-level position in 47 of the 50 states.
- The position does not exist in Alaska, Hawaii, and Utah.
- In Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, the office is called the secretary of the commonwealth and differs only in name.
- Voters directly elect the secretary of state in 35 states. In the other 12, the secretary is appointed by either the governor or the state legislature.
#Fridaytrivia
We’ve been keeping you up-to-date on the status of redistricting following the 2020 U.S. Census results. I recently wrote about how Illinois lawmakers approved revised maps for the Illinois state Senate, the Illinois House of Representatives, and the Illinois Supreme Court. Governor J.B. Pritzker (D) signed legislation on June 4 establishing the new maps. In that edition, I told you about the last time Illinois redrew state supreme court districts.
So for today’s question, I’m asking: When was the last time state supreme court districts were redrawn in Illinois?