Welcome to the Tuesday, February 20, Brew.
By: Samuel Wonacott
Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:
- Wisconsin’s spring primaries are today—here is what’s on the ballot
- Fifty members of Congress have announced they will not seek re-election—more than at this point in previous cycles
- Candidate filing deadlines for the next two weeks
Wisconsin’s spring primaries are today—here is what’s on the ballot
This year, voters in Wisconsin will have four statewide election dates on which to cast ballots, and the first is today, Feb. 20. Today’s elections will decide the state’s spring primaries. General elections—as well as the presidential primaries—will follow on April 2. Each year, Wisconsin holds spring elections. Unlike last year, however, there is no state supreme court seat up for election. Last year’s race was the most expensive judicial election in U.S. history.
Later this year, when the weather has gone from snowy to sticky, the state will hold fall elections, with primaries on Aug. 13 and general elections on Nov. 5.
Let’s take a look at what’s on the ballot today.
There are 422 candidates running in 105 local primaries in counties small and large (including Milwaukee County, the state’s largest). Candidates are running for a range of offices, including circuit court judgeships and school board seats. All offices on the ballot are officially nonpartisan.
Only contested primaries—where the number of candidates is more than double the number of seats up for election—are on the ballot on Feb. 20.
Here is how the numbers break down:
- 58 seats on local legislative offices (including city councils, town supervisors, etc.)
- 44 school board seats
- 28 county supervisor seats
- Nine mayoralties
- Four judgeships
The winners of these races, and those for offices that did not need to hold primaries, will all be on the general election ballot on April 2.
Wisconsin is one of three states where Ballotpedia is covering all school board elections. Forty-four seats are up for election on Feb. 20 in 23 school districts. All of the state’s 420 districts will hold at least one election.
Ballotpedia covered all Wisconsin school board elections in 2023 (and nine other states), allowing us to provide a complete picture—and lots of analysis—of the state’s school board elections and the endorsements organizations and individuals made in those races. We covered these elections in Hall Pass, our weekly education newsletter. Subscribe here for updates on school board elections and education policy throughout 2024.
- In 2023, there were 954 school board seats up for election in all 421 of the state’s school districts.
- In the Feb. 21 spring primaries, 149 school board candidates ran for 43 seats in 38 districts.
- Of the 954 school board seats up for election, 690 incumbents (72%) ran for re-election, leaving 264 seats (28%) open. Open seats are guaranteed to newcomers.
- In Wisconsin, 58% of school board races in 2023 were uncontested.
The following chart shows how Wisconsin’s percentage of uncontested races compares to that in the nine other states where we covered all school board elections.
You can find our full analysis of Wisconsin’s 2023 school board elections here.
In non-school board news, Milwaukee, the state’s largest city, will also hold a primary for mayor on Feb. 20. Ballotpedia will cover at least 39 mayoral elections this year, and Milwaukee’s primary is the first. Incumbent Cavalier Johnson, a Democrat, is running against Ieshuh Griffin and David King. Johnson was first elected in 2022.
Learn more about Wisconsin’s April 20 primaries and April 2 general elections at the link below.
Fifty members of Congress have announced they will not seek re-election this year—more than at this point in previous cycles
Fifty members of Congress have announced they will not seek re-election this year— more than at this point in previous cycles.
Since Jan. 9, six House members—five Republicans and one Democrat—have said they aren’t running for re-election.
Forty-eight members of Congress had announced their retirements at this point in the 2022 election cycle, 39 had in the 2020 cycle, and 46 had in the 2018 cycle. Since 2014, an average of 6.4 additional members in both chambers have announced their retirements after this date.
House
Looking at all representatives who are not seeking re-election in 2024:
- 13—three Republicans and nine Democrats—are running for the U.S. Senate.
- Two—one Democrat and one Republican—are running for state attorney general.
- Two—one Democrat and one Republican—are running for governor.
- One Democrat is running for President of the United States.
- 26—11 Democrats and 15 Republicans—are retiring from public office.
When comparing the 43 House retirements to the last three cycles, there were 42 House retirements at this point in 2022, 35 at this point in 2020, and 44 at this point in 2018.
Senate
On the Senate side, seven incumbents are not seeking re-election— already more than the previous three election cycles. Five of the retirees are Democrats and two are Republicans:
Six senators are retiring from public office. U.S. Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.) is running for governor of Indiana.
Six U.S. senators did not seek re-election in 2022, four didn’t in 2020, and two didn’t in 2018.
Candidate filing deadlines for the next two weeks
Let’s take a look at the important candidate filing deadlines for the rest of February and the beginning of March.
In order to qualify for the ballot, candidates must meet a variety of filing requirements and deadlines. These regulations, known as ballot access laws, are set at the state level and apply to candidates running for state or federal offices.
Four states have upcoming candidate filing deadlines in the next two weeks. The map and bulleted list below show which states have candidate filing deadlines scheduled between now and March 5.
- Alabama: March 5 (statewide unaffiliated candidate filing deadline).
- Nebraska: Mar. 1 (statewide non-incumbent candidate filing deadline).
- North Carolina: March 5 (statewide unaffiliated filing deadline).
- Utah: Mar. 5 (presidential unaffiliated candidate filing deadline).
Looking back
February has been a busy month for candidates. The bulleted list below shows which states had candidate filing deadlines in the past two weeks.
- California: Feb. 13 (write-in candidate filing deadline).
- Connecticut (presidential primary): Feb. 9 (presidential candidate filing deadline).
- Delaware (presidential primary): Feb. 2 (presidential candidate filing deadline).
- Indiana: Feb. 9 (statewide candidate filing deadline, including presidential).
- Maryland: Feb. 9 (statewide candidate filing deadline, including presidential).
- Nebraska: Feb. 15 (statewide incumbent candidate filing deadline).
- New Mexico: Feb. 6 (incumbent filing deadline for candidates seeking pre-primary designation, including presidential).
- Pennsylvania: Feb. 13 (statewide candidate filing deadline, including presidential).
- Puerto Rico: Feb. 15 (territory-wide candidate filing deadline).
Looking ahead March will be an even busier month due to the number of filing deadlines for primaries later this year. We’ll bring you all the information you need to know to run in those contests as well, so stay tuned!