An early look at election administration state legislation activity

By

Ballotpedia staff

Welcome to the Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, Brew. 

By: Lara Bonatesta

Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:

  1. An early look at election administration state legislation activity
  2. Five statewide ballot measures have been certified so far for 2025, 10 have been certified for 2026
  3. There were 14 federal judicial confirmations and three new vacancies in December

An early look at election administration state legislation activity

As we head into the third week of 2025, about half of the state legislatures around the country have begun their 2025 legislative sessions. While the rest prepare to convene, let’s take a look at the election administration legislation lawmakers are considering in 2025.

There are 465 election-related bills this year, including bills carried over from the previous year. At this point in 2023, we were following 628 bills.

Four bills passed out of their state legislatures last week, including three in Massachusetts and one in Ohio. To see all enacted bills, click here. One bill passed during the same week in 2024, two passed in 2023, and two passed in 2022. 

 In Massachusetts, which has a Democratic trifecta: 

  • MA S2943: Establishes a town council-town manager form of government in the town of Southbridge and provides for the initiative, referendum, and recall of elected officials by voters.
  • MA H5098: Amends the City of Lawrence School Board’s governing structure, including requiring the board to have three elected members and outlining vacancy procedures. 
  • MA H4818: Proposes a ballot question to the voters of the town of Lancaster to decide whether or not to increase the membership of the Select Board from three to five members.

In Ohio, which has a Republican trifecta:

  • OH HB315: Requires voter approval to change a township’s name and provides related language for the ballot. The law also requires at least one of the following voter notification methods to be used for any township election: publication in a newspaper, placement on an official public notice website, or placement on the township’s website or social media account (instead of only requiring notification to be placed in a newspaper).

Here is some other notable legislation that lawmakers are considering:

  • On Jan. 6, supporters of a Maine voter ID requirement submitted more than 170,000 signatures to put the initiative on the ballot this fall. Maine’s initiative process is indirect, which means initiative petitions first go to the legislature and only go to the ballot if the legislature rejects or does not act on them. The measure would require voters to show a photo ID in person at the polls or when requesting an absentee ballot.
  • On Jan. 7, Tennessee lawmakers introduced a bill requiring election administrators to verify voters’ eligibility when they register to vote. The bill would require administrators to coordinate with the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation to verify registrants’ citizenship status and felony conviction record.
  • On Jan. 8, the Wisconsin Senate approved a legislatively referred constitutional amendment that would add the state’s voter ID requirements to its constitution. The Wisconsin Assembly will now consider the proposal.

No bills passed both chambers of any legislature, and governors vetoed no bills. No bills were vetoed during this period in 2024, 2023, or 2023. To see all bills awaiting gubernatorial action and their full summaries, click here. To see all vetoed bills, click here.

Click here to see the 2025 bills we’re tracking, and click here to see a list of 2025 state legislative session dates. A version of this story appeared in Ballotpedia’s Ballot Bulletin on Jan. 10. 

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Five statewide ballot measures have been certified so far for 2025, 10 have been certified for 2026

The number of certified ballot measures for 2025 and 2026 is currently trending above the long-term averages for each of those years.

Five statewide ballot measures have been certified for the 2025 ballot in two states— Louisiana and Ohio. Since 2010, an average of three measures have been certified for this point for elections in odd-numbered years. 

Ten statewide ballot measures have been certified for the 2026 ballot in eight states. Since 2010, an average of five measures have been certified at this point for elections in even-numbered years.

Here’s an update on the ballot measure activity during the past two weeks.

Two ballot measures were certified in Ohio and Wyoming.

Signatures have been submitted and are pending verification for one indirect initiative in Maine and two in Nevada. 

As these citizen-initiated measures are indirect, each state’s legislature has the option to pass them outright. Otherwise, with enough valid signatures, voters will decide these ballot initiatives.

The most recent signature deadline for citizen initiatives was on Jan. 3 in Washington. Signatures were not submitted for any proposed initiatives.

The next signature deadline is Jan. 23 in Maine. In addition to the voter ID initiative, a campaign is collecting signatures for an indirect initiative related to extreme risk protection orders and firearms.

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There were 14 federal judicial confirmations and three new vacancies in December

As of Jan. 1, the Senate had confirmed 235 of President Joe Biden’s (D) judicial nominees, including 187 district court judges, 45 appeals court judges, two international trade judges, and one Supreme Court justice. Eight nominations were returned to the president at the sine die adjournment of the Senate on Jan. 3, and the Senate officially changed party hands when the 119th Congress convened, with Republicans assuming a 53 – 47 majority. 

Biden’s 235 judicial appointments are the most in a single term since President Jimmy Carter (D), who made 262 appointments. 

There were 39 vacancies out of 870 active Article III judicial positions as of Jan 1., a total vacancy percentage of 4.5%. In November, the vacancy percentage was 4.8%. Biden inherited 46 Article III lifetime federal judicial vacancies when he was inaugurated in 2021. President Donald Trump (R) inherited 108 vacancies when he was inaugurated in 2017.

Since our last update on judicial confirmations and vacancies on Dec. 10, the U.S. Senate confirmed 14 of Biden’s nominees to Article III seats, and three judges assumed senior status, creating vacancies.

Biden appointees confirmed in December are:

Senior status is a classification for federal judges who are semi-retired. The three judges who assumed senior status were:

The following chart shows the number of federal judicial vacancies each month during the Biden administration from Jan. 20, 2021, to Jan. 1, 2025.

Two of 179 U.S. Appeals Court positions are vacant, and 37 of 677 U.S. District Court positions are vacant. None of the nine U.S. Court of International Trade positions are vacant, and the nine-member U.S. Supreme Court does not have any vacancies.  

A vacancy occurs when a judge resigns, retires, takes senior status, or dies. Article III judges, who serve on courts authorized by Article III of the Constitution, are appointed for life terms. 

Biden did not nominate any new judges to Article III seats in December. Biden has nominated 252 individuals to Article III positions. 

Ballotpedia publishes a monthly federal vacancy count report detailing vacancies, nominations, and confirmations to all United States Article III federal courts. This month’s report includes data from Dec. 2, 2024, to Dec. 31, 2024.

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