Iowa becomes the sixth state to ban ranked-choice voting this year
On June 2, Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) signed House File 954 (HF 954), making Iowa the sixth state to ban ranked-choice voting (RCV) this year, among other changes to Iowa’s election laws.
Five other states—Arkansas, Kansas, North Dakota, West Virginia, and Wyoming—have banned RCV this year. This year is now tied with 2024 for the most bans adopted in a single year.
In total, 17 states have banned RCV. Florida and Tennessee were the first to do so in 2022. All but two of the 17 states with bans adopted them with a Republican trifecta in control of state government. The other two states—Kansas and Kentucky—adopted bans with divided state governments. Both states adopted them with a Republican-controlled state legislature and a Democratic governor. Kansas and Kentucky are also the only states where one party has a veto-proof majority in the legislature, and the other holds the governor’s office.
Nevada Governor vetoes drop box bill
On May 22, Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo (R) vetoed AB 306, a bill that would have increased the availability of mail ballot drop boxes and added new security requirements for maintaining them.
Under current law, county clerks must make a ballot drop box available at every polling location while that polling place is open, including early voting locations. AB 306 would have required clerks to make drop boxes available between the end of early voting and the day before Election Day.
The bill would have tied the number of drop boxes to county population, requiring at least 10 drop boxes in counties with more than 700,000 people and at least five in counties with more than 100,000 people.
The Democratic-sponsored legislation passed the Nevada Legislature largely along party lines. One Republican in the state Assembly voted for the bill. Nevada has a divided government.
Nevada is an all-mail voting state. Twenty-eight states explicitly permit voters to return completed ballots to a drop box, while 12 states either explicitly prohibit them or do not include them as a valid means to return a ballot. Of those 12 states, all but one — North Carolina, which does not list drop boxes as an approved return method — have Republican trifectas in control of state government.
Kentucky state senator is the second state legislator to change party affiliation in 2025
On May 30, Kentucky Sen. Robin Webb announced that she was changing her partisan affiliation from Democrat to Republican.
Following Webb’s announcement, Republicans have a 32-6 supermajority in the Kentucky Senate. According to FOX 56-TV, this is the largest supermajority the party has ever held in the chamber. Republicans have had a majority in the chamber since 2000.
Kentucky is one of 12 states with a divided government, and one of two states – the other being Kansas– with a veto-proof majority in the legislature and a governor of the opposite party. Republicans also have an 80-20 majority in the House. Governor Andy Beshear is a Democrat.
Since 1994, 192 state legislators have switched parties. This includes 54 state senators and 138 state representatives.
Ninety-two state lawmakers switched from Democrat to Republican, including 27 senators and 65 representatives. Twenty-five state lawmakers switched from Republican to Democrat, including eight senators and 17 representatives.
President Donald Trump issued 14 executive orders in May
President Donald Trump (R) issued 14 executive orders in May, bringing his total to 157.
In May, Trump also signed fewer executive orders than in any other month in his second presidential term. He issued 46 executive orders in January 2025, more than any other month of his second presidential term.
Through the end of May, Trump issued the 11th-most executive orders among all U.S. presidents, with 377 orders across his two terms in office.
