Author: Ballotpedia staff

  • Arkansas leads in anti-ESG laws

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    In this week’s edition of Economy and Society: Around the world EU member states ask for cuts to deforestation rules What’s the story? Eighteen of the European Union’s 27 member states sent a letter July 7 asking the EU to scale back its upcoming deforestation rules, set to take effect in December. The countries argued…

  • Vermont, Ohio, North Carolina, and Oregon enact K-12 cellphone bans

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    Welcome to the Tuesday, July 8, 2025, Brew.  By: Lara Bonatesta Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day: Vermont, Ohio, North Carolina, and Oregon enact K-12 cellphone bans  As part of our ongoing coverage of education policy, we’ve been following state legislation to ban cellphone use in K-12 schools.  Here’s the…

  • Robe & Gavel: Federal Judicial Vacancy Count released for July 2025

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    Robe & Gavel: Federal Judicial Vacancy Count released for July 2025 Welcome to the July 7 edition of Robe & Gavel, Ballotpedia’s newsletter about the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) and other judicial happenings around the U.S. There are days we live as if death were nowhere in the background; from joy to…

  • After 2023 veto, Arizona Legislature sends drug cartel terrorism designation law directly to voters as ballot measure

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    Welcome to the Monday, July 7, Brew.  By: Briana Ryan Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day: After 2023 veto, Arizona Legislature sends drug cartel terrorism designation law directly to voters as a ballot measure On Nov. 3, 2026, Arizona voters will decide on a ballot measure that would define drug…

  • 70% of last June’s elections were uncontested

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    Throughout June, Ballotpedia covered 900 elections in 20 states, 70% of which were uncontested. That’s up from May, when 43% of the 2,892 covered were uncontested. Ballotpedia defines an uncontested election as one where the number of candidates running is less than or equal to the number of seats up for election. This analysis does…

  • Vermont, Ohio, North Carolina, Oregon enact K-12 cellphone bans

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    What’s the story? Vermont, Ohio, North Carolina, and Oregon have all enacted statewide bans on cellphone use in K-12 schools since June 27. What’s the background? 25 states have enacted cellphone bans or limits in K-12 schools, and at least 17 states have adopted cellphone bans or limits so far in 2025. Three states require…

  • Hall Pass: Your Ticket to Understanding School Board Politics, Edition #163

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    Welcome to Hall Pass, a newsletter written to keep you plugged into the conversations driving  school board governance, the politics surrounding it, and education policy.  In today’s edition, you’ll find: Reply to this email to share reactions or story ideas! On the issues: The debate over partisan school board elections In this section, we curate…

  • Oregon governor signs ESG investing law

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    In this week’s edition of Economy and Society: Around the world EU regulators propose ESG stress test standards What’s the story? Three EU financial regulators—the European Banking Authority, the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority, and the European Securities and Markets Authority—have proposed new rules requiring national banking and insurance regulators in member states to…

  • This year sees fewest officials facing recall at midyear since 2020

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    Welcome to the Tuesday, July 1, Brew.  By: Briana Ryan Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day: This year sees fewest officials facing recall at midyear since 2020 Twice a year, we release reports on recall efforts nationwide for all state and local elected offices. Today, we’ll explore our mid-year 2025…

  • ICYMI: Top stories of the week

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    Voters in one of the 31 states with mandatory judicial retirement ages—Louisiana—will decide whether to raise their age On April 18, 2026, Louisiana voters will decide on an amendment to increase the judicial retirement age. Currently, the age is 70, and if a judge turns 70 during their term, they may finish the rest of…