Author: Mercedes Yanora

  • Abortion, public safety, and the cost of living: three central themes in race for governor of Washington

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    Bob Ferguson (D) and Dave Reichert (R) are running for governor of Washington on November 5, 2024. They advanced from the top-two primary on August 6, 2024, with Ferguson receiving 44.9% of the vote and Reichert 27.5%. Twenty-eight candidates ran in the primary. Incumbent Jay Inslee (D) did not run for re-election. There are three…

  • New Hampshire gubernatorial election rated a Toss-Up

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    Welcome to the Friday, Oct. 11, Brew.  By: Mercedes Yanora Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day: New Hampshire gubernatorial election rated a Toss-Up  With 25 days to go until the Fall election, we’ll be bringing you coverage of the most compelling elections—the battlegrounds we expect to have a meaningful effect…

  • Final (maybe?) ballot measure certification count – 160

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    Welcome to the Friday, Oct. 4, Brew.  By: Mercedes Yanora Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day: Final (maybe?) ballot measure certification count – 160 Arkansas Secretary of State John Thurston (R) invalidated Arkansas Issue 3 on Sept. 30. The measure would have expanded certain provisions of the state’s medical marijuana…

  • Ballotpedia releases 14th Annual State Legislative Competitiveness Report

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    Welcome to the Friday, Sept. 27, Brew.  By: Mercedes Yanora Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day: Exclusive – Ballotpedia releases 14th Annual State Legislative Competitiveness Report  In the Sept. 20 edition of the Brew, we offered a sneak peek into our state legislative competitiveness work with a story highlighting major…

  • Previewing one of the 73 major party U.S. House rematches

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    Welcome to the Thursday, Sept. 26, Brew.  By: Mercedes Yanora Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day: Previewing one of the 73 major party U.S. House rematches With 40 days to go until the Fall election, we’ll be bringing you coverage of the most compelling elections—the battlegrounds we expect to have…

  • Michigan has most contested elections for 8th election cycle in a row

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    For the eighth election cycle in a row, Michigan has the highest percentage of contested state legislative elections at 99%. The lowest rate in the state, since Ballotpedia began gathering data in 2010, was 98% in 2010 and 2012. The highest rate was 100% in 2014, 2016, and 2018. Michigan’s high contested election rate is…

  • Ranked-choice voting roundup: ballot measure records and legislation reviews

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    Welcome to the Thursday, Aug. 29, Brew.  By: Mercedes Yanora Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day: Ranked-choice voting roundup: ballot measure records and legislation reviews Five states—Alaska, Idaho, Missouri, Nevada, and Oregon—have certified ballot measures for Nov. 5 related to adopting, repealing, or pre-empting ranked-choice voting (RCV). This is the…

  • Lowest percentage of contested state legislative primaries this year – tied with 2014

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    This year there are 1,742 contested primaries, meaning 16% of all primaries are contested. This percentage is tied with 2014 (16%) as the lowest percentage of contested primaries since Ballotpedia began gathering data in 2010. Do these historic lows apply to all states, though? More on that below. Looking at the data for partisan trends,…

  • Incumbent Tom Suozzi (D) and Michael LiPetri Jr. (R) campaign on local issues in race for New York’s 3rd Congressional District

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    Incumbent Tom Suozzi (D), Michael LiPetri Jr. (R), Matthew Nappo (independent), and Jacob Soto (independent) are running in the general election for New York’s 3rd Congressional District on Nov. 5. According to AP’s Anthony Izaguirre, Long Island voters, including those in the 3rd District, “have an outsized role in choosing which party controls Congress. Democrats…

  • First time since 2010 that a state has over 65% of its incumbents contested in primaries

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    This year, the states with the highest percentages of incumbents contested in primaries are Wyoming (65.6%), South Dakota (60.9%), Nebraska (50.0%), Idaho (49.5%), Arizona (45.7%), and California (45.5%). Four of these states have Republican trifectas, one has a Democratic trifecta, and the other has a divided government. A primary is contested when there are more…