The California State Senate passed a constitutional amendment on Feb. 1 that would eliminate the successor election when a state officer is recalled, thereby leaving the office vacant until it is filled according to state law. For example, during the 2021 recall of Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) voters were asked the following two questions: The…
The Oregon Supreme Court ruled that nine Republican state senators and one independent who participated in a legislative walkout in May 2023 could not seek re-election under Measure 113—a 2022 ballot initiative that makes legislators ineligible to be re-elected to a subsequent term if they accrue 10 or more unexcused absences. On May 3, 2023,…
Ballotpedia has tracked nonbinding political party platform advisory questions in three states—Georgia, South Carolina, and Texas. Democratic and Republican parties have placed these questions on statewide ballots to gauge voters’ support for various policy proposals. All three states have open primaries, meaning that voters do not have to formally affiliate with a political party in…
The Texas Republican Party has placed 13 nonbinding advisory questions on the March 5 primary ballot. The Texas Democratic Party does not plan on placing any questions on primary ballots this year. The last time they did was in 2020. An advisory question is a type of ballot measure in which citizens vote on a…
Ballotpedia identified 21 states that have enacted laws addressing how legislators, secretaries of state, or other election officials write the question or description of a ballot measure. New York and North Dakota were the most recent states to do so in 2023. The New York State Legislature passed a law requiring that state ballot measure…
On Dec. 29, the Save Our Local Restaurants PAC withdrew a veto referendum from the Nov. 5, 2024, ballot that would have repealed California Assembly Bill 257 (AB 257). AB 257 was designed to establish a 10-member fast food council authorized to adopt a minimum wage for fast food restaurant employees not to exceed $22…
Texas registered voter turnout at the Nov. 7 constitutional amendment election was 14.4%—the highest since 2005 when it reached 18%. 2023 was six percentage points higher than 2021, which saw a turnout of 8.8%. This amounted to over a million more voters turning out for the election. Texas voters decided on 14 constitutional amendments on…
The California secretary of state reported on Dec. 13 that two California ballot initiatives campaigns had collected at least 25% of the required number of signatures needed to qualify for the ballot in 2024. Protect Patients Now, sponsored by the California Apartment Association, is gathering signatures for an initiated state statute to require healthcare providers…
Two versions of an initiative to require gas pump attendants in Oregon were filed in October and November. United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 555 filed the initiated state statutes. To qualify for the 2024 ballot, proponents need to collect 117,173 valid signatures by July 5, 2024. Michael Selvaggio, political director for UFCW Local…
Massachusetts ballot initiative campaigns related to education, psychedelics, tipped workers, app-based drivers, and state auditor responsibilities filed signatures with local clerks for the 2024 ballot. The deadline to file signatures with local clerks in order to qualify for the 2024 ballot was Nov. 22. Several campaigns related to education, psychedelics, tipped workers, app-based drivers, and…