Category: State
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Rhode Island closes courts to non-emergency matters through May 17
On April 8, 2020, the Rhode Island state judiciary ordered that all courts would close to non-emergency matters through May 17, due to the on-going coronavirus pandemic. The order also extends to eviction proceedings, and precludes new filings or hearings from being heard before May 17. Ballotpedia is tracking how state courts are responding to…
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Georgia postpones primary a second time, to June 9, 2020
Today, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) announced the postponement of Georgia’s statewide and presidential primary elections to June 9, 2020. The primary runoff has been postponed to August 11, 2020. The state had previously postponed its presidential primary to May 19, 2020, the original date of its statewide primary. To date, 20 states have postponed…
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Oregon ends its school year
On Wednesday afternoon, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown (D) ordered schools to remain closed for the rest of the academic year. Before the announcement, schools were scheduled to be closed through April 28. So far, 16 states have closed schools through the remainder of the academic year: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Nebraska,…
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5,608 major party candidates filed for 2020 state legislative elections
Compared to this point in 2018, state legislative elections in 2020 are less competitive with fewer open seats, fewer incumbents facing primary challenges, and fewer primaries, overall. Every week, we compile the latest numbers on state legislative candidates across the country. As of April 8, we’ve collected post-filing deadline data in 20 states. In 2020,…
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Coronavirus daily update: April 8, 2020
As part of Ballotpedia’s coverage on the coronavirus pandemic, we are compiling a daily summary of major changes in the world of politics, government, and elections happening each day. Here is the summary of changes for April 8, 2020. Federal responses Read more: Political responses to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, 2020 Dr. Anthony Fauci, the…
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New Jersey, Virginia postpone primary elections
On April 8, 2020, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy (D) and Virginia Governor Ralph Northam (D) issued executive orders postponing their states’ respective primary elections. The New Jersey primary, originally scheduled for June 2, 2020, has been postponed to July 7, 2020. The Virginia primary, originally scheduled for June 9, 2020, has been postponed to…
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Herbert appoints new Utah Commissioner of Agriculture and Food
Utah Gov. Gary Herbert (R) appointed Utah state representative Logan Wilde (R) to serve as Utah’s commissioner of agriculture and food on March 26. Wilde will fill the vacancy created when commissioner Kerry Gibson (R) resigned on January 14, 2020. Gibson resigned to run for Utah’s 1st Congressional District. The commissioner oversees the Utah Department…
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Winners of three PA House special elections sworn into office
The winners of three special elections in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives held last month were sworn into office on April 6. The new representatives who assumed office are: • Rep. Tim Bonner (R-Mercer/Butler) • Rep. Eric Davanzo (R-Westmoreland) • Rep. Kathleen “K.C.” Tomlinson (R-Bucks) Bonner represents District 8, which former Rep. Tim Nesbit vacated…
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Alaska Supreme Court Justice Craig Stowers announces early retirement, anticipates wave of mandatory retirements
Thirty-two states have constitutionally mandated retirement ages for state supreme court justices. Twenty of those states mandate retirement at 70 years of age. Alaska is one of them, and four of the five justices on the Alaska Supreme Court will be required to retire between February 2023 and February 2025. Regarding the upcoming turnover of…
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Kemp appoints superior court judge to Georgia Court of Appeals
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) appointed Superior Court Judge Verda Colvin to serve on the Georgia Court of Appeals on March 26. Colvin was one of two judges recently appointed to fill vacancies on the appeals court. The other vacancy was created when Carla McMillian was appointed to the Georgia Supreme Court. Gov. Nathan Deal…