Category: State
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Sixteen incumbents face challengers in Mississippi’s Senate primary
Sixteen incumbents in the 52-member Mississippi State Senate faced primary challengers on Aug. 8. As of Aug. 9, Sen. Philip Moran (R), of District 46, was the only incumbent defeated in the primary, while the race featuring Sen. Sarita Simmons (D), of District 13, was too close to call. Ballotpedia identified eight battleground primaries in…
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Brown defeats Newman in the Republican primary for the Northern District seat on the Mississippi Public Service Commission
Chris Brown defeated Tanner Newman in the August 8, 2023, Republican primary for the Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District. No Democrat is running in the district, so Brown is guaranteed to win the general election on Nov. 7. Incumbent Brandon Presley (D) is running for governor of Mississippi. According to DeSoto County News‘ Bob…
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All candidates for Tennessee House of Representatives District 51 complete Ballotpedia’s Candidate Connection survey
Both of the candidates running in the Sept. 14, 2023, special general election for Tennessee House of Representatives District 51 — Aftyn Behn (D) and David Hooven (R) — completed Ballotpedia’s Candidate Connection survey. These survey responses allow voters to hear directly from candidates about what motivates them to run for office. Here are the candidates’ responses to…
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Two new candidates declare in New York
Two new candidates declared their intent to run for state-level offices in New York between July 31 and Aug. 6, according to Ballotpedia’s ongoing tracking. This was two more candidates than the prior week. Both candidates are running for the state legislature in 2023. One of those candidates is a Democrat and one is a…
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Wisconsin governor vetoes unemployment insurance changes
Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D) on August 4 vetoed five bills related to unemployment insurance. The bills in the package included the following proposals: Broadening the definition of employment misconduct that would disqualify a fired person from claiming unemployment benefits. Requiring the Department of Workforce Development to create a process through which employers can disclose…
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54.94% of state legislatures are Republican, 44.35% Democratic
At the end of July 2023, 54.94% of all state legislatures in the United States are Republican while 44.35% are Democratic. There are 7,386 state legislative seats in the country. Democrats hold 853 state Senate seats and 2,423 state House seats, gaining two seats overall since last month. Republicans hold 1,110 state Senate seats and…
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Alabama’s 2022 state legislative elections saw highest percentage of seats with no major party competition
In the 2022 state legislative election cycle, Alabama saw the highest percentage of seats with no major party competition in the country. Major party competition exists when a ballot contains a candidate from one or both major parties and does not account for minor party candidacy. Oklahoma came in second with 71.2% of races lacking…
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State legislative primaries were most competitive in 2022 out of past four election cycles
Primaries for state legislative incumbents in states with trifectas have become more competitive since 2016. A trifecta happens when one political party holds the governorship and majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. In 2016, the percentage of state legislative incumbents facing a primary challenger was 20.6%. In 2018, it was 21.9%, and in…
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Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez resigns from Colorado House
Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez (D) resigned from the Colorado House of Representatives on Aug. 4, 2023, to serve as an at-large member of the Denver City Council. Gonzales-Gutierrez most recently ran for re-election to the District 4 House seat in 2022, winning with 83% of the vote. She was later elected to the Denver City Council on April…
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Election legislation roundup: New Jersey State Legislature
As of July 30, members of the New Jersey State Legislature, which includes the New Jersey General Assembly and the New Jersey State Senate, have passed two bills related to election administration since the beginning of the year. Of those two bills, two have been enacted, with one being enacted during the week of July…