Category: Federal
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Special election approaches for Georgia’s 5th Congressional District
The special general election for Georgia’s 5th Congressional District is on September 29, 2020. A runoff election is scheduled for December 1. If no candidate wins a majority of the vote in September, the top-two vote recipients will advance to the runoff. Seven candidates are competing in the special election: • Robert Franklin (D)…
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Debate over federal aid to states in response to the coronavirus pandemic
Coronavirus-related business closures and job losses reduced state income and sales tax revenues. State budget shortfalls resulting from lost tax revenue are projected to total between $41 billion and $110 billion in fiscal year 2020. In FY 2021, shortfalls are projected between $121 billion and $290 billion. Between March and August 2020, Congress and President…
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Federal judge finds Pennsylvania’s COVID-19 orders unconstitutional
On September 14, 2020, Judge William Stickman IV, of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, struck down some of Penn. Gov. Tom Wolf’s (D) COVID-19 orders as violations of rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. Various Pennsylvania counties, businesses, and elected officials brought the lawsuit County of Butler v. Wolf, which…
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No current U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals vacancies
Seventeen U.S. Court of Appeals judgeships were vacant when President Trump was inaugurated on January 20, 2017. Today, there are no U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals vacancies. According to the Administrative Office of U.S. Courts, no U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals judges have announced their intent to leave active judicial status during the remainder of…
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Federal Register weekly update: Lowest final rule total since first week of January
The Federal Register is a daily journal of federal government activity that includes presidential documents, proposed and final rules, and public notices. It is a common measure of an administration’s regulatory activity. From September 7 to September 11, the Federal Register grew by 1,112 pages for a year-to-date total of 56,470 pages. Over the same…
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All candidates in Michigan’s 8th Congressional District election complete Ballotpedia’s Candidate Connection survey
Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D), Paul Junge (R), and Joe Hartman (L) are running in the election for Michigan’s 8th Congressional District. Voters can now read Candidate Connection survey responses from all three candidates. Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey so voters can discover what motivates them on political and…
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Major party candidates for Congress elections, 2016-2020
As of September 10, 2020, 3,169 major party candidates filed to run for U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives. For U.S. Senate, 519 candidates filed with the Federal Election Commission (FEC). Of those, 402—199 Democrats and 203 Republicans—are from one of the two major political parties. • In 2018, 529 candidates filed to run…
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U.S. Senate confirms two U.S. District Court nominees
The U.S. Senate confirmed Christy Wiegand to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania and Brett Ludwig to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin. The Western District of Pennsylvania and the Eastern District of Wisconsin are two of 94 U.S. District Courts. They are the general trial courts…
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Three candidates in Michigan’s U.S. Senate election complete Ballotpedia’s Candidate Connection survey
Incumbent Gary Peters (D), John James (R), and Marcia Squier (Green Party) completed Ballotpedia’s Candidate Connection survey. Peters was first elected in 2014 when he won his election by a margin of 13.3 percentage points. James challenged Michigan’s other U.S. Senator, Debbie Stabenow (D), in 2018 and lost by a margin of 6.5 percentage points.…
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Mowers wins Republican primary in New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District
Matt Mowers won the five-candidate Republican primary in New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District. With 38% of precincts reporting, Mowers had received 61% of the vote and Matt Mayberry was second with 27%. Mowers has worked as the executive director of the New Hampshire Republican State Committee, an official in the 2016 Trump presidential campaign, and…