Category: State
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Special election primary to be held in New Hampshire House district
A special election primary is being held on April 20 for the Merrimack 23 District of the New Hampshire House of Representatives. Christopher Lins and John Martin are running in the Republican primary. Muriel Hall is unopposed in the Democratic primary. The general election is taking place on June 8, and the winner of this…
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Filing deadline approaches in Michigan State Senate special elections
Major party candidates interested in running in the special elections for Michigan State Senate Districts 8 and 28 have until April 20 to file. For independent and minor party candidates, the filing deadline is Aug. 4. The primary election is scheduled for Aug. 3, and the general election is set for Nov. 2. The special…
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Two Democratic gubernatorial candidates in New Jersey disqualified from ballot; Gov. Murphy the lone remaining candidate
On April 13, Lisa McCormick and Roger Bacon were disqualified from the Democratic primary ballot for New Jersey governor. Gov. Phil Murphy (D) is the only remaining candidate on the ballot. Administrative Law Judge Jeffrey Rabin disqualified McCormick, ruling that none of the 1,951 petition signatures she submitted were valid. The New Jersey Democratic Party…
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Eight states have enacted laws limiting governors’ emergency powers since the start of the pandemic
In response to the coronavirus pandemic, governors and state agencies in all 50 states relied on emergency power authority to enact stay-at-home orders, mask mandates, and other restrictions on businesses and individuals. Since March 2020, 10 bills in eight states have been signed into law that are aimed at increasing legislative oversight of governors’ emergency powers.…
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New Mexico becomes the third state this year to approve recreational marijuana legalization
On April 12, New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) signed House Bill 2 (HB 2) to legalize recreational marijuana. HB 2 made New Mexico the third state to approve recreational marijuana legalization in the last two weeks. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) signed a marijuana legalization bill on March 31, and, on April…
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State legislators passed restrictions on the initiative process in three states and are considering ballot measure law changes in several others
At least 123 legislative proposals concerning ballot initiatives, veto referendums, referrals, local ballot measures, and recall were introduced in the 2021 legislative sessions of 34 states. At least eight had been approved so far. Here are some of the most notable changes to ballot measure law passed and proposed in 2021: The Utah Legislature passed…
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Pennsylvania’s May 18 primary ballot will feature four ballot measures, the most since 1981
At the primary election on May 18, 2021, Pennsylvania voters will decide four ballot measures alongside legislative special elections, municipal and school district elections, and judicial elections. It is the most measures on a Pennsylvania ballot since 1981. During the last two decades, the average number of measures on the ballot in Pennsylvania per year…
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March 2021 partisan composition of state legislative seats — 54.3% Republicans and 44.9% Democrats
According to March’s partisan count of the 7,383 state legislators across the United States, 54.27% of all state legislators are Republicans, and 44.91% are Democrats. Ballotpedia tallies the partisan balance of state legislatures, or which political party holds the majority of the seats in each chamber, at the end of every month. Republicans control 61…
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Special election to be held in Connecticut House district
Voters will decide a special election for District 112 of the Connecticut House of Representatives on April 13. Nicholas Kapoor (D), Tony Scott (R), and William Furrier (Independent Party) are running in the general election. The winner will serve until January 2023. The seat became vacant after the resignation of J.P. Sredzinski (R) on February…