Category: State
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Massachusetts, Ohio end face-covering requirements
Two states ended statewide public mask requirements for vaccinated and unvaccinated people between May 29 and June 4. Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker (R) ended the statewide mask mandate on May 29, along with other COVID-19 restrictions on businesses and individuals. The state will still require masks in state offices open to the public, schools and…
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Amy Beard appointed commissioner of Indiana’s Department of Insurance
Amy Beard assumed office on June 2 as commissioner of the Indiana Department of Insurance. Governor Eric Holcomb (R) appointed Beard to the position in May to replace outgoing commissioner Stephen Robertson. Robertson announced in April he would resign as commissioner, effective June 1. Beard has worked at Indiana’s Department of Insurance since 2013, serving…
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Ruth Ruggero Hughs resigns as Texas Secretary of State
Ruth Ruggero Hughs resigned as Texas secretary of state effective May 31, after the Nominations Committee of the Texas State Senate did not take up her nomination for another term. Gov. Greg Abbott (R) appointed Hughs on August 19, 2019, to succeed David Whitley after he did not receive enough confirmation votes from the state…
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Noah Valenstein resigns as secretary of Florida Department of Environmental Protection
Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Noah Valenstein stepped down from his position on June 4. He had led the agency for over four years since former Gov. Rick Scott (R) appointed him on May 23, 2017. Shawn Hamilton, the department’s deputy secretary for land and recreation, will take over as interim secretary. In his…
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May 2021 partisan composition of state legislative seats: 54.3% Republicans, 44.9% Democrats
Ballotpedia’s May partisan count of state legislative seats found that 54.30% of state legislators are Republicans and 44.93% are Democrats. At the end of every month, Ballotpedia tallies the partisan balance of state legislatures, which refers to which political party holds a majority of seats in each chamber. Republicans currently control 61 chambers, while Democrats…
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Voters have until June 8 to remove signatures from recall petitions of California Gov. Newsom
The next major deadline in the recall campaign against California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) is June 8. Voters have until this date to request to have their signatures removed from the recall petitions. At that point, if at least 1,495,709 signatures remain, the recall election will be certified and proceed to a budgeting and scheduling…
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Voters to decide state legislative primaries in New Jersey, Virginia on June 8
Two states—New Jersey and Virginia—are holding state legislative elections this year. Democratic and Republican voters in each state will be selecting nominees for these races on June 8. In New Jersey, all 120 state legislative seats are up for election: 80 in the General Assembly and 40 in the state Senate. Ninety percent of incumbents,…
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Redistricting review: Illinois lawmakers approve state legislative, supreme court maps
Last week, Illinois lawmakers approved revised maps for the Illinois state Senate, the Illinois House of Representatives, and the Illinois Supreme Court. Both sets of maps were approved along party lines, with all Democrats voting ‘yea’ and all Republicans present voting ‘nay.’ In Illinois, the General Assembly is responsible for redistricting. Maps are subject to…
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Special election to be held on June 8 in New Hampshire House district
A special election is being held on June 8 for the Merrimack 23 District of the New Hampshire House of Representatives. Muriel Hall (D) and Christopher Lins (R) are running in the general election. The winner of this special election will serve until December 2022. The seat became vacant after Samantha Fox (D) resigned on…
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Looking back at government responses to the coronavirus pandemic, June 1-5, 2020
Although the first case of COVID-19 in the U.S. was confirmed on Jan. 21, 2020, it wasn’t until March when the novel coronavirus upended life for most Americans. Throughout the year, states issued stay-at-home orders, closed schools, restricted travel, issued mask mandates, and changed election dates. Many of those policies remain in place today. Here…