Category: State

  • 8,413 major party candidates filed for 2020 state legislative elections

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    In 2020, 3,952 state legislative seats are up for regular election in those states, compared to 3,925 in 2018. 8,413 major party candidates—4,047 Democrats and 4,366 Republicans—have filed to run for state legislature in 32 states where filing deadlines have passed, compared to 8,900—4,486 Democrats and 4,414 Republicans—in 2018. Elections in open seats tend to…

  • Candidate filing period to end for state legislative offices in Rhode Island

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    The filing deadline to run for state legislative offices in Rhode Island will pass on June 24. The primary is scheduled for September 8, 2020, and the general election will be held on November 3, 2020. In Rhode Island, prospective candidates may file for the following offices: State Senate (38 seats) State House (75 seats)…

  • Maryland and Florida see leadership changes in ALJ corps

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    Leadership changes occurred this week in Maryland and Florida’s administrative law judge (ALJ) corps. The governor’s power to appoint head ALJs in these and similar states helps the executive direct and oversee state administrative activity. Maryland Governor Larry Hogan (R) on June 9 appointed Chung Ki Pak to serve as the state’s new chief ALJ.…

  • Survey reveals state limits on who can challenge agency actions in court

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    A Ballotpedia survey of all 50 state constitutions and administrative procedure acts (APAs) revealed that 42 states place limits on access to state courts to challenge agency actions. For this survey, Ballotpedia set out to learn whether states limited who could challenge the outcome of agency adjudication actions in court. Most states allowed any aggrieved…

  • Colorado to vote on repeal of Gallagher Amendment

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    The Colorado Legislature referred a constitutional amendment to the 2020 ballot that would repeal the Gallagher Amendment of 1982. The Gallagher Amendment limits the residential and non-residential property tax assessment rates so that residential property tax revenue equals 45% of the total share of state property tax revenue and non-residential property tax revenue equals 55%…

  • Voters in California will decide a ballot initiative to enact new dialysis clinic requirements

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    Californians will vote on a ballot initiative related to dialysis clinics for the second general election in a row unless the proposal is withdrawn. On June 15, the office of California Secretary of State Alex Padilla announced that enough signatures were collected for a dialysis clinic-related ballot initiative to appear on the November 3 ballot.…

  • Georgians to vote in November on waiving state’s sovereign immunity

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    The Georgia State Legislature on Tuesday gave final approval to House Resolution 1023, sending it to the November 2020 ballot. The measure would allow residents to seek declaratory relief from state or local laws that are found to violate the U.S. Constitution, state Constitution, or state law. Under the amendment, a court could not award…

  • New Mexico Supreme Court rules in cases involving police uniforms and vehicle markings

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    On June 11, 2020, the New Mexico Supreme Court consolidated two cases and clarified requirements for marks of identification for police officers in aggravated fleeing cases. New Mexico law considers aggravated fleeing a fourth-degree felony. The law describes aggravated fleeing as “a person willfully and carelessly driving his vehicle in a manner that endangers the…

  • Dexter appointed to Oregon House of Representatives

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    The county commissioners of Washington and Multnomah Counties appointed Maxine Dexter (D) to the Oregon House of Representatives on June 12. Dexter succeeds the late Rep. Mitch Greenlick (D), who died May 15. Dexter represents District 33 in the state House, a position for which she is already running. She won the Democratic primary on…

  • Maine Republican Party files signatures for veto referendum to repeal ranked-choice voting for presidential elections

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    On June 15, signatures were filed for a veto referendum to repeal Maine LD 1803, which established ranked-choice voting for presidential elections. Under LD 1803, Maine is slated to use ranked-choice voting to elect the president for the first time on November 3, 2020. The Maine Republican Party led the signature-gathering efforts for the veto…