Category: State
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Utah legislature to repeal tax bill after signatures filed for veto referendum
Supporters of a veto referendum petition effort targeting the repeal of Utah Senate Bill 2001 reported submitting 152,000 signatures on January 21 to put the bill on the November ballot. SB 2001, titled Tax Restructuring Revisions, was designed to make changes to the state tax code including decreasing the individual and corporate income tax rates…
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Republicans keep Connecticut House seat in special election
A special general election was held on January 21, 2020, to fill the Connecticut House’s District 151 seat left vacant by the resignation of Rep. Fred Camillo (R). Republican Harry Arora won the special election with 2,345 votes versus the 1,965 votes for Democrat Cheryl Trepp Moss. The special election was called after Camillo resigned…
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Over $6.29 million raised for California Proposition 13 (March 2020), a $15 billion education facilities bond measure
Committees surrounding California Proposition 13, a $15-billion education facilities bond measure that is on the ballot for March 3, 2020, filed their first periodic campaign finance reports on January 23, 2020. Of the $15 billion in bonds that Proposition 13 would authorize, $9 billion would be for preschool and K-12 schools, $4 billion would be…
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Record-long gubernatorial winning streaks are ongoing in 18 states
More than one-third of states are in the midst of a record-long gubernatorial winning streak (when multiple consecutive gubernatorial elections in a state are won by candidates from the same party). The longest-running winning streaks—for Oregon Democrats and Utah Republicans—each go back 10 elections. There are 12 record-long Republican winning streaks and six record-long Democratic…
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Recall election moves forward in Jackson, Michigan
In Michigan, a recall election against Jackson Councilwoman Kelsey Heck is set to be on the May 5 ballot. The Jackson County Elections Clerk’s Office verified the signatures in the recall effort against Heck and posted an issuance of election on January 21. Resident Susan Murdie initiated the recall effort in July 2019. Petitions listed…
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Wisconsin Marsy’s Law Amendment received over $500,000 from the national organization, Marsy’s Law for All
In its January campaign finance filing, Marsy’s Law for Wisconsin, which is leading the campaign in support of Wisconsin Marsy’s Law Crime Victims Rights Amendment, reported receiving over $500,000 in loans from Marsy’s Law for All, the national foundation that has funded 12 statewide Marsy’s Law ballot measure campaigns. It was founded in 2009 by…
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Two Missouri state senators resign to take positions in Gov. Parson’s administration
Two former Missouri State Senators – Shalonn “Kiki” Curls (D) and Jason Holsman (D) – have resigned their seats to take state executive positions. Both were appointed by Gov. Mike Parson (R) and confirmed by their colleagues in the Senate. Curls, who previously represented District 9, assumed office as one of three commissioners on the…
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Idaho governor issues two executive orders on regulation
Idaho Governor Brad Little (R) on January 16 signed two executive orders aimed at streamlining regulatory review and minimizing the volume of regulations in the state. Little issued the executive orders on the heels of his 2019 regulatory reduction efforts, which resulted in state agencies cutting or simplifying 75% of the state’s regulatory code. The first…
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Massachusetts representative becomes Taunton’s first female mayor
On January 6, 2020, Shaunna O’Connell (R) resigned from the Third Bristol District seat in the Massachusetts State House after becoming the mayor of Taunton, Massachusetts. O’Connell defeated Taunton City Council member Estele Borges (D) to become Taunton’s mayor on November 5, 2019. Taunton’s incumbent mayor, Thomas Hoye Jr., did not run for re-election. Before…
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Idaho state representative convicted of fraud, removed from office
The Idaho House of Representatives voted 65-0 to remove former Rep. John Green (R) from his District 2B seat on January 16, 2020, following his conviction on federal tax fraud charges the day before. Five members of the chamber were absent. Green’s expulsion is a historic first for the Idaho legislature. The state constitution forbids…