Category: State
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Florida voters to decide whether to require two elections for future constitutional amendments
Amendment 4 on the 2020 ballot will ask voters whether or not to require voter-approved constitutional amendments to be approved by voters at a second general election to become effective. Florida constitutional amendments currently require a 60% supermajority vote at one election to take effect. Under Amendment 4, the 60% supermajority requirement would apply to…
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Arkansas voters to decide whether or not to allow optometrists to perform certain eye surgeries
A veto referendum targeting Arkansas House Bill 1251 (Act 579) was certified for the ballot on January 31, 2020, following the resolution of a lawsuit concerning signature validity. Proponents submitted 64,028 valid signatures. To qualify for the ballot, 53,491 valid signatures were required. HB 1251 amended the definition of practice of optometry in state law…
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Iowa governor appoints Oxley to state supreme court
Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds (R) appointed attorney Dana Oxley to the Iowa Supreme Court on January 28, 2020. Oxley succeeded Chief Justice Mark Cady, who died of a heart attack on November 15, 2019. Oxley was Gov. Reynolds’ third nominee to the seven-member supreme court. Oxley is an attorney with Shuttleworth & Ingersoll, P.L.C. in…
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Field set for March 3 special primaries in Massachusetts
Candidates interested in running for four Massachusetts state legislative special elections had until January 28 to file. The primaries are scheduled for March 3, 2020, and the general elections are on March 31. Massachusetts State Senate Second Hampden & Hampshire District: State Rep. John Velis is unopposed in the Democratic primary. John Cain is unopposed…
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Indiana statewide filing deadline is February 7
The filing deadline to run for elected office in Indiana is on February 7, 2020. In Indiana, prospective candidates may file for the following offices: • All nine U.S. House seats • Governor • Lieutenant Governor • Attorney General • State Senate (25 seats) • House of Representatives (100 seats) • Supreme Court (one seat…
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Bowman replaces Schindler on the Washington Court of Appeals
Gov. Jay Inslee (D) appointed Bill Bowman to the Washington Court of Appeals on January 24, 2020. Bowman fills the vacancy left by former judge Ann Schindler, who retired effective December 31, 2019. Bowman previously served as a judge for the King County Superior Court. He held several roles as a superior court judge, including…
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Branch appointed to Maryland House of Delegates
Chanel Branch (D) has been appointed to represent District 45 in the Maryland House of Delegates, filling the vacancy left by the resignation of Cheryl Glenn (D) in December 2019. Members of the district’s Democratic Central Committee, which Branch chairs, nominated her for Glenn’s former seat on January 13, 2020. Her nomination was then sent…
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Texas runoffs close out 2019’s special state legislative elections
On January 28, three districts in the Texas House of Representatives held general runoff elections to fill seats that were vacated in 2019. Races in Districts 28, 100, and 148 advanced to general runoffs following the general election on November 5, 2019. None of the seats changed party control as a result of the special…
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Pennsylvania Legislature passes constitutional amendment to end primaries for lieutenant governor
The Pennsylvania State Legislature approved a constitutional amendment that would change how candidates for lieutenant governor are selected. In Pennsylvania, a political party’s candidates for governor and lieutenant governor are elected on a joint ticket at the general election. As of 2020, candidates for governor and lieutenant governor run in separate primaries for their party’s…
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Wilson Resigns from Alaska House of Representatives
Former Rep. Tammie Wilson (R) announced her resignation from the Alaska House of Representatives on January 24, 2020, which took effect at the end of the day on Jan. 25. She left her District 3 seat to take a job as a policy adviser with the Office of Children’s Services at the Alaska Department of…