Category: State

Three states—Kentucky, Louisiana, and Mississippi—held elections for governor, secretary of state, and attorney general in 2019. These three offices make up a state government triplex, which exists when one party controls all three offices.   Heading into 2019, all three states were under divided triplexes, meaning both parties controlled at least one position in each…

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper (D) in August signed legislation that subjects any new agency rule carrying criminal penalties to automatic legislative review.   Legislative bodies often delegate authority to administrative agencies to implement the law by issuing regulations, some of which carry criminal penalties. Research from the American Bar Association found that federal agencies…

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) won re-election Saturday. He received 51.3% of the vote to businessman Eddie Rispone’s (R) 48.7%.   Edwards is the only Democratic governor in the Deep South. He was elected to his first term in 2015. He campaigned on what he considered accomplishments of his administration, including Medicaid expansion, the…

Republicans secured a 68-35 majority with two independent members in the November 16 general election, after maintaining their majority in the Louisiana House of Representatives during the October 12 primaries. Heading into the primaries, Republicans held a 60-39 majority with five independent members and one vacancy in a seat previously held by a Republican. The 2019…

Following a recanvass of election results, Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin (R) conceded the Kentucky gubernatorial election to state Attorney General Andy Beshear (D). Beshear’s victory will break Republican trifecta in the state and keep the state under divided triplex control. Beshear is the son of former Gov. Steve Beshear (D), who served until 2015.  …

The tobacco age restriction increased to 21 in New York Wednesday, making it the sixteenth state to increase its tobacco age to 21 in the 21st century. Hawaii was the first state to do so, enacting its increase in June 2015.   The first tobacco age limit in U.S. history was imposed in 1883 in…

The House Democratic Campaign Committee of Louisiana reported a $100,000 contribution from the National Democratic Redistricting Committee (NDRC) in a report filed on November 2. The NDRC also contributed $100,000 each to the Senate Democratic Campaign Committee of Louisiana and Louisiana Democrats.   The NDRC is a 527 group chaired by former U.S. Attorney General…

Sen. Kevin Parker (D) introduced a bill in the New York State Senate on October 30 that would allow felons to vote while incarcerated. If passed, the bill would make New York the third state allowing inmates to vote, along with Maine and Vermont.   Voting rights for convicted felons vary substantially from state to…

Washington Referendum 88 was too close to call as of Wednesday morning, with ballots counted so far split 48.2% in favor of Initiative 1000 and 51.8% opposed. The measure was behind by about 20,000 votes and an estimated 332,000 ballots were left to be counted. The results must be certified by December 5.   The…

On November 5, Democrats flipped six Republican-held seats to win a 54-45 majority in the Virginia House of Delegates, while one race was too close to call. Heading into the election, Republicans held a 51-48 majority with one vacancy. The next legislative session will be the first where Democrats have a majority since 1997. Democrats…