Recall elections against Dave Brown and Brian Shannon, the Zone 6 and 7 representatives on the Newberg School District school board in Oregon, respectively, are being held on Jan. 18. To get the recalls on the ballot, supporters had 90 days to collect signatures equal to 15% of the votes cast in the last gubernatorial election in the board members’ respective zones
The recall effort against Shannon started after the board voted 4-3 on Aug. 10 to remove Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ pride flags in district schools. The ban also included political signs, clothing, and other items. Shannon wrote the motion for the ban and was joined in voting to approve it by Brown, Trevor DeHart, and Renee Powell. The board voted 4-3 on Sept. 28 to approve a policy banning all political symbols and images from schools. The same four members voted to approve the policy. In the same meeting, the board rescinded the previous policy that specifically mentioned Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ flags. The recall petitions said in part, “Brian Shannon has overreached, driving his ideological agenda in a manner that is both ethically and legally questionable. He does not represent the majority of us. Brian Shannon must be recalled.”
At the school board meeting on Sept 28, Shannon said, “This policy is so innocuous. It just says that teachers can’t display political symbols at work while they’re on school time. That should not be controversial.” He also said that the district needed to support all students. “It still goes back to the fact that we have a lot of kids that are impacted by this positively or negatively,” Brown said. “As a school board, it’s our job to make decisions that are going to be there for every single kid at Newberg High School, not just the kids that are represented in just one group – it has to be all kids.”
The effort to recall Brown began after the board voted 4-3 to fire Superintendent Joe Morelock without cause. Brown initiated the motion and voted in favor of firing Morelock. Morelock had been under contract through June 30, 2024. Recall supporters said the decision to fire Morelock “will cost the district hundreds of thousands of dollars.”
When asked about his decision to vote to fire Superintendent Joe Morelock, Brown talked about the number of students who were leaving the school district. “We’re well past 250 on our way to 300 students, minimum, and it’s growing,” Brown said. He said the district loses approximately $9,000 to $11,000 for each student who leaves. “For a lot of people who have left our school district – they’re a part of this bigger portion that doesn’t feel like they’re being listened to or talked to. And I feel like the culture is going to be the best thing for the student, staff member or parent,” Brown said.
Both Brown and Shannon were elected to the seven-member board in 2019.
Ballotpedia tracked 91 school board recall efforts against 235 board members in 2021—the highest number of school board recall efforts we tracked in one year. The next-highest year was in 2010 with 38 recall efforts against 91 school board members.
In 2021, Ballotpedia covered a total of 346 recall efforts against 535 elected officials. This was the highest number of recall efforts and officials targeted since we started compiling data on recalls in 2012.
United States v. Washington concerns state workers’ compensation laws and intergovernmental immunity. The question presented to the court in Washington is: “Whether a state workers’ compensation law that applies exclusively to federal contract workers who perform services at a specified federal facility is barred by principles of intergovernmental immunity, or is instead authorized by 40 U.S.C. 3172(a), which permits the application of state workers’ compensation laws to federal facilities ‘in the same way and to the same extent as if the premises were under the exclusive jurisdiction of the State.’” Washington originated from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.
Kemp v. United States concerns the Federal Rule of Civil Procedure governing court procedures in civil cases. The court will consider the following question: “Whether Rule 60(b)(1) authorizes relief based on a district court’s error of law.” Kemp came from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit.
Siegel v. Fitzgerald concerns the constitutionality of a law imposing different fees on Chapter 11 debtors based on the district in which the bankruptcy is filed. The question presented in Siegel asks: “Whether the Bankruptcy Judgeship Act violates the uniformity requirement of the Bankruptcy Clause by increasing quarterly fees solely in U.S. Trustee districts.” Siegel came from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit.
The court had agreed to hear 59 cases during its 2021-2022 term as of Jan. 10. Four cases were dismissed, and one case was removed from the argument calendar. Eleven cases had not yet been scheduled for argument.
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) began its latest sitting of the 2021-2022 term on Jan. 10. The court is hearing arguments in person and providing audio livestreams of arguments.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor is participating remotely from her office as a precaution related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This week, SCOTUS will hear arguments in four cases. Click the links below to learn more about these cases:
Next week, SCOTUS will hear arguments in four cases.
To date, the court has agreed to hear 59 cases this term. Four cases were dismissed, and one case was removed from the argument calendar. Eleven cases have not yet been scheduled for argument.
On Jan. 9, 2022, New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) allowed Int. 1867-2020 to become law without his signature. Int. 1867-2020 will allow lawful permanent residents and other noncitizens authorized to work in the United States to vote in municipal elections conducted on or after Jan. 9, 2023. According to Politico, this will allow nearly a million noncitizens to vote.
The New York City Council passed the legislation by a 33-14 vote on Dec. 9, 2021. Then-Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) said he would not veto the legislation at the time of passage. Adams became mayor on Jan. 1, 2022.
This legislation made New York City the largest city in the nation to authorize voting by noncitizens. Fifteen municipalities across the country allowed noncitizens to vote in local elections as of January 2022. Eleven were located in Maryland, two were located in Vermont, one was New York City, and the other was San Francisco, California.
Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:
There were 173 vacancies in state legislatures in 2021
Florida U.S. House District 20 and nine other elections today
Monthly update: 11 federal judges nominated, 12 confirmed in December 2021
There were 173 vacancies in state legislatures in 2021
Ballotpedia tracked 173 state legislative vacancies across 43 states in 2021. As of Jan. 6, 2022, 130 of those vacancies have been filled. Of the 43 remaining, 24 have special elections scheduled for sometime in 2022 and 19 are awaiting appointees.
Looking at party affiliations before the vacancies, Democrats represented 92 of the districts and Republicans represented 81. Most of these vacancies have been filled by legislators from the same party as their predecessors. Of the vacancies that have been filled, six changed party control: Republicans picked up three Democratic vacancies and Democrats picked up three Republican vacancies.
Arizona had the largest number of vacancies with 13 followed by New Hampshire with 11 and Oregon with 10. Both Arizona and Oregon fill vacancies through appointments while New Hampshire holds special elections.
Vacancies might occur for any number of reasons: resignations, death, new jobs, or legal convictions. In 2021, we found 90 vacancies where legislators resigned, 53 where officeholders were appointed or elected to other offices, 25 due to deaths, and four where officeholders were removed from office.
Of the six changes to party control, five occurred following a resignation and one—a Republican-to-Democratic change—came following the death of the preceding legislator.
Ballotpedia identified 146 state legislative vacancies across 42 states in 2020 and 177 across 45 states in 2019.
Florida U.S. House District 20 and nine other elections today
It is the second Tuesday of 2022, which means it’s back to elections! Ballotpedia is covering 10 elections taking place today, Jan. 11, including a special election to fill a vacancy in Florida’s 20th Congressional District. Let’s take a quick look at what we’re following.
Florida U.S. House District 20: Six candidates are running in the special general election for Florida’s 20th Congressional District. The former incumbent, Alcee Hastings (D), died on April 6, 2021. Primary elections took place on Nov. 2, 2021.
Hastings had been in office since 1993 and, since 2012, had won re-election every two years by an average of 64.3 percentage points. He ran unopposed in 2018. This has led race forecasters like Inside Elections to rate the special election as Solid Democratic.
Special state legislative general elections: Voters in three vacant state legislative districts will elect new legislators: Maine’s House District 27, Massachusetts Senate 1st Suffolk & Middlesex District, and Virginia’s House District 89. In all three cases, the previous incumbents—all Democrats—resigned.
Democrats will continue to represent the Massachusetts Senate district, where Lydia Edwards (D) is the only candidate on the ballot. Voters in Maine and Virginia will see major party competition. Democrats have represented both districts for the past decade.
Special state legislative primary elections: There are also four state legislative primary elections where voters will select nominees for upcoming special general elections.
In Arkansas’ Senate District 7, Republican voters will participate in a primary runoff between Colby Fulfer (R) and Steven Unger (R). The two candidates advanced to a runoff after placing first and second, respectively, in a Dec. 14, 2021, primary election. A candidate needed to receive at least 50% of the vote to advance directly to the general election. The winner of the runoff will face Lisa Parks (D) on Feb. 8. Republicans have represented the district since 2012.
In Florida, there will be Democratic primaries in Senate District 33 and House Districts 88 and 94. Democrats represented all three districts before resigning from office to run in the special congressional election where they lost to Cherfilus-McCormick. Florida law requires elected officials to resign in order to run for another office. General elections will be held on March 8.
School board recalls: We are also covering two school board recall elections in two Nebraska school districts: Leyton Public Schools and Waverly School District 145. Ballotpedia has identified 20 school board recall efforts so far in 2022, equal to the total number of school board recalls tracked in 2009, 2011, and 2019.
Two board members—Suzy Ernest and Roland Ruhsman—are named in the Leyton recall. William Abbott Jr. filed the recall petitions, listing increased legal fees as reasons for both efforts in addition to issues regarding the superintendent and ethics codes.
In Waverly, Rebecca Kellner-Ratzlaff filed the petition to recall Andy Grosshans, the district’s Ward 4 representative and school board president. Kellner-Ratzlaff said she filed the petition in response to Grosshans votes in favor of emergency resolutions regarding the coronavirus pandemic.
Monthly update: 11 federal judges nominated, 12 confirmed in December 2021
We recently released our Federal Vacancy Count report for December 2021, which highlights judicial activity during the month of December through Jan. 1, 2022. During that time, President Joe Biden (D) named 11 nominees to Article III judgeships and the U.S. Senate confirmed 12 such judges to lifetime positions. Meanwhile, nine judges left active status, creating new vacancies. Eight of those judges assumed senior status and one—Judge Lucy H. Koh—left the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California upon her confirmation to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.
By Jan. 1, 347 days into his presidency, Biden had nominated 73 judges to Article III judgeships, 40 of whom the Senate has confirmed. This is a larger number of nominees than Donald Trump (R) and Barack Obama (D) had by Jan. 1 of their first years in office. George W. Bush (R) nominated 106 judges by this time, 52 of whom the Senate confirmed.
The chart below shows the same information include in the graph above but over time. This includes unsuccessful nominations (for example, the nomination was withdrawn or the U.S. Senate did not vote on the nomination), renominations of individuals to the same court, and recess appointments. A recess appointment is when a president appoints a federal official while the Senate is in recess.
Welcome to the Jan. 10 edition of Robe & Gavel, our first for 2022. Robe & Gavel is Ballotpedia’s newsletter about the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) and other judicial happenings around the U.S.
I hope your robe is fleece-lined and your gavel comes with a warm mug of cheer. Let’s gavel in, shall we?
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Noteworthy court announcements
Here’s a quick roundup of the court’s most recent noteworthy announcements since the Dec. 6 edition of Robe & Gavel:
Dec. 22-30, 2021: SCOTUS scheduled special hearings in cases for Jan. 7, 2022, to consider whether the government can enforce the Biden administration’s vaccine policies during ongoing lower court litigation.
One line of appeals, in the cases National Federation of Independent Businesses v. Department of Labor and Ohio v. Department of Labor,concerns the mandate for businesses with more than 100 employees, commonly referred to as the vax-or-test mandate.
The other line of appeals, in cases Biden v. Missouri and Becerra v. Louisiana, concerns the Biden administration’s request for permission to enforce a rule requiring health care workers participating in federal Medicare and Medicaid programs to be fully vaccinated. Lower court rulings blocked the mandate in approximately half of the states.
Grants
SCOTUS has accepted six new cases to its merits docket since our Dec. 6 issue.
Click the links below to learn more about these cases:
Southwest Airlines v. Saxon concerns the definition of transportation workers for exemption from the Federal Arbitration Act.
Golan v. Saada involves international law when a minor child is abducted across national borders during a domestic dispute.
ZF Automotive US, Inc. v. Luxshare, Ltd., consolidated with AlixPartners, LLC v. Fund for Protection of Investor Rights in Foreign States, concern U.S. district courts’ authority to compel evidence in private arbitration for foreign or international tribunals.
To date, the court has agreed to hear 56 cases for the 2021-2022 term. SCOTUS dismissed four cases after they were accepted and removed one case from the argument calendar after both parties agreed to settle. Eight cases have yet to be scheduled for arguments.
Arguments
The Supreme Court will hear arguments in five cases this week. Click here to read more about SCOTUS’ current term.
Click the links below to learn more about these cases:
Jan. 10
Gallardo v. Marstiller, concerning tort claims and state Medicaid program reimbursement.
In its October 2020 term, SCOTUS heard arguments in 62 cases. Click here to read more about SCOTUS’ previous term.
Opinions
SCOTUS has issued two rulings since our Dec. 6 edition. The court has issued rulings in five cases so far this term, two of which were decided without argument.
Click the links below to read more about the court’s opinions:
On Dec. 10, 2021, the court issued rulings in Whole Woman’s Health v. Jackson and United States v. Texas. Both cases concerned Texas state law S.B. 8 that restricts abortion procedures after six weeks of pregnancy and authorizes private citizens to bring civil actions against individuals for aiding a patient with getting an abortion.
In Whole Woman’s Health, the court affirmed in part and reversed in part the U.S. district court’s order denying motions to dismiss the case, and remanded the case for further proceedings. SCOTUS held that lawsuits filed before the law has been enforced could proceed against certain defendants but not others.
In an 8-1 decision authored by Justice Neil Gorsuch, the court held that abortion providers may sue state licensing officials in federal court to prevent the state law’s enforcement under Ex parte Young’s (1908) sovereign immunity doctrine exception. Justice Clarence Thomas dissented.
In a per curiam decision, the court dismissed United States v. Texas from its merits docket as improvidently granted, meaning that the court ruled that it should not have taken up the case.
Between 2007 and 2020, SCOTUS released opinions in 1,062 cases, averaging between 70 and 90 decided cases per year.
Upcoming SCOTUS dates
Here are the court’s upcoming dates of interest:
Jan. 10:
SCOTUS will hear arguments in one case.
SCOTUS will release orders.
Jan. 11: SCOTUS will hear arguments in two cases.
Jan. 12: SCOTUS will hear arguments in one case.
Jan. 14: SCOTUS will conference. A conference is a private meeting of the justices.
The Federal Vacancy Count
The Federal Vacancy Count tracks vacancies, nominations, and confirmations to all United States Article III federal courts in a one-month period. The December report covers nominations, confirmations, and vacancies from Dec. 2 through Jan. 1.
Highlights
Vacancies: There were nine new judicial vacancies covered in this report. There were 74 vacancies out of 870 active Article III judicial positions. Including the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and the U.S. territorial courts, 76 of 890 active federal judicial positions were vacant.
Nominations: There were 11 new nominations.
Confirmations: There were 12 new confirmations.
Vacancy count for January 1, 2022
A breakdown of the vacancies at each level can be found in the table below. For a more detailed look at the vacancies in the federal courts, click here.
*Though the U.S. territorial courts are named as district courts, they are not Article III courts. They are established by Article IV of the U.S. Constitution. Click here for more information.
New vacancies
Nine judges left active status since the Dec. 1 report, creating Article III life-term judicial vacancies. The president nominates individuals to fill Article III judicial positions. Nominations are subject to U.S. Senate confirmation.
The following chart tracks the number of vacancies in the United States Courts of Appeals from the inauguration of President Joe Biden (D) to the date indicated on the chart.
Biden has announced 73 Article III judicial nominations since taking office on Jan. 20, 2021. For more information on the president’s judicial nominees, click here.
New confirmations
There were 12 new confirmations since the previous report.
Since January 2021, the Senate has confirmed 40 of President Biden’s judicial nominees—29 district court judges and 11 appeals court judges.
Comparison of Article III judicial appointments over time by president (1981-Present)
The average number of judicial appointees per president through Jan. 1 of the second year is 26.
President Ronald Reagan (R) made the most appointments through his first year with 41, followed by President Joe Biden (D) with 40. President Barack Obama (D) made the fewest with 13.
President Donald Trump (R) made the most appointments through four years with 234. President Reagan made the fewest through four years with 166.
Need a daily fix of judicial nomination, confirmation, and vacancy information? Click here for continuing updates on the status of all federal judicial nominees.
Or, keep an eye on this list for updates on federal judicial nominations.
Looking ahead
We’ll be back next year on Jan. 18, 2022, with a new edition of Robe & Gavel. Until then, gaveling out!
Sixty-eight state legislators ran for a different office in 2021 than the one to which they were elected. Of those 68 officials, 23 (34%) won election to a new position. In 2019, 69 state legislators who sought a different office. Thirty-two (46%) were successful in their elections.
New York had the most legislators seeking another office, with 12, followed by Virginia, with 11. New Jersey and Ohio tied with eight apiece, followed by New Mexico, with five.
Fifty-one percent of state representatives and 12% of state senators were successful in their bids for other elected office. Of the 68 state legislators, 21 were Republicans and 47 were Democrats. Republicans were more successful than Democrats at winning election to a new office, with 38% doing so compared to 32% of Democrats.
What follows is a breakdown of offices state legislators sought in 2021.
State Representatives
Twenty (39%) ran for a state senate seat.
Fourteen (27%) ran for a municipal office or school board seat.
Seven (14%) ran for U.S. House seat.
Seven (14%) ran for a non-gubernatorial state executive office (such as attorney general).
Three (6%) ran for governor.
State Senators
Seven (41%) ran for a municipal office or school board seat.
Six (35.29%) ran for a U.S. House seat.
Two (12%) ran for governor.
One (6%) ran for a county seat.
One (6%) ran for a judicial office.
In 2019, the 69 legislators who sought another office came from 19 states. Republican state legislators who ran for other offices were more successful than Democrats that year. Eighteen out of 34 (53%) Republican state legislators who ran for another office won election to a new position, while 14 out of 35 (40%) of Democratic state legislators who ran for another office were successful.
Between Dec. 29 and Jan. 5, officials in at least seven states either proposed, advanced, or enacted new redistricting maps.
Proposed
Florida: The Senate Redistricting Committee released eight new maps—four of congressional districts and four of Senate districts—on Jan. 5 ahead of the start of the regularly-scheduled legislative session on Jan. 11. The Florida Constitution requires legislators to complete redistricting during the legislative session, though both chambers’ redistricting committees and the public have been able to submit proposals leading up to the session’s start.
In Florida, the legislature draws both congressional and state legislative district maps. The congressional map is passed as a regular statute, meaning it is subject to a gubernatorial veto. The legislative maps are passed as a joint resolution and, therefore, are not subject to a veto. Any legislative maps passed are automatically submitted to the state supreme court for final approval.
Kentucky: Republican lawmakers released new House district maps on Dec. 30 followed by Senate and congressional maps on Jan. 4, the start of the new legislative session. While these maps were released ahead of the state’s candidate filing deadline on Jan. 7, lawmakers understood they would not have new district lines enacted in time for candidates to know where they will be running in 2022.
On Jan. 6, Gov. Andy Beshear (D) signed into law a bill changing the state’s candidate filing deadline from Jan. 7 to Jan. 25 to allow legislators enough time to finalize new district lines.
Kentucky is a divided government with Republicans controlling both chambers of the legislature and Democrats controlling the governorship. Any maps produced by the legislature are subject to a gubernatorial veto. Kentucky is one of six states that requires a simple majority vote to override a gubernatorial veto.
Advanced
New Hampshire: On Jan. 5, the New Hampshire House of Representatives approved congressional and state House maps proposed by Republican lawmakers. Members voted 186-164 in favor of the former and 186-168 for the latter.
Democrats currently represent both of the state’s congressional districts. NHPR’s Josh Rogers wrote that the congressional plan would result in the state’s 1st District, represented by Rep. Chris Pappas (D), tilting Republican with the 2nd District, held by Rep. Annie Kuster (D), becoming more Democratic.
At the time of the map’s initial release, state Rep. David Cote (D) said, “The proposed drastic re-drawing of Congressional districts is unprecedented and designed with the singular goal of rigging elections through partisan gerrymandering.”
Upon its passage, state Rep. Bob Lynn (R) said political considerations are common in redistricting, saying, “Particularly considering what we are dividing up are districts for voting purposes, political affinity would seem to be among the most important considerations.”
New York: On Jan. 3, the New York Independent Redistricting Commission met to vote on the congressional and legislative map plans it would recommend to the state legislature. The commission’s vote was tied 5-5, so it submitted both sets of proposals—those introduced by Democratic members and those by Republicans—to the legislature.
This is the first redistricting cycle since the state approved a constitutional amendment creating the redistricting commission, which is made up of four members appointed by Democratic lawmakers, four by Republicans, and two unaffiliated members selected by the eight appointees.
The legislature will either approve or reject the commission’s plans by a simple up/down vote. If the legislature rejects two sets of proposals, it may then amend the commission’s map plans.
Enacted
Three states—Arkansas, Georgia, and New Mexico—enacted new state legislative maps between Dec. 29 and Jan. 5. New Mexico enacted its House map on Dec. 29 and its Senate map on Jan. 7. Georgia also enacted a new congressional map on Dec. 30.
As of Jan. 7, 2021, 24 states have enacted congressional district maps and 28 have enacted legislative district lines.
The Federal Register is a daily journal of federal government activity that includes presidential documents, proposed and final rules, and public notices. It is a common measure of an administration’s regulatory activity, accounting for both regulatory and deregulatory actions.
From Jan. 3 through Jan. 7, the Federal Register grew by 1,060 pages for a year-to-date total of 1,060 pages.
The Federal Register hit an all-time high of 95,894 pages in 2016.
This week’s Federal Register featured the following 347 documents:
283 notices
Eight presidential documents
17 proposed rules
39 final rules
Four proposed rules, including the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act with payment parameters and proposed user fee rates for 2023 from the Health and Human Services Department, and six final rules, including regulations for secure gun storage for any place that sells firearms and an amendment to the definition for antique firearm from the Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Bureau were deemed significant under E.O. 12866—defined by the potential to have large impacts on the economy, environment, public health, or state or local governments. Significant actions may also conflict with presidential priorities or other agency rules. The Biden administration has issued four significant proposed rules, six significant final rules, and zero significant notices as of January 7.
Ballotpedia maintains page counts and other information about the Federal Register as part of its Administrative State Project. The project is a neutral, nonpartisan encyclopedic resource that defines and analyzes the administrative state, including its philosophical origins, legal and judicial precedents, and scholarly examinations of its consequences. The project also monitors and reports on measures of federal government activity.
The Federal Register is a daily journal of federal government activity that includes presidential documents, proposed and final rules, and public notices. It is a common measure of an administration’s regulatory activity, accounting for both regulatory and deregulatory actions.
From Dec. 27 through Dec. 31, the Federal Register grew by 1,428 pages for a year-to-date total of 74,532 pages.
The Federal Register hit an all-time high of 95,894 pages in 2016.
This week’s Federal Register featured the following 427 documents:
328 notices
Five presidential documents
42 proposed rules
52 final rules
Four proposed rules, including requirements for capital planning and stress capital buffer determination from the Federal Housing Finance Agency, and 15 final rules, including reissuance of Nationwide Permits to authorize activities under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 from the Engineers Corps were deemed significant under E.O. 12866—defined by the potential to have large impacts on the economy, environment, public health, or state or local governments. Significant actions may also conflict with presidential priorities or other agency rules. The Biden administration has issued 126 significant proposed rules, 169 significant final rules, and four significant notices as of December 31.
Ballotpedia maintains page counts and other information about the Federal Register as part of its Administrative State Project. The project is a neutral, nonpartisan encyclopedic resource that defines and analyzes the administrative state, including its philosophical origins, legal and judicial precedents, and scholarly examinations of its consequences. The project also monitors and reports on measures of federal government activity.
