Tag: Analysis
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37 states have Blaine Amendments blocking public funds from religious schools in their constitutions
On June 30, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 opinion that the application of Article X, Section 6, of Montana’s Constitution (Montana’s Blaine Amendment) violated the free exercise clause of the U.S. Constitution. The majority held that the application of the state’s Blaine Amendment was unconstitutional because it barred religious schools and parents who wished to send their…
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Citizen initiative activity and petition success rates from 2010 through 2018
As of July 1, 882 ballot initiatives and veto referendums were filed with state officials for circulation during the 2020 election cycle. Initiatives and referendums have been filed in 23 of the 26 states with a statewide process. Washington, Colorado, and Missouri had the highest numbers of filings at 229, 193, and 151, respectively. California…
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11,715 major party candidates filed for 2020 state legislative elections
On November 3, 2020, 5,875 state legislative seats are up for regular election across 86 chambers in 44 states. This includes 1,164 state senate seats and 4,711 state house seats. As of July 9, we’ve collected post-filing deadline data in 41 states. In 2020, 5,524 state legislative seats are up for regular election in those…
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June 2020 breakdown of state legislative party membership: 52.1% Republicans, 46.8% Democrats
Ballotpedia’s most recent monthly analysis of the partisan composition of state legislatures found that 52.1% of state legislators are Republicans and 46.8% are Democrats. That represents a decrease of one percentage point for the Republican Party from the month of May. The numbers for the Democratic Party stayed consistent from last month. Every month, Ballotpedia…
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Four state legislators resign at the end of June
Four state legislators in three states stepped down from their positions on June 30, bringing the number of state legislative vacancies that have occurred this year to 75. The former legislators had a cumulative total of more than sixty years of legislative experience among them. Gary Jackson (R) had served in the Mississippi State Senate…
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Survey reveals state limits on who can challenge agency actions in court
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…