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Daily Brew: April 23, 2019

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April 23, 2019

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Today's Brew highlights the efforts to recall a member of the Colorado House of Representatives + the state of Washington approves legislation about public sector unions  
The Daily Brew

Welcome to the Tuesday, April 23 Brew. Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:

  1. Colorado state legislator targeted for recall
  2. Washington state legislature passes bill in response to Supreme Court’s Janus decision
  3. 683 people have registered to run for president in 2020

Colorado state legislator targeted for recall

Earlier this month, the Colorado Secretary of State approved a recall petition against state Rep. Rochelle Galindo (D), who was first elected to the state House of Representatives in 2018 with 53% of the vote. The approval of the petition means that recall supporters have until June 3, 2019, to collect 5,696 signatures, or 25% of the votes cast in the last election for that office, to force a recall election.

Voters successfully recalled 22 state legislators from 1913-2018.

According to the website supporting the recall, Galindo is being targeted because of her support of SB-181, which was passed by the legislature and signed into law by Gov. Jared Polis (D) in April 2019. The bill is designed to give local governments more control over regulating the oil and gas industry and also mandates that the state emphasize safety over promoting oil and gas production. It passed the House by a 36-28 margin with all votes in favor from Democrats and all 24 Republicans joining with 4 Democrats in opposition.

Last week, rancher Steve Wells donated $100,000 to the effort to recall Galindo (D). Prior to this donation, the recall committee had raised $2,542. The recalls also have the support of newly elected state GOP chair and U.S. Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO). After the recall petition was approved, Rep. Galindo said, “People are free to disagree with the decisions I make at the state capitol, and they’re free to vote for someone else in 2020. I will fight every day for our community and our shared best interests, and even for the people who disagree with me.”

Colorado became a Democratic trifecta in 2019 after Democrats flipped the state Senate in the 2018 elections. Democrats control the state House by a 41-24 margin and the state Senate by a 19-16 margin. Gov. Polis (D) succeeded former Gov. John Hickenlooper in 2019

In 2013, two Colorado state legislators-state Sen. Angela Giron (D) and state Sen. John Morse- were successfully recalled. Since 2011, 76 recall petitions have been filed against state lawmakers. Nine recalls were successful, nine were defeated at the ballot, 54 did not go to a vote, and four are still ongoing.

The most recent successful recall of a state legislator was in 2018 when California state Sen. Josh Newman (D) was recalled.

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Washington state legislature passes bill in response to Supreme Court’s Janus decision

Last week, the Washington House of Representatives approved an amended version of a bill which declares that public employers and public-sector unions are not liable for claims involving agency fees paid to unions prior to the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 2018 decision in Janus v. American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees. That ruling held that public sector unions cannot require non-member employees to pay agency fees covering the costs of non-political union activities.

HB1575, which was passed by the state Senate earlier this month, would also repeal statutes requiring employees to join unions or pay dues as a condition of employment. In addition, the bill would amend dues deduction authorization laws, allowing authorizations to be initiated via electronic, voice, or written communications. A written request to the union would be required to discontinue dues deductions.

The legislation passed the House by a vote of 56-38 and the Senate by a margin of 25-21. The vote in the House saw one Republican join 55 Democrats in voting in favor and 38 Republicans opposed, with two Democrats and two Republicans not voting. In the state Senate, 25 Democrats voted in favor and 19 Republicans and 2 Democrats voted against. Two Democrats and one Republican in the state Senate did not vote. The bill now goes to Governor Jay Inslee (D).

Sen. Rebecca Saldana (D), who supported the bill, said the following on the House floor, "It is a bill that aligns our current statutes with the Janus decision and clearly defines the relationship between the union and the employee."

Sen. Curtis King (R), who criticized the bill with respect to its position on the Supreme Court’s decision stated during Senate debate, “The Janus ruling was not an anti-union decision, it was a ruling about rights, it was a ruling about freedom. It said the individual can decide what they want to do. You cannot be forced to join a union to get a public job.”

For more information about legislation, national trends, and public debate surrounding public sector union policy, subscribe to our weekly newsletter, Union Station with one click below.

683 people have registered to run for president in 2020

Although media attention has focused on the 22 notable elected officials and public figures who have declared their candidacy or formed an exploratory committee to run for president in 2020, the total number of candidates who have registered to run is much higher. As of yesterday, 683 individuals have filed with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to run for president.



As shown in the table above, this number includes 229 Democrats, 84 Republicans, 25 Libertarian, and 14 Green Party candidates who have registered with the FEC. These figures represent an increase of 12 registered candidates from the week before.

In 2016, 1,780 total candidates filed to run for President.

Stay in the know about all the important news about the 2020 presidential election with our Daily Presidential News Briefing. It provides updates on the number of candidates, where the prominent candidates are campaigning, super PAC activity, campaign staff hiring, and more. Click the link below to subscribe.


See also

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