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Daily Brew: February 13, 2019

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February 13, 2019

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Today's Brew looks at Mark Kelly's entrance to the 2020 special election for John McCain's former Senate seat + how many seats up for election are held by each party

  
The Daily Brew

Welcome to the Wednesday, February 13 Brew. Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:

  1. Former astronaut Mark Kelly (D) enters U.S. Senate special election in Arizona; Republicans hold 22 of 34 seats on 2020 Senate map
  2. Utah legislature repeals and replaces Proposition 3
  3. Friday: Filing deadline for May local elections in Texas

Former astronaut Mark Kelly will run in U.S. Senate special election in Arizona; Republicans hold 22 of 34 seats on 2020 Senate map

Former NASA astronaut Mark Kelly (D) announced yesterday that he is running in the 2020 special election for U.S. Senate in Arizona to complete the term of the late John McCain (R). The seat is currently held by Sen. Martha McSally (R), who was appointed in December 2018.

Kelly became politically active after his wife, former Rep. Gabby Giffords (D), survived an assassination attempt in 2011.

Thirty-three other Senate races will take place in 2020, including at least two for open seats in Tennessee and Kansas where Sen. Lamar Alexander (R) and Pat Roberts (R) announced they were not seeking re-election.

Republicans will be defending 22 seats up for election, compared to Democrats’ 12 seats. That is nearly the reverse of 2018 when Democrats held 26 of the 35 seats up for election.

Two Republicans face re-election in states that President Donald Trump (R) lost in 2016: Sen. Cory Gardner (R) in Colorado, where Trump lost by 5 percentage points, and Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine).

Two Democrats face re-election in states that Trump won in 2016: Sen. Doug Jones (D) in Alabama, where Trump won by 28 points, and Gary Peters (D-Mich.).

Republicans currently hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate.

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Today, we are talking with Edgar Bachrach and Austin Berg to learn more about their process, research, and the writing of The New Chicago Way: Lessons from Other Big Cities. It's not too late to snag a spot.

Utah governor signs law replacing Proposition 3, the Medicaid expansion initiative approved in November 2018

Governor Gary Herbert (R) signed Senate Bill 96 to repeal and replace Proposition 3 after the Utah legislature gave its final approval on Monday.

Utah Proposition 3, the Medicaid Expansion Initiative, was on the ballot in Utah as an initiated state statute on November 6, 2018. It was approved by a vote of 53 percent to 47 percent. Proposition 3 expanded Medicaid coverage to include persons under the age of 65 and with incomes equal to or below 138 percent of the federal poverty line according to traditional Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act. It also increased the state's sales tax rate from 4.70 percent to 4.85 percent, with revenue allocated toward the state's portion of the cost of Medicaid expansion.

Senate Bill 96 places limits on eligibility for Medicaid coverage, including a work requirement, and places restrictions on the total number of people who can enroll. It also requires special approval of waivers from the federal government and contains contingency provisions that take effect if the waivers aren't approved.

Utah is one of 22 Republican trifectas, meaning Republicans control both chambers of the state legislature and the governorship. Utah is one of three Republican trifecta states that approved Medicaid expansion initiatives in November 2018. The other two are Idaho and Nebraska.

Utah is one of 11 states that have no restrictions on legislative alterations, which means the legislature can amend or repeal initiated state statutes with a simple majority vote at any time.

Friday deadline to file for Texas local elections in May

Each year, local elections in Texas are split between May and November, depending on the area. The filing deadline to run for office in the May elections is on Friday. Ballotpedia is covering elections in three counties (Collin, El Paso, Tarrant), seven cities (Arlington, Dallas, Fort Worth, Garland, Irving, Plano, San Antonio), and 58 school districts.

The mayor's office is on the ballot in Arlington, Dallas, Fort Worth, Garland, and San Antonio. Dallas and San Antonio were among the 10 largest cities by population in the country as of the 2010 census. The school board races include Dallas Independent School District, which is the state's second-largest school district.

There will be no primary for these elections with the general election taking place on May 4. If no candidate receives a majority of the vote in the general election, a runoff is scheduled for June 8.

The February 15 filing deadline is one of the earliest major deadlines of the 2019 election season. Earlier deadlines included December 5, 2018, for Oklahoma local races, January 2 for Wisconsin state and local races, and January 29 for Kentucky state and local races. Next month will have four statewide filing deadlines: Mississippi on March 1, Pennsylvania on March 12, Virginia on March 21, and Idaho on March 22.

Ballotpedia is also covering November elections in two Texas counties (Bexar and Harris), the city of Houston, and six school districts.


See also

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