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Daily Brew: January 31, 2019

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January 31, 2019

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Today's Brew brings you a Chicago update + a look back at Iowa three years ago

  
The Daily Brew

Welcome to the Thursday, January 31 Brew. Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:

  1. Chicago early voting Super Site closes due to polar vortex
  2. 2016 Iowa caucus was three years ago tomorrow
  3. North Carolina Supreme Court justice announces retirement

Chicago early voting Super Site closes due to polar vortex

Due to extreme cold, the Loop Super Site for early voting in Chicago's 2019 municipal elections at 175 W. Washington St. was closed on Wednesday. When the site would reopen remains unclear.

Representatives at the Board of Election Commissioners told Ballotpedia that voters could vote between 9 am and 5 pm on Wednesday, Jan. 30, at 69 W. Washington St. on the 6th floor.

If the Loop Super Site is not open Thursday, the 69 W. Washington St. location will once again be open until 5 pm.

Early voting for Chicago's Feb. 26 municipal elections, scheduled to begin Jan. 17, had been delayed due to outstanding petition challenges. The Loop Super Site first opened on Tuesday, Jan. 29, for 8 hours of early voting before the polar vortex swept in.

Once the Loop Super Site reopens, it's scheduled to be open from 9 am to 5 pm Monday through Saturday and from 10 am to 4 pm on Sundays through Feb. 25, with extended hours the week before the election. Early voting locations open in all wards on Feb. 11.

Voters can also choose to vote by mail; the deadline to apply to vote by mail is Feb 21. Mail-in ballots must be postmarked by Feb. 26, which is Election Day.

Elections for a new mayor, all 50 city council seats, city treasurer, and city clerk are taking place. For all offices on the ballot, runoff elections will be held April 2 for races in which no candidates receives more than 50 percent of the vote. All offices are nonpartisan and come with four-year terms.

One click to stay informed with what's happening in the Chicago elections

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Cruz and Clinton took Iowa caucus three years ago

Three years ago, Iowa was preparing for the first primary contest of the 2016 presidential election, which took place on February 1.

More than 180,000 turned out to the Republican caucuses, smashing 2012’s turnout record by 60,000 people. Sen. Ted Cruz took the top spot with 27.6 percent of the vote and eight delegates. Donald Trump came in second with 24.3 percent and seven delegates. Sen. Marco Rubio also received seven delegates, coming in third with 23.1 percent.

In the Democratic caucus, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders were virtually tied for much of the night. Several precincts were decided by a coin toss because the results were so close. The Democratic Party of Iowa declared Clinton the winner with a lead of a quarter of one percentage point. Clinton was awarded 23 delegates and Sanders 21.

The next Iowa presidential caucus is scheduled to take place on February 3, 2020.

North Carolina Supreme Court justice announces retirement

Yesterday we reported about the forthcoming vacancy on the Virginia State Supreme Court. Now, the neighbor to the South will also see a new justice in 2019.

North Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Martin is retiring on February 28, 2019. Martin is leaving the court to become the dean of Regent University Law School in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

Because Martin is retiring mid-term, Gov. Roy Cooper (D) will select a successor. Martin's successor will be Gov. Roy Cooper's (D) first nominee to the seven-member North Carolina Supreme Court. Gov. Cooper will also choose the court's next chief justice, either by elevating a current associate justice and appointing their replacement or by naming Martin's replacement to the position.

Selection of North Carolina Supreme Court justices (not including mid-term vacancies) occur through partisan elections. Justices wishing to serve additional terms must run for re-election. Martin's successor must run for election in November 2020 to remain on the bench. Supreme court justices serve eight-year terms.

Martin's resignation will leave the seven-member court with one Republican justice, Paul Newby, who is also the most senior justice on the court. Martin's successor will likely shift the balance of the court from a 5-2 Democratic majority to a 6-1 majority until the November 2020 elections.

Martin is the 28th chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court. He was first elected to the court in 1998 when he was 35 years old. At that time, Martin was the youngest supreme court justice in North Carolina history. Gov. Pat McCrory (R) appointed Martin as chief justice on August 18, 2014. Martin was subsequently elected to serve a full eight-year term as chief justice in November 2014.


See also

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