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Daily Brew: November 29, 2021
November 29, 2021
Welcome to the Monday, November 29, Brew.
By: Samuel Wonacott
Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:
- A Tennessee Supreme Court vacancy
- Listen up! GivingTuesday starts tomorrow!
- Statewide filing deadlines in 2022
Eleven apply for vacant Tennessee Supreme Court seat
The Tennessee courts administration announced on Nov. 19 that 11 individuals applied to fill the vacant seat on the Tennessee Supreme Court. The seat became vacant on Sept. 24 when former Justice Cornelia Clark passed away from cancer.
Tennessee uses the assisted appointment method of judicial selection to select state supreme court justices. Under the assisted appointment method, a nominating commission reviews the résumés of candidates for judicial office and then sends a shortlist of qualified candidates to the governor for consideration. Twenty-one states use the assisted appointment method to fill state supreme court vacancies.
In 2021, there have been 18 supreme court vacancies in 16 of the 29 states where replacement justices are appointed instead of elected. Seventeen of the vacancies have been caused by retirements, and one vacancy was caused by a justice's death. To date, 14 of those vacancies have been filled.
The Tennessee Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments will hold a public hearing on Dec. 8 and Dec. 9 to consider the applicants. The council is expected to vote on the applicants at the close of the hearing and forward three names to Gov. Bill Lee (R) for consideration. Lee’s nominee must receive approval from both houses of the Tennessee General Assembly before taking office. Tennessee has a Republican trifecta, meaning that the Republican Party controls the governor’s office and both chambers of the state legislature. Republicans have a 27-6 majority in the Tennessee State Senate and a 73-26 majority in the Tennessee House of Representatives.
The 11 applicants are:
- William Blaylock, chief hearing officer, Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development's Unemployment Appeals Tribunal
- Sarah Campbell, associate solicitor general and special assistant to the attorney general, Tennessee Office of the Attorney General
- Kristi Davis, judge, Tennessee Court of Appeals
- Timothy L. Easter, judge, Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals
- Kelvin Jones, judge, Tennessee Twentieth Circuit Court
- William Neal McBrayer, judge, Tennessee Court of Appeals
- J. Douglas Overbey, of counsel, Owings, Wilson & Coleman
- Robert F. Parsley, member, Miller & Martin PLLC
- Jonathan T. Skrmetti, chief deputy attorney general, Tennessee Office of the Attorney General
- Gingeree Smith, attorney
- Jeffrey Usman, law professor, Belmont University College of Law
In recent years, we've published two studies on state supreme courts. Ballotpedia Courts: State Partisanship evaluated the extent to which each state supreme court justice was affiliated with the Democratic or Republican Parties. Ballotpedia Courts: Determiners and Dissenters examined how these justices decided the cases that came before them in 2020. Which justices ruled together most often? Which frequently dissented? Which courts featured the most unanimous vs. contentious decisions?
Listen up! GivingTuesday starts tomorrow!
We hope you treated yourself for Black Friday and today for Cyber Monday. So, now it’s time to give back! GivingTuesday is an international, annual day dedicated to giving that celebrates the causes that mean the most to you.
As we enter the 2022 election season, we are working hard to come up with new ways to better serve you and expand our ability to provide nonpartisan political information.
Tomorrow, as people around the world support causes near and dear to their hearts, we hope you will choose to donate to Ballotpedia and help us launch an exciting new project...one that will bring you the same nonpartisan political and policy information you know and love...in a whole. new. way.
We are also excited to announce that a generous donor has stepped up to match the first $10,000 raised, so your gift will make TWICE the impact!
Mark your calendars, set your clocks, and stay tuned for more exciting details!
Upcoming 2022 statewide filing deadlines
General elections in 2022 won’t take place until Nov. 8 (that’s 354 days from today for those keeping precise track), but the first filing deadlines for 2022 statewide primary candidates are only a few weeks away! In fact, Texas’ Dec. 13. filing deadline for the statewide primary election is exactly 14 days from today. North Carolina’s filing deadline is four days later, on Dec. 17.
Eight states have filing deadlines in January and February of 2022. Eighteen states have deadlines in March while 12 have deadlines set in April and May. The remaining 10 states have filing deadlines in June and July.
The first statewide primary elections are also right around the corner, with Texas and North Carolina holding theirs on March 1 and 8, respectively. Those are the only two states holding statewide primary elections in March. After that, 11 states will hold primaries in May, and 18 states will hold primaries in June. Fourteen states have scheduled primaries in August, and four have scheduled primaries in September.
Louisiana holds its primaries in November with all candidates, regardless of party affiliation, running on the same ballot. If a candidate receives over 50% of the vote, he or she wins outright. If no candidate wins a majority, the race advances to a runoff election in December between the top two vote-getters.
