The State and Local Tap: Forty-two states have issued stay-at-home orders

April 4, 2020Issue No. 201

Week in review

On tap next week

THE WEEK IN REVIEW

Here's what happened in State and local politics last week.

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• Sunday
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• Friday

State Politics: The Week in Review

Ballot Measures Update

2020:

• Seventy-three statewide measures in 29 states have been certified for the 2020 ballot so far.
  • Eighteen of the certified measures are citizen-initiated measures. Fifty-four are legislative referrals. One is an automatic constitutional revision commission question.
  • Three measures were on the March 3 ballot, one is on the April 7 ballot in Wisconsin, two measures are on the June 9 ballot in Maine, and the remaining 67 are on the November ballot.
  • On April 7, Wisconsin voters will decide a Marsy’s Law Amendment, which would add specific rights of crime victims to the state constitution.
  • No new measures were certified for the 2020 ballot last week.
  • One $3 billion bond measure was approved for the November ballot by the New York State Legislature last week and awaits the governor’s signature to be certified.
  • Proponents of four additional ballot initiatives in Alaska, Colorado, and Michigan submitted signatures, which are pending verification by state officials.

Sunday, March 29

Michigan Rep. Robinson dies of suspected coronavirus infection

• Michigan State Representative Isaac Robinson (D) died March 29 at age 44. He had represented District 4 in the Michigan House of Representatives since January 1, 2019.
• Robinson’s family stated that his suspected cause of death was COVID-19, the illness caused by coronavirus.
• Members of the Michigan House of Representatives serve two-year terms with term limits. Vacancies are filled by special election. Robinson’s death creates the only current vacancy in the chamber, with 58 Republican and 51 Democratic members. Michigan’s statewide primary is scheduled for August 4, 2020.
• Ballotpedia is tracking elected officials, candidates, and government officials who have been diagnosed with COVID-19 or are in quarantine to prevent transmission of COVID-19 due to coronavirus infection. Read more here.

Monday, March 30

Several New York state legislators diagnosed with coronavirus

• On March 30, it was announced that state Senator James L. Seward (R-N.Y.) tested positive for COVID-19, the illness caused by coronavirus.
• Seward is one of several New York lawmakers to contract the virus. Also on the list are state Reps. Brian Miller (R), Kimberly Jean-Pierre (D), Helene Weinstein (D), and Charles Barron (D).
• New York City councilmembers Inez Barron (D), Barry Grodenchik (D), Paul Vallone (D), and Ritchie Torres (D) also previously announced positive diagnoses.
• As of writing, Ballotpedia identified at least 30 state-level politicians who contracted COVID-19 and at least 71 who self-quarantined due to an exposure risk or for symptoms matching the virus.

Attorney General appoints former state rep. to be U.S. attorney for South Carolina

• U.S. Attorney General William Barr appointed South Carolina Rep. Peter McCoy (R) as the interim United States attorney for the District of South Carolina on March 30. McCoy resigned from the state House of Representatives that day to be sworn in to the position.
• Pres. Donald Trump (R) nominated McCoy to a permanent U.S. attorney position in February, but his appointment has not yet been acted upon by the Senate. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Barr appointed McCoy as acting U.S. attorney pending his confirmation. The role had been vacant since former U.S. attorney Sherri Lydon accepted a federal judgeship with the United States District Court in South Carolina last year.
• As the interim U.S. attorney, McCoy is the chief federal law enforcement officer in South Carolina and the administrative head of the Office of the United States Attorney. Prior to his appointment, he was a partner at law firm McCoy and Stokes and represented District 115 in the South Carolina House of Representatives from 2010 up until his resignation this week.
• McCoy’s departure from the legislature creates the only current vacancy in the South Carolina House, which will be filled by special election. South Carolina voters will vote in two primaries in the district on June 9. One is a special primary, the winners of which will advance to a special election to serve the remainder of McCoy’s term. The other is the regularly scheduled primary to select candidates for the general election in November.

Tuesday, March 31

State and local governments release some prison inmates due to the coronavirus pandemic

• The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) announced March 31 that they would expedite the release of 3,500 inmates within a few weeks to help slow the spread of coronavirus within the California prison system. The inmates considered for release are serving terms for nonviolent crimes and were due to be released in 60 days.
• Some governors are issuing executive orders relaxing restrictions to allow jail and prison officials to release vulnerable populations early. In Illinois, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed an executive order relaxing restrictions on early inmate release for good behavior. In Michigan, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed an executive order suspending provisions of the "Jail Overcrowding Emergency Act" to allow local officials to release vulnerable populations that pose no risk to the public. Gov. Jared Polis of Colorado signed an executive order granting the director of the Colorado Department of Corrections "broad authority to release people within 180 days of their parole eligibility date, and suspended limits on awarding earned time, to allow for earlier release dates."
• Texas is preventing the release of certain inmate populations. On March 29, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed an executive order prohibiting the release of inmates accused or previously convicted of violent crimes without paying bail.

Arkansas state Representative defeated in primary runoff election

• Three Republican primary runoff elections were held in Arkansas for state legislative seats March 31. No other party held primary runoff elections. On the ballot were state House Districts 53, 90, and 91. The general election is scheduled for November 3, 2020. All three primary runoff winners face Democratic candidates in the general election.
  • District 90 Rep. Jana Della Rosa was the only incumbent on the primary runoff ballot and was defeated by challenger Kendon Underwood. With all precincts reporting, unofficial results show Rosa received 45.0% of votes to Underwood’s 55.0%.
  • In District 53, Jon Milligan defeated Cole Peck with 68.3% of the vote; Peck received 31.7%.
  • The closest match-up of the night was in District 91, where Delia Haak defeated Scott Richardson with 54.0% to 46.0%.
• Entering the 2020 election, the Arkansas House of Representatives has 24 Democrats and 76 Republicans. All 100 seats are up for election. A majority in the chamber requires 51 seats. Arkansas has a Republican state government trifecta. A trifecta exists when one political party simultaneously holds the governor’s office and majorities in both state legislative chambers.
• Three other states originally planned to hold elections on March 31, but rescheduled them due to coronavirus pandemic concerns. Alabama and Mississippi postponed their statewide primary runoff elections to July 14 and June 23, respectively. Four Massachusetts special state legislative elections were postponed from March 31 to May 19 (Senate 2nd Hampden and Hampshire District and Senate Plymouth and Barnstable District) and June 2 (House 3rd Bristol District and House 37th Middlesex District).

Mississippi State Representative Andrews resigns

• Mississippi state representative William Andrews (R) resigned March 31 from the Mississippi Legislature, effective immediately.
  • Andrews said that he resigned from the House in order to receive his pension earned while serving as a county judge.
• Andrews' resignation comes two months after former state representative Ramona Blackledge (R) left the state House.
  • Blackledge stated that she resigned so she could continue receiving her Public Employees Retirement System of Mississippi (PERS) retirement benefits she earned as a county tax assessor.
• Andrews' letter of resignation stated:
  • "In spite of an Attorney General's opinion and PERS regulation allowing PERS Retirees to serve in the Legislature, Philip Gunn has blocked all efforts to comply with the existing law and PERS regulations. As a result, my PERS benefits have been suspended and the House of Representatives has refused to Pay me less than normal salary and benefits. The end result is that I cannot continue to serve."
• Mississippi House Speaker Philip Gunn (R) stated that he would not challenge a section of the Mississippi Administrative Code which prohibits recipients of Mississippi’s public employees’ retirement system benefits from also receiving a salary from the state.
  • Two other members of the Mississippi House, Representatives Goodin and Darnell, were also receiving pension payments from their time as teachers before Gunn’s decision.
• Andrews, Blackledge, Darnell, and Goodin had opted to receive reduced pay for their service as state representatives and no per diem for food and lodging during legislative sessions so they could receive their pension benefits.
  • Andrews was elected to serve as the representative for Mississippi House District 87 in November 2019.
• A special election will be held to fill the vacancy created by Andrews’ resignation. Details about this upcoming special election, including when it will be held, have not yet been released.

Wednesday, April 1

Eleven states close schools for the remainder of the academic year due to coronavirus

• California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) announced that schools would remain physically closed for the remainder of the academic year. Prior to the announcement, schools were closed statewide as a result of Newsom’s shelter-in-place order beginning March 20. Local school officials were responsible for determining school closures before the March 20 order.
• Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) also ordered schools in the state to remain closed for the remainder of the academic year. Schools were initially closed by an executive order from March 18 through March 31, which was later extended to April 24 by an order on March 26.
• So far, 11 states have closed schools for the remainder of the academic year: Alabama, Arizona, California, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Vermont, and Virginia.

Forty-two states have issued stay-at-home orders for residents

• The governors of Florida, Nevada, and Pennsylvania issued executive orders requiring residents to stay at home except for essential trips and closing nonessential businesses. All three of the orders expire on April 30. In Florida and Pennsylvania, the statewide orders came after each state previously imposed restrictions on individual counties.
• So far, 42 states have issued stay-at-home orders for residents. Seven of those orders are set to last until modified or rescinded by the governor, while the other 35 announced end dates.
• All states with a Democratic governor (24) have issued a stay-at-home order, while the other 18 states have Republican governors. Across the country, there are 24 Democratic and 26 Republican governors.

Seventeen states have postponed elections involving state or local offices

• West Virginia Governor Jim Justice (R) issued Executive Order 18-20, postponing West Virginia's statewide primary election to June 9, 2020. The primary was originally scheduled to take place May 12, 2020.
  • West Virginia is one of 17 states that have postponed primaries or elections that encompass state or local offices:
    • Alabama: Primary runoff postponed to July 14.
    • Delaware: Select school board and municipal elections postponed.
    • Indiana: Primary postponed to June 2.
    • Iowa: Three special municipal elections postponed to July 7.
    • Kentucky: Primary postponed to June 23.
    • Maryland: Primary postponed to June 2.
    • Massachusetts: Two special state Senate elections postponed to May 19; two special state House elections postponed to June 2; municipalities authorized to postpone elections originally scheduled to take prior to May 30.
    • Missouri: Municipal elections originally scheduled for April 7 postponed to June 2.
    • New Jersey: Special municipal elections in the townships of Old Bridge and West Amwell and Atlantic City postponed to May 12; all school board elections scheduled for April 21, postponed to May 12.
    • New York: Special elections in the following districts postponed to June 23: State Senate District 50, State Assembly District 12, State Assembly District 31, State Assembly District 136.
    • Ohio: Absentee voting in the state's primary extended to April 27; final date for in-person voting, restricted to individuals with disabilities and those without home mailing addresses, set for April 28.
    • Oklahoma: Municipalities authorized to postpone elections originally scheduled for April 7 to a later date.
    • Pennsylvania: Primary postponed to June 2.
    • South Carolina: Municipal elections scheduled for March and April postponed to sometime after May 1.
    • South Dakota: Local governments authorized to postpone to June any elections scheduled between April 14 and May 26.
    • Texas: Special election for Texas State Senate District 14 postponed to July 14; primary runoff elections postponed to July 14.
    • West Virginia: Primary postponed to June 9.

Majority of states suspend in-person judicial proceedings

• On April 1, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court extended its original order closing all Pennsylvania courts to the public through April 30. So far, 34 states have suspended in-person proceedings on a statewide level due to coronavirus. In most cases, suspended in-person proceedings will be rescheduled to later dates.
• Like Pennsylvania, many courts are updating or amending their original orders pushing their deadlines to a different time, or in some cases, until further notice. In Arizona, the Arizona Supreme Court updated its initial order from March 16, suspending all in-person proceedings in all Arizona courts until further notice. On March 26, the Alaska Supreme Court suspended all trial court proceedings and civil marriage ceremonies through May 1, except priority hearings.
• Several state supreme courts across the country are encouraging judges to utilize the use of technology to the greatest extent possible. In New Mexico, the New Mexico Supreme Court ordered all judges to conduct civil and criminal proceedings by video and teleconference, except in cases where an emergency in-person appearance is required. The Mississippi Supreme Court suspended a criminal procedure rule that prohibited the use of interactive equipment for probation violation hearings and felony sentencing. In Washington, the state Supreme Court instructed judges to conduct emergency matters that must be heard before April 24 through telephone, video, or other means that are not in-person.

Murdock appointed to North Carolina State Senate after winning March primary

• Almost one month after Natalie Murdock (D) won the Democratic primary in the race for North Carolina State Senate District 20, Gov. Roy Cooper (D) appointed her to the seat. Murdock’s appointment took effect immediately on April 1, 2020.
• Murdock replaces Henry Michaux, Jr. (D), a retired former member of the North Carolina House of Representatives. Cooper appointed Michaux, who served in the House for 35 years, following the resignation of Floyd McKissick in January 2020. At the time of his appointment, Michaux stated that he expected to serve briefly in the state senate until the North Carolina primaries took place and Cooper appointed the winner to the seat. Michaux resigned from the Senate on March 31, 2020.
• Murdock defeated Pierce Freelon and Gray Ellis with 45.2% of the vote in the primary race on March 3. Freelon and Ellis received 37% and 17.7% of the vote, respectively. Murdock will face Republican candidate John Tarantino in the general election on November 3. Ballotpedia has identified the North Carolina State Senate as one of 22 state legislative battleground chambers.

Thursday, April 2

Wisconsin Senate Minority Leader will not seek re-election

• Wisconsin State Senate Minority Leader Jennifer Shilling (D) announced April 2 she would not seek re-election.
  • Shilling’s announcement comes after spending nearly 20 years in the state legislature.
• In a statement, Shilling said, "It was not an easy decision, but I know it is time to put my family first and look to a future where I can put away my little red suitcase that has accompanied me on my weekly travels to Madison for the past 20 years.”
  • Shilling was first elected to the state Senate in August 2011, after winning a recall election and defeating Republican incumbent Dan Kapanke.
  • She has served as the senator representing Senate District 32 ever since.
  • Before that, she represented District 95 in the Wisconsin State Assembly since 2001.
• The filing deadline for Wisconsin’s state legislative elections is June 1, 2020. A primary is scheduled for August 11, 2020, and the general election will take place on November 3, 2020.

Friday, April 3

Candidate filing period for state legislative races ends in five states

• The filing deadlines to run for state legislative races passed this week in South Carolina, Missouri, South Dakota, New York, and Tennessee. In total, 782 state legislative races are on the 2020 ballot in those five states. South Carolina’s filing deadline was March 30, Missouri’s and South Dakota’s deadlines were March 31, and New York’s and Tennessee’s were April 2. The filing deadline also passed in New Jersey on March 30 for two state legislative special elections.
• South Carolina
  • In South Carolina, candidates could file for the following state legislative offices:
    • State Senate (46 seats)
    • State House (124 seats)
  • Ballotpedia is also covering the following local school board elections:
    • Berkeley County School District (5 seats)
    • Charleston County School District (5 seats)
    • Greenville County School District (5 seats)
    • Horry County Schools (5 seats)
• Missouri
  • In Missouri, candidates could file for the following state legislative offices:
    • State Senate (17 seats)
    • State House (163 seats)
  • Ballotpedia is also covering elections for the following state offices and municipalities:
    • Governor
    • Lieutenant Governor
    • Attorney General
    • Secretary of State
    • Treasurer
    • Center School District (2 seats)
    • Grandview C-4 School District (3 seats)
    • Hickman Mills C-1 School District (2 seats)
    • Liberty Public Schools (3 seats)
    • North Kansas City Schools (2 seats)
    • Park Hill School District (3 seats)
    • Platte County R-III School District (3 seats)
    • Raytown C-2 School District (4 seats)
    • St. Joseph School District (4 seats)
    • Clay County
    • Jackson County
    • Platte County
  • Additionally, Missouri will hold retention elections for one Supreme Court justice and seven Court of Appeals justices.
• South Dakota
  • In South Dakota, candidates could file for the following state legislative offices:
    • State Senate (34 seats)
    • State House (70 seats)
  • Ballotpedia is also covering the following state offices:
    • Public Utilities Commissioner
  • Additionally, South Dakota will hold a retention election for one Supreme Court justice.
• New York
  • In New York, candidates could file for the following state legislative offices:
    • State Senate (63 seats)
    • State House (150 seats)
  • Ballotpedia is also covering local offices in the following areas:
    • Lackawanna City School District (2 seats)
    • New York, New York
    • Erie County, New York
    • Queens County, New York
• Tennessee
  • In Tennessee, candidates could file for the following state legislative offices:
    • State Senate (16 seats)
    • State House (99 seats)
  • Ballotpedia is also covering local offices in the following areas:
    • Clarksville-Montgomery County School System (3 seats)
    • Hamilton County School District (4 seats)
    • Knox County School District (4 seats)
    • Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools (5 seats)
    • Rutherford County Schools (4 seats)
    • Shelby County Schools (4 seats)
    • Williamson County Schools (5 seats)
    • Nashville, Tennessee
    • Shelby County, Tennessee
  • Additionally, Tennessee will hold retention elections for one Court of Appeals justice.
• New Jersey
  • In New Jersey, candidates could file for state legislative special elections in the following districts:
    • New Jersey State Senate District 25
    • New Jersey General Assembly District 25
  • Ballotpedia is also covering the following local school board elections:
    • Newark Public Schools (3 seats)
    • Jersey City Public Schools (1 seat)
• New Jersey, South Carolina, Missouri, South Dakota, New York, and Tennessee’s statewide filing deadlines were the 26th, 27th, 28th, 29th, 30th, and 31st to take place in the 2020 election cycle. The next statewide filing deadline is on April 6, 2020, in Arizona.
• New York and New Jersey have Democratic state government trifectas, while South Carolina, Missouri, South Dakota, and Tennessee have Republican state government trifectas. A trifecta exists when one political party simultaneously holds the governor’s office and majorities in both state legislative chambers.

Special Elections

• So far this year, 37 state legislative special elections have been scheduled in 18 states. Special elections have been held for 22 seats so far; heading into those races, Democrats had previously controlled 10 of the seats while Republicans previously controlled 12. One seat has flipped from Democratic control to Republican control. One seat has flipped from Republican control to Democratic control.
  • In special elections between 2011 and 2019, one party (either Republicans or Democrats) saw an average net gain of four seats nationally each year.
  • An average of 55 seats were filled through special elections in each of the past five even years (2010: 26, 2012: 45, 2014: 40, 2016: 65, 2018: 99).
  • An average of 88 seats were filled through special elections in each of the past five odd years (2011: 94, 2013: 84, 2015: 88, 2017: 98, 2019: 77).

Upcoming special elections include:

April 21

• Mississippi House of Representatives District 88

Local Politics: The Week in Review

• In 2020, Ballotpedia is providing comprehensive coverage of elections in America's 100 largest cities by population. This encompasses every office on the ballot in these cities, including their municipal elections, trial court elections, school board elections, and local ballot measures. Ballotpedia is also covering all local recall elections as well as all local ballot measures in California.
  • 2020
    • March 10 - Arizona -- Voters in Chandler approved a charter amendment to make the city’s charter compatible with state law governing local election dates.
    • March 10 - Michigan--Voters in Wayne County approved a measure to renew the Wayne County Art Institute Authority's existing property tax of 0.2 mill ($20 per $100,000 in assessed value) to provide funding for the Detroit Institute of Arts through 2031.
    • April 7 - Alaska-- Voters in Anchorage will decide 13 ballot measures:
      • nine bond issues,
      • one tax-related ordinance,
      • one marijuana-related ordinance,
      • one tax-related charter amendment, and
      • one charter amendment that was designed to increase the size of the Anchorage Municipal Assembly.
    • April 7 - Wisconsin -- Voters in Milwaukee County and Milwaukee Public Schools will vote on two local ballot measures on April 7:
      • The Milwaukee County measure is a nonbinding advisory vote on whether to advise the Wisconsin State Legislature to create a nonpartisan redistricting plan for state legislative and congressional boundaries. Six other towns and six other counties in Wisconsin are featuring similar nonbinding redistricting questions on ballots in April.
      • The Milwaukee Public Schools measure would authorize the school district to incrementally increase its annual revenue limit by a total of $87 million over four years and maintain that level thereafter. It would also increase the district’s property tax rate.

WHAT'S ON TAP NEXT WEEK

Here's what is happening in State and local politics this week.

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State Politics: What's On Tap Next Week

Monday, April 6

Candidate filing period for state and local races to end in Arizona, North Dakota, and Oklahoma

• The major-party filing deadlines to run for state elected office in three states are next week. Arizona’s and North Dakota’s filing deadlines are on April 6, and Oklahoma’s filing deadline is on April 10.
• In Arizona, prospective candidates may file for the following state offices:
  • Corporation Commission (3 seats)
  • State Senate (30 seats)
  • State House (60 seats)
  • Ballotpedia is also covering local elections in the following areas, though the filing deadline for these offices is not until July 6:
    • Phoenix, Arizona
    • Mesa, Arizona
    • Chandler, Arizona
    • Glendale, Arizona
    • Gilbert, Arizona
    • Scottsdale, Arizona
    • Maricopa County, Arizona
    • Pima County, Arizona
    • 42 school districts
• In North Dakota, prospective candidates may file for the following state offices:
  • Governor
  • Lieutenant Governor
  • Treasurer
  • State Auditor
  • Commissioner of Insurance
  • Public Service Commissioner
  • Superintendent of Public Instruction
  • State Senate (23 seats)
  • State House (47 seats)
  • Supreme Court (1 seat)
• In Oklahoma, prospective candidates may file for the following state offices:
  • Corporation Commissioner
  • State Senate (24 seats)
  • State House (101 seats)
  • Ballotpedia is also covering local elections in the following areas:
    • Tulsa, Oklahoma
    • Oklahoma County, Oklahoma
    • Tulsa County, Oklahoma
    • Cleveland County, Oklahoma
    • Canadian County, Oklahoma
    • Osage County, Oklahoma
    • 25 school districts (the filing deadline for these elections was December 4, 2019)
• Arizona and Oklahoma are also holding retention elections for their state supreme courts and their state intermediate appellate courts on November 3, 2020.
• The primary in Arizona is scheduled for August 4, the primary in North Dakota is scheduled for June 9, and the primary in Oklahoma is scheduled for June 30. North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum (R) authorized counties to conduct the June 9 primary election entirely by mail in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The general elections for all three states are scheduled for November 3, 2020.
• Arizona’s, North Dakota’s, and Oklahoma’s statewide filing deadlines are the 32nd, 33rd, and 34th to take place in the 2020 election cycle. The next statewide filing deadline is on April 21 in Michigan.
• Arizona, North Dakota, and Oklahoma have Republican state government trifectas. A trifecta exists when one political party simultaneously holds the governor’s office and majorities in both state legislative chambers.

Tuesday, April 7

Wisconsin voters to elect state supreme court justice

• Incumbent Dan Kelly and challenger Jill Karofsky are running for a 10-year term on the Wisconsin Supreme Court in the Tuesday's spring general election currently scheduled for Tuesday. Although the race is officially nonpartisan, Kelly has received support from conservative individuals and groups, including President Trump and the state Republican Party, and Karofsky has received support from liberal individuals and groups, including Sen. Bernie Sanders and the state Democratic Party.
• Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D) called a special session of the legislature Friday afternoon to discuss potential changes to the election in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Evers proposed conducting the election entirely via mail and extending the deadline for mail-in ballots to be received from April 13 to May 26. Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald (R) and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R) issued a joint statement which said, in part, "many local government positions on the ballot must be filled so that municipalities can swiftly respond to the crisis at hand. We continue to support what Governor Evers has supported for weeks: the election should continue as planned on Tuesday."
• The election will decide the size of the court's conservative majority. A Kelly win would preserve the court's current 5-2 majority, meaning that liberals would not be able to gain control of the court until 2026 at the earliest, assuming no justices leave the bench early. A Karofsky win would reduce conservatives' majority to 4-3, giving liberals a chance to win a majority in the 2023 election.
• Recent Wisconsin Supreme Court elections have been decided by narrow margins. In the 2019 election, conservative Brian Hagedorn defeated liberal Lisa Neubauer 50.2% to 49.7%. Setting aside the 2017 election, in which incumbent Annette Ziegler ran unopposed, the widest margin of victory in the past decade was liberal incumbent Ann Walsh Bradley's 58.1% to 41.9% win in 2015.
• Kelly is running for his first full term on the court after Gov. Scott Walker (R) appointed him to succeed retiring Justice David Prosser in 2016.
• Karofsky was first elected to the Dane County Circuit Court in 2017.
• The coronavirus pandemic has led to an ongoing debate among state government officials over which procedures to modify heading into the election. As of April 2, over 1.1 million absentee ballot requests had been submitted to municipal clerks' offices. Gov. Tony Evers (D) called for the election to be held via absentee ballot only on March 27. State Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald (R) said that Evers' request was not feasible given the number of ballots that would need to be printed and distributed.

Wisconsin voters to decide Marsy's Law amendment

• Voters in Wisconsin will vote on Marsy’s Law—a type of constitutional amendment addressing the rights of crime victims. The Wisconsin State Legislature referred the constitutional amendment to the ballot on May 15, 2019. Voters in 12 other states have approved Marsy's Law measures. Marsy's Law has never been defeated at the ballot. Montana's 2018 Marsy's Law measure, however, was overturned by a court ruling, and Kentucky's 2018 measure is pending a court ruling.
• Due to the coronavirus the absentee ballot request deadline was extended to 5:00 p.m. on April 3 for this election, and the ballot return deadline was extended to 4:00 p.m. on April 13.
• Henry Nicholas, the co-founder of Broadcom Corp., began campaigning for Marsy’s Law in 2008. His sister, Marsy Nicholas, was murdered in 1983. The first Marsy’s Law on the ballot was in California in 2008. The other states that have voted on, and approved, Marsy’s Law are Illinois (2014), Montana (2016), North Dakota (2016), South Dakota (2016), Ohio (2017), Florida (2018), Georgia (2018), Kentucky (2018), Nevada (2018), North Carolina (2018), and Oklahoma (2018). The Kentucky Marsy’s Law has not been enacted pending a court ruling. About $102.26 million was raised in support of the 12 Marsy’s Law constitutional amendments.
• As passed by the Wisconsin State Legislature, the Marsy’s Law amendment would grant crime victims with certain rights, including a right to be treated with dignity, respect, courtesy, sensitivity, and fairness; a right to privacy; a right to be present at all criminal proceedings and hearings; a right to confer with the government prosecutor; and a right to restitution and compensation. Currently, the state constitution grants crime victims with some of these rights, such as a right to restitution.
• The organization Marsy’s Law for All advocates for Marsy’s Law constitutional amendments, stating that Marsy’s Law makes crime victims’ rights co-equal with criminal defendants’ rights in state constitutions. The ACLU of Wisconsin opposes the Marsy’s Law constitutional amendment, saying victims’ rights and defendants rights are not legally equivalent. Whereas defendants rights are rights against the state, according to the ACLU, victims’ rights are rights against an individual.

States in session

Six states—Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont—are in regular session.

Local Politics: What's On Tap Next Week

Tuesday, April 7

Anchorage to hold all-mail municipal elections

• The city of Anchorage, Alaska, is holding general elections April 7 for six city council seats, two school board seats, and 15 special district seats. The elections will be vote-by-mail, and all of the races are nonpartisan.
• The Anchorage City Council, also known as the Anchorage Assembly, has six of its 11 seats on the ballot in 2020. District 2-Seat C incumbent Fred Dyson was the only assembly incumbent to not file for re-election.
  • District 1 – Seat B: Incumbent Christopher Constant is unopposed in the general election.
  • District 2 – Seat C: Jamie Allard, Roger Branson, and Stephany Jeffers are running in the general election.
  • District 3 – Seat E: Incumbent Austin Quinn-Davidson, Nick Danger, and MoHagani Magnetek are running in the general election.
  • District 4 – Seat G: Incumbent Felix Rivera faces Christine Hill in the general election.
  • District 5 – Seat I: Incumbent Pete Petersen, Monty Dyson, and David Walker are running in the general election.
  • District 6 – Seat K: Incumbent Suzanne LaFrance and Rick Castillo are facing off in the general election.
• The Anchorage School District has two of the board’s seven seats on the ballot in 2020. Incumbents Dave Donley and Andy Holleman both filed for re-election.
  • Seat C: Incumbent Dave Donley faces James Smallwood in the general election.
  • Seat D: Incumbent Andy Holleman, JC Cates, and Phil Isley are running in the general election.
• In 2020, Ballotpedia is covering elections in 52 of America’s 100 largest cities by population.

Milwaukee, Madison to hold municipal, county, and judicial elections in Wisconsin

• A general election for municipal and county offices is scheduled for April 7 in Milwaukee and Madison, Wisconsin’s two most populous cities. Milwaukee is the county seat of Milwaukee County, and Madison is the county seat of Dane County. Primaries were held February 18.
  • In Milwaukee, the following offices are up for election:
    • Mayor
    • City attorney
    • City comptroller
    • Common council (15 seats)
  • In Milwaukee County, the following offices are up for election:
    • County executive
    • County comptroller
    • Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors (18 seats)
    • Milwaukee County Circuit Court (branches 2, 5, 7, 16, 27, 29, and 32)
  • In Madison, the following office is up for election:
    • Special election for Madison Common Council District 8
  • In Dane County, the following offices are up for election:
    • Dane County Board of Supervisors (37 seats)
    • Dane County Circuit Court (branch 7)
• Offices in Dane County and Milwaukee County are officially nonpartisan. The presidential primary in Wisconsin is also scheduled for April 7.
• Although many states have postponed or authorized the postponement of municipal elections in reaction to the coronavirus (COVID-19), lawmakers in Wisconsin have declined to do so. On Thursday, April 2, U.S. District Judge William Conley dismissed a request to delay the election but did issue an order extending absentee voting deadlines in the April 7 election. Under Conley’s order, the absentee ballot request deadline was extended to 5:00 p.m. April 3, 2020. The ballot return deadline was extended to 4:00 p.m. April 13, 2020.
• In response to concerns that many areas of Wisconsin would not have enough poll workers to open voting locations, Assistant Attorney General Hannah Jurss indicated on March 31 that Governor Tony Evers (D) would deploy members of the National Guard to assist poll workers on April 7.

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