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The Tap: Tuesday, August 30, 2016

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The Tap covered election news, public policy, and other noteworthy events from February 2016 to February 2022.

Review of the day

The excerpts below were compiled from issue #32 of The Tap, which was published on September 3, 2016. READ THE FULL VERSION HERE.

Federal

  • Of the 14,900 deleted emails that the FBI recovered from Hillary Clinton’s private email server, roughly 30 may pertain to the 2012 terrorist attack in Benghazi, the Associated Press reports. A lawyer for the State Department requested to have until the end of September to review the documents and redact classified information before releasing them.
  • The conservative group Judicial Watch submitted 25 questions to Hillary Clinton about her use of a private email server during her tenure as secretary of state. U.S. District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan ordered Clinton to answer all 25 questions in a written statement under oath. According to Judicial Watch, Clinton has until September 29 to respond. Judicial Watch had requested to question Clinton in person, but Sullivan denied the request.
  • The editorial board of The New York Times called for the Clinton Foundation to cease accepting financial donations from foreign entities and corporations and for Hillary, Bill, and Chelsea Clinton to cut all ties to the foundation if Clinton wins the general election in November. The board wrote, “A wiser course would be to ban contributions from foreign and corporate entities now. If Mrs. Clinton wins, Bill and Chelsea Clinton should both end their operational involvement in the foundation and its affiliates for the duration of her presidency, relinquishing any control over spending, hiring and board appointments. … The Clinton Foundation has become a symbol of the Clintons’ laudable ambitions, but also of their tangled alliances and operational opacity. If Mrs. Clinton wins, it could prove a target for her political adversaries. Achieving true distance from the foundation is not only necessary to ensure its effectiveness, it is an ethical imperative for Mrs. Clinton.”
    • See also: The Clinton Foundation
  • In an interview with Yahoo! News, Jill Stein called “undemocratic” the requirement by the Commission on Presidential Debates that presidential candidates must reach 15 percent in national polls to participate in general election debates. “American people are begging for other choices. Let’s insure that we have a real debate here, then let the chips fall as they may,” said Stein.
  • Arizona held congressional primaries.
  • Florida held congressional primaries.
    • The U.S. Senate seat currently held by Marco Rubio (R) is up for election in 2016. Although he initially announced that he would not seek re-election, Rubio joined the race just days before the state’s filing deadline. Rubio easily defeated Carlos Beruff, Ernie Rivera, and Dwight Young in the Republican primary. On the Democratic side, Rep. Patrick Murphy defeated Rep. Alan Grayson, Pam Keith, Roque De La Fuente, and Reginald Luster to win the nomination. The Senate race between Rubio and Murphy is one of nine Senate battleground races in November.
    • Florida has 27 U.S. House districts. The Republican Party currently holds 17 seats to the 10 seats of the Democratic Party. Court-ordered redistricting left the majority of the state’s House districts with at least minor changes, and several districts saw radical shifts.
    • Twenty of the state’s 27 House incumbents are seeking re-election in some capacity in 2016. Due to redistricting, not all incumbents seeking re-election are doing so in their former districts. Nine of those 20 incumbents seeking re-election faced at least one primary challenger on Tuesday.
    • There are two House battleground districts in Florida in 2016: Districts 18 and 26. District 18 was left open due to incumbent Patrick Murphy’s (D) U.S. Senate run. Randy Perkins (D) and Brian Mast (R) won their respective primaries. In Florida’s 26th District, Joe Garcia defeated Annette Taddeo in the Democratic primary. Garcia will face incumbent Carlos Curbelo (R) in the general election.
    • There were three primary races to watch in Florida in 2016.
      • District 5 Democratic primary: Incumbent Corrine Brown was defeated by former state Sen. Al Lawson. Brown is the fifth U.S. House incumbent to lose a primary in 2016. She was indicted earlier in the year on charges of mail and wire fraud, conspiracy, obstruction and filing of false tax returns. Additionally, due to redistricting, Brown currently represents only about 38 percent of the newly drawn 5th District. Florida’s 5th District is rated safely Democratic in the general election.
      • District 11 Republican primary: District 10 incumbent Daniel Webster defeated Justin Grabelle—the former chief of staff to the retiring incumbent of District 11, Rich Nugent—in the primary. Florida's 11th District was another example of a race in which redistricting played the primary role in making an incumbent vulnerable. However, Webster won the primary by a comfortable 60-40 margin.
      • District 23 Democratic primary: Incumbent Debbie Wasserman Schultz defeated Tim Canova in the primary. Heading into the primary, Wasserman Schultz had the endorsement of President Barack Obama and a lead in overall fundraising, while Canova had the backing of Sen. Bernie Sanders. The race received national attention in July 2016, when DNC emails were made public suggesting that the DNC, of which Wasserman Schultz was chair at the time, was favoring Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.
  • President Barack Obama commuted the sentences of 111 people, which brought the total number of commutations for the month of August to 325, “the greatest number of commutations ever granted by a president in a single month.” Most of the individuals were serving sentences for nonviolent drug crimes. According to a White House press release, “The 325 commutations the President has granted in just one month is more than any president granted in a single year for nearly a century.” Additionally, “To date, President Obama has granted 673 commutations: more commutations than the previous ten presidents combined. More than one-third of the President’s commutation recipients, or 232 individuals, were serving life sentences.”
  • Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said that as of Friday, the center had spent $194 million of the $222 million it was allocated to fight the Zika virus. A large portion of the funding has been spent to kill the disease-carrying mosquitoes in Miami-Dade County in Florida, but, according to The New York Times, “if Florida has another cluster of Zika cases, or if one surfaced in another state, the agency would not be able to send emergency funds, Dr. Frieden said.” Congress left for summer recess without passing a $1.1 billion Zika funding bill, but the Senate is expected to vote on the bill when they return to Capitol Hill next week. It will be difficult to pass unless lawmakers can compromise. Democrats oppose the bill because it would prevent Planned Parenthood from getting funding “for contraception to combat spread of the virus, which can be sexually transmitted.”
  • The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reached a settlement with the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) requiring the agency to consider the listing of nine species under the Endangered Species Act before the year 2020. The CBD sued the Fish and Wildlife Service in March 2016, alleging that the agency missed legal deadlines to list the species despite the agency’s previous findings that the species warranted federal protection. One of the first species to be considered is the Northern Rockies fisher, a cat-sized weasel that inhabits Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. The agency must make a listing decision by October 2017. Another species is the alligator snapping turtle, which inhabits Florida. A decision on the turtle must be made before 2020. Other species include the California spotted owl, the Beaverpond marstonia (a freshwater snail), the foothill yellow-legged frog, and the cobblestone tiger beetle, among others. The settlement must be approved by Judge Emmet G. Sullivan before going into effect. Proponents of the settlement have argued that the lawsuit was necessary to compel the agency to act on listing species that warranted federal protection. Opponents of the settlement have argued that the settlement represented another attempt by environmental groups to set endangered species policy via suing and settling with the federal government.
  • On Sunday, New York Times columnist Jim Rutenberg criticized presidential candidates Hillary Clinton (D) and Donald Trump (R) and the Obama administration for their lack of transparency with the media. Rutenberg wrote, “Right now, every signal from Mrs. Clinton is that should she win, her administration would continue the tradition of being still more secretive than the one before it; the Obama White House has achieved just that with its abysmal record on fulfilling Freedom of Information Act requests and its record of prosecuting whistle-blowers who have shared national security information with the press.” White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest wrote an op-ed in response to the article criticizing Rutenberg for not “giving credit where it is due” and acknowledging the Obama administration’s transparency efforts. Earnest wrote that the administration has made White House visitor logs public, allowed the press to cover fundraisers at private homes, and released data sets on Data.gov.

State

  • Florida held its primary election for the state’s legislature. No incumbents were defeated by challengers in either the Senate or the House. In total, only three incumbents saw primary challengers in the Senate, while 11 faced challengers in the House.
  • Primary election in Arizona: Arizona held its primary election for the state’s legislature. Four incumbents were challenged in the Senate, while 18 faced opposition in the House.
    • In the Senate, Republican incumbent Jeff Dial of District 18 was defeated by challenger Frank Schmuck. Democratic incumbent Martin Quezada, who narrowly defeated Lydia Hernandez in the 2014 primary election for Senate District 29, defeated Hernandez again this year.
    • In the House, two Democratic incumbents were defeated. Matt Kopec of District 9, who was appointed in January of this year to take over Victoria Steele's position, was defeated by challenger Pamela Hannley. Two challengers each earned more votes than incumbent Celeste Plumlee of District 26, bumping her out of the seat she had taken in 2015. Republicans David Stringer and Chip Davis, both challengers, competed for the second seat in District 1. Stringer defeated Davis by 28 votes, triggering an automatic recount for the seat. District 1 incumbent Noel Campbell secured her seat in the primary and will advance to the general election.
  • Special primary election: Wyoming
    • In state House District 18, a special election was held in House Precinct 5-4 to determine the winner of the August 16, 2016, Republican primary, in which officials say that election workers gave out 98 incorrect ballots before the mistake was discovered. According to unofficial results, Scott Heiner defeated Thomas Crank and three other challengers in the special election. Sweetwater County Clerk Dale Davis does not believe that the precinct results will have an impact on the overall race. Thomas Crank won the original primary by 42 votes. In the special election, Crank received six fewer votes than he did in the August 16 primary in that same precinct. The exact winner will not be determined until the state canvassing board meets on September 6 to certify the results. With Republican Matt Mead as the state’s governor, Wyoming is one of 23 Republican state government trifectas.
  • Republican incumbents Andy Tobin and Robert Burns fended off primary challengers for their seats on the Arizona Corporation Commission. Three seats are up for election in November. Tobin, Burns, and Boyd Dunn are the Republican nominees for the seats. During the primary race, Tobin coordinated with Dunn and Rick Gray in an attempt to unseat fellow Republican Commissioner Burns because of disagreements the two had about solar energy policy. Tobin’s plan was unsuccessful, as Burns took first place in the Republican primary. Tobin, Burns, and Dunn will face Democrats Tom Chabin and former Commissioner William Mundell in November. Republicans currently enjoy a 5-0 majority on the commission.
  • The Pennsylvania State Senate unanimously confirmed Bruce Beemer (D) to serve as acting attorney general for the remainder of Democrat Kathleen Kane's term, which ends in January 2017. Kane had been convicted on charges of perjury and obstruction on August 15 and resigned two days later. She was automatically succeeded by her first deputy, Republican Bruce Castor. Governor Tom Wolf (D) nominated Beemer to serve out the remainder of the term on August 18. Castor held the seat until Beemer was sworn in on August 30—at which time, the office shifted back to Democratic control. Beemer formerly served as first deputy attorney general under Kane, but he left the office after his name appeared on a witness list for the prosecution in Kane's August 2016 criminal trial. He was serving as inspector general, a position to which he was also appointed by Governor Wolf, at the time of his appointment as acting attorney general. The office is up for election in 2016; neither Beemer nor Castor are eligible to run for a full term as filing deadlines have already passed.

Local

  • In Illinois, the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) called for a strike authorization vote on a potential October walkout in Chicago Public Schools (CPS). The possible strike is a response to multiple rounds of failed contract negotiations between CTU, CPS, and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel (D). Contract negotiations to replace a pact that expired in June 2015 have been underway for more than a year. The CTU’s bargaining team rejected a contract proposal that was presented as part of the district’s operating budget in January 2016. A second contract proposal, presented to the CTU in April 2016, was also rejected after teachers staged a one-day walkout. CTU vice president Jesse Sharkey said that 88 percent of union members would allow leaders to call a strike, more than the 75 percent required by law. Although Sharkey would not release specific details about the authorization vote, he did say that union leaders must now speak with the CTU’s House of Delegates to plan the union’s next actions. “We want to avoid a strike, that’s important to say. But we’re not prepared to see further cuts made to schools and the people who work in them,” said Sharkey. Chicago Public Schools is the largest school district in Illinois and the third-largest school district in the United States. It served 396,641 students during the 2013-2014 school year—19.2 percent of all Illinois public school students.
    • The turmoil between CPS and the CTU has been ongoing:
      • On August 24, 2016, the CPS school board unanimously approved a $5.4 billion operating budget for 2016-2017. The budget includes $30 million in concessions from the CTU. In response, Chicago teachers marched in front of CPS headquarters. The budget was first proposed in early August and includes increased property taxes and personnel cuts. It also offers gradual pay increases for teachers and phases out district payments into CTU pension and insurance funds. The inclusion of $945 million in borrowing for unspecified construction projects received backlash from CTU leaders after 1,000 teachers, aides, and support staff were laid off earlier in August due to district budget shortfalls.
  • The criminal justice committee of the New Orleans City Council voted 4-0 to move a gun regulations ordinance to the full city council for a vote. The ordinance creates firearm-free zones such as school campuses, school buses, and city-owned parks. It also imposes a $250 fine on individuals who fail to report it if their firearms are stolen. The ordinance includes two other provisions. It bans guns that have had their serial numbers removed, with exceptions for antique or inoperable firearms, and outlaws the negligent handling of a firearm, partially defined as “when a firearm is handled in a way that it’s foreseeable that the firearm will discharge.” Mayor Mitch Landrieu (D) spearheaded the ordinance and announced its conception in April 2016 during a news conference at Bunny Friend Park. The park was the scene of a mass shooting in 2015, which injured 17 people. Criminal justice committee chairwoman Susan Guidry also asked the New Orleans Police Department to begin publishing the number of guns that are stolen in the city. New Orleans is the largest city in Louisiana and the 51st-largest city in the U.S. by population.
  • In Arizona, four of the state’s largest cities held primary elections for municipal offices. Although the cities referred to them as primary elections, they were functionally general elections because candidates who received more than 50 percent of the vote were automatically elected. Any remaining seats will be decided in the election on November 8, 2016.
    • Chandler: Three at-large city council seats were up for primary election. Eight candidates, including incumbent Nora Ellen, ran for the three seats. Two other incumbents are retiring and did not seek re-election. Ellen and challenger Sam Huang won two of the three seats. They won their seats outright because they each received votes on a majority of the primary ballots. Candidates Matt Eberle and Mark Stewart advanced to the November election for the final seat up for election. Chandler is the fourth-largest city in Arizona and the 79th-largest city in the U.S. by population.
    • Gilbert: The mayor’s office and two at-large city council seats were up for primary election. Councilwoman Jenn Daniels ran for mayor instead of seeking re-election to her council seat. She won the race unopposed. Seven candidates, including incumbent Jared Taylor, ran for the two city council seats. Taylor and three other candidates advanced to the November election. Gilbert is the sixth-largest city in Arizona and the 92nd-largest city in the U.S. by population.
    • Glendale: The mayor’s office and three city council seats were up for primary election. Mayor Jerry Weiers (R) defeated one challenger to retain his seat. Yucca District representative Samuel Chavira was defeated by challenger Joyce Clark. The other two city council members were unopposed. City council members in Glendale serve individual districts rather than serving at large. Glendale is the fifth-largest city in Arizona and the 87th-largest city in the U.S. by population.
    • Mesa: The mayor’s office and three city council seats were up for primary election. City council members in Glendale serve individual districts rather than serving at large. Mayor John Giles (R) ran unopposed in his re-election bid. The other three races featured no incumbents because all three were term-limited and ineligible to run again. District 1 candidate Mark Freeman and District 3 candidate Ryan Winkle won their seats outright because they each won more than 50 percent of the vote in the election. In District 3, two candidates advanced to the November election. Mesa is the third-largest city in Arizona and the 38th-largest city in the U.S. by population.
  • In Florida, 60 local judgeships were up for primary election. Although the state referred to it as a primary election, it was functionally a general election because any candidate who won a majority of votes in his or her race was automatically elected to the position. In races where no candidate received a majority, the top two vote recipients advanced to an election on November 8, 2016. More than three-quarters of Florida’s 252 seats up for election were not voted on in either a primary or general election this year as only one candidate filed to run in each of those races.
  • In Florida, 94 school board seats across 38 of the state’s largest school districts by enrollment were up for primary election. Although the state referred to it as a primary election, it was functionally a general election because any candidate who won a majority of votes in his or her race was automatically elected to the position. In races where no candidate received a majority, the top two vote recipients advanced to an election on November 8, 2016. These districts served 2,590,841 students during the 2013-2014 school year, which was 96.2 percent of all Florida public school students.
  • In Arizona, Superior Mayor Jayme Valenzuela was recalled. More than 78 percent of voters supported the recall. The recall effort began due to allegations that Valenzuela used public funds for personal use. Valenzuela was charged with felony theft by the Arizona attorney general's office in relation to this incident. Town Councilwoman Mila Besich Lira was selected to replace Valenzuela in the election. Supporters of the recall collected 102 verified signatures to bring the recall to a vote. Valenzuela was first elected in a recall election against Michael Hing in 2011.
  • In Idaho, Iona Mayor Brad Andersen survived a recall election. More than 62 percent of voters opposed the recall. The recall effort began due to the city’s efforts to meter water usage instead of charging a flat fee to all residents. Supporters of the recall collected 228 verified signatures to bring the recall to a vote. Supporters needed at least 267 votes to remove Andersen from office because he received that vote total during the 2013 election, but only 208 votes were cast in favor of the recall.
  • In Wisconsin, two Fence town supervisors and the town clerk survived a recall election. The recall was organized due to concerns about inaccurate meeting minutes and the officials' working relationship with town Chairman Frank Smith.

Preview of the day

The excerpts below were compiled from issue #31 of The Tap, which was published on August 27, 2016. READ THE FULL VERSION HERE.

Federal

  • Arizona will hold congressional primaries.
    • The U.S. Senate seat currently held by John McCain (R) is up for election in 2016. McCain will face state Sen. Kelli Ward and Clair Van Steenwyk in the Republican primary. The primary between McCain and Ward has received national attention, but McCain is the favorite. McCain has a large fundraising advantage and a sizeable lead according to recent polling. The winner of the Republican primary will face Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick (D) in the general election. Arizona’s Senate race is rated as a race to watch in the general election.
    • Arizona has nine U.S. House districts. The Republican Party currently holds five seats to the Democratic Party’s four seats. Seven of the state’s nine incumbent representatives are seeking re-election in 2016. Of those seven, three will face a primary challenger.
    • Arizona’s has two battleground districts in 2016: Districts 1 and 2. District 1 is an open seat due to incumbent Ann Kirkpatrick’s Senate run. Tom O'Halleran and Miguel Olivas will compete in the Democratic primary, while Gary Kiehne, Ken Bennett, Paul Babeu, Wendy Rogers, and Shawn Redd will compete for the Republican nomination. In District 2, state Rep. Victoria Steele will face former state Rep. Matt Heinz in the Democratic primary. The winner will face incumbent Martha McSally (R) in the general election.
  • Florida will hold congressional primaries.
    • The U.S. Senate seat currently held by Marco Rubio (R) is up for election in 2016. Although he initially announced that he would not seek re-election, Rubio joined the race just days before the state’s filing deadline. Rubio will face Carlos Beruff, Ernie Rivera, and Dwight Young in the Republican primary. On the Democratic side, Rep. Patrick Murphy, Rep. Alan Grayson, Pam Keith, Roque De La Fuente, and Reginald Luster will compete for the nomination. Heading into the primary, Rubio and Murphy are the front-runners for each party. Florida’s Senate race is one of nine Senate battleground races in November.
    • Florida has 27 U.S. House districts. The Republican Party currently holds 17 seats to the 10 seats of the Democratic Party. Court-ordered redistricting left the majority of the state’s House districts with at least minor changes, and several districts saw radical shifts.
    • Twenty of the state’s 27 House incumbents are seeking re-election in some capacity in 2016. Due to redistricting, not all incumbents seeking re-election are doing so in their former districts. Nine of those 20 incumbents seeking re-election will face at least one primary challenger on Tuesday.
    • There are two House battleground districts in Florida in 2016: Districts 18 and 26. District 18 was left open due to incumbent Patrick Murphy’s (D) U.S. Senate run. Six Republicans and three Democrats will compete to replace Murphy in the primaries. In Florida’s 26th District, Joe Garcia and Annette Taddeo will compete in the Democratic primary. The winner will face incumbent Carlos Curbelo (R) in the general election.
    • There are three primary races to watch in Florida in 2016.
      • District 5 Democratic primary: Incumbent Corrine Brown will face L.J. Holloway and Al Lawson. Brown was indicted earlier in the year on "charges of mail and wire fraud, conspiracy, obstruction and filing of false tax returns." Additionally, due to redistricting, Brown currently represents only about 38 percent of the newly drawn 5th District. Florida’s 5th District is rated safely Democratic in the general election.
      • District 11 Republican primary: District 10 incumbent Daniel Webster and Justin Grabelle—the former chief of staff to the retiring incumbent of District 11, Rich Nugent—will compete for the nomination. Florida's 11th District is another example of a race in which redistricting plays a major role in making an incumbent vulnerable. Due to redistricting, Webster's old district became a safe Democratic district, prompting him to run in the open 11th. However, Webster currently represents only 18 percent of the newly created 11th District.
      • District 23 Democratic primary: Incumbent Debbie Wasserman Schultz will face Tim Canova. Heading into the primary, Wasserman Schultz has the endorsement of President Barack Obama and a lead in overall fundraising, while Canova has the backing of Sen. Bernie Sanders. The race received national attention in July 2016, when DNC emails were made public suggesting that the DNC, of which Wasserman Schultz was chair at the time, was favoring Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.

State

  • Primary election: Arizona
    • State legislature: All 90 seats (30 in the Senate, 60 in the House) in the state legislature are up for election. Republicans currently hold the majority in both chambers.
      • Eight incumbent senators—five Republicans and three Democrats—have declined to run for re-election. Only three incumbents will face primary competition: Frank Schmuck (R) is challenging the vulnerable Jeff Dial (R) in District 18; incumbent Catherine Miranda (D) will face challenger Maritza Saenz (D) in District 27; and Lydia Hernandez (D) will challenge incumbent Martin Quezada (D) in District 29 to a rematch (the two faced off in 2012). There are five other primary challenges set to occur, all in open districts.
      • Seventeen incumbent representatives—seven Democrats and 10 Republicans—have declined to run for re-election. Sixteen incumbents will face primary challenges, though, because Arizona has two seats per district, some of these challenges effectively become competitions for seats left open by retiring incumbents. There will also be Republican primaries in two open districts: District 14 and District 28. District 14 was previously represented by Republicans David Gowen and David Stevens, while District 28 was represented by Democrat Eric Meyer and Republican Kate McGee.

For more information on competitiveness in state legislatures, click here.

    • State executives: Three seats are up for election on the Arizona Corporation Commission, the state's regulatory body for non-municipal utilities. Elections for the commission are held at large, and the top three candidates in each party's primary advance to the general election, where the top three vote-getters win the seats. All five seats on the commission are held by Republicans—and only two Democrats filed to run for the office, ensuring Republican majority control of the commission after the November election. Five candidates will compete for the three Republican slots in the general election. Arizona is one of 23 Republican trifectas.

The regulation of the state's solar industry is a major issue in the election and has prompted acrimony between several of the commissioners. Commissioners Andy Tobin (R), who was appointed by Gov. Doug Ducey (R) in January 2016, and Robert Burns (R) are running for re-election in 2016; the third seat is open. Tobin has merged campaigns with Republican challengers state Rep. Rick Gray and former Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Boyd Dunn in an attempt to block Burns’ re-election efforts. The three candidates are running as a team and airing joint advertisements.

At stake are major rate decisions on the commission's 2017 docket that could have an impact on solar regulatory cases across the nation. Burns has repeatedly claimed that the state’s largest utility provider funded candidates unfriendly to solar interests in the 2014 elections, a claim the FBI is investigating. Burns himself is supported by national solar giant SolarCity, which has begun airing advertisements and running phone campaigns on his behalf.

  • Primary election: Florida
    • State legislature: All 160 seats (40 in the Senate, 120 in the House) in Florida’s Legislature are up for election in 2016. Republicans currently hold the majority in both chambers.
      • In the state Senate, 17 incumbents—nine Democrats and eight Republicans?—are not seeking re-election. Three incumbents are facing primary challenges: incumbent Lizbeth Benacquisto (R-27) will face challenger Jason Maughan (R); incumbent Jeff Clemens (D-31) will face two challengers, Emmanuel Morel and Irving Slosberg; and incumbent Dwight Bullard (D-40) faces three challengers. Additionally, there are 15 primary races in which no incumbent is running.
      • In the House, 43 incumbents—26 Republicans and 17 Democrats—have chosen not to seek re-election. There will be 58 primary contests, with 11 of those including incumbents.
        • For more information on competitiveness in state legislatures, click here.
      • Ballot measure: Florida voters will also decide whether to approve Amendment 4, a legislatively referred constitutional amendment that would provide tax exemptions for solar and other renewable energy devices that would fall under the tangible property tax bracket. Currently, Florida offers tax exemptions for the installation of renewable energy devices on residential properties. Across the nation, 35 states provide property tax exemptions for renewable energy devices.

A different solar-related measure, Amendment 1, will be on the ballot in November. Amendment 1 was sponsored largely by utility companies, which are pushing the measure as a pro-solar amendment that also protects consumers. Opponents say it could prevent incentives for solar power, such as net metering, and was designed by utility companies to protect their monopoly by inhibiting pro-solar programs and policies.

Local

  • In Arizona, four of the state’s largest cities will hold primary elections for municipal offices. Any candidates who receive more than 50 percent of the vote will be automatically elected. Any remaining seats will be decided in the general election on November 8, 2016.
    • Chandler: Three at-large city council seats are up for primary election. Eight candidates, including incumbent Nora Ellen, are running for the three seats. Two other incumbents are retiring and not seeking re-election. Chandler is the 79th-largest city by population in the United States and the fourth-largest in Arizona.
    • Gilbert: The mayor’s office and two at-large city council seats are up for primary election. Councilwoman Jenn Daniels is running unopposed for mayor rather than seeking re-election to her seat. Seven candidates, including incumbent Jared Taylor, are running for the two seats. Gilbert is the 92nd-largest city by population in the United States and the sixth-largest in Arizona.
    • Glendale: The mayor’s office and three city council seats are up for primary election. City council members in Glendale serve individual districts rather than at-large. Mayor Jerry Weiers (R) faces a challenger, as does Yucca District representative Samuel Chavira. The other two city council members are running unopposed. Glendale is the 87th-largest city by population in the United States and the fifth-largest in Arizona.
    • Mesa: The mayor’s office and three city council seats are up for primary election. City council members in Glendale serve individual districts rather than serving at large. Mayor John Giles (R) is unopposed in his re-election bid. The other three races feature no incumbents since all three were term-limited and ineligible to run again. The District 1 and 2 races have three candidates, while the District 3 race has two. Mesa is the 38th-largest city by population in the United States and the third-largest in Arizona.
  • In Florida, 60 local judgeships are up for primary election. Any candidates who win a majority of votes in this election will be automatically elected to the position. In races where no candidate receives a majority, the top two vote recipients will advance to the general election on November 8, 2016. More than three-quarters of Florida’s 252 seats up for election will not be voted on in either a primary or general election this year, as only one candidate filed to run in each of those races.
  • In Florida, 94 school board seats across 38 of the state’s largest school districts by enrollment are up for primary election. These elections are referred to as primary elections in Florida but are functionally general elections; if no candidate wins a majority of votes cast at the primary election, a general election is held on November 8, 2016, effectively serving as a runoff. These districts served 2,590,841 students during the 2013-2014 school year, which was 96.2 percent of all Florida public school students.
  • In Idaho, Iona Mayor Brad Andersen will face a recall election. The recall effort began due to the city’s efforts to meter water usage rather than charge a flat fee to all residents. Supporters of the recall collected 228 verified signatures to bring the recall to a vote. Supporters will need at least 267 votes and a majority of votes to remove Andersen from office because he received that vote total during the 2013 election.
  • In Arizona, Superior Mayor Jayme Valenzuela will face a recall election. The recall effort began due to allegations that Valenzuela used public funds for personal use. Valenzuela was charged with felony theft by the Arizona Attorney General's Office in relation to this incident. Town Councilwoman Mila Besich Lira is seeking to replace Valenzuela in the election. Supporters of the recall collected 102 verified signatures to bring the recall to a vote.



The Tap covered election news, public policy, and other noteworthy events from February 2016 to February 2022.
March: 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
April: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30
May: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
June: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30
July: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
August: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
September: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30
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