Daily Brew: December 12, 2018

December 12, 2018

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Today's Brew brings you an update from Chicago + chocolate or strawberry?   Welcome to the Wednesday, December 12 Brew. Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day: A signature fight in Chicago's 13th Ward city council race How many 2019 Oklahoma school board races were canceled? USDA loosens rules on flavored milk in schools Chicago city council elections: top stories from this week's Deep Dish newsletter We’re closely following the forthcoming Chicago municipal elections, where voters will elect new leadership to the third-largest city in the country on February 26, 2019. Tomorrow’s next edition of The Deep Dish, our newest newsletter offering, is sizzling in the oven right now. Here’s a taste of what you’ll have in your inbox for free if you subscribe now. 13th Ward race: More signature revocations turned in than signatures More than 200 candidates filed to run for Chicago city council, which has 50 seats representing the city's 50 wards. Candidates looking to appear on the ballot needed to turn in 473 valid signatures from registered voters within their wards by Nov. 26. Dozens are facing signature challenges. DePaul University student David Krupa, running for the 13th Ward, turned in 1,703 signatures. An election attorney for 13th Ward Ald. Marty Quinn (who is seeking re-election) filed 2,796 affidavits from residents revoking their signatures on Krupa's petitions—1,093 more than the number of signatures the candidate submitted. Krupa claimed that precinct workers connected to Illinois House of Representatives Speaker Michael Madigan (D) misled residents into signing the affidavits in an effort to keep him off the ballot. Madigan has been 13th Ward Democratic Committeeman since 1969. He and Quinn co-run a constituent services office in the ward. 15th Ward campaign volunteer shot while canvassing Crime rates are expected to be a major issue in all of Chicago's elections. Over the weekend, crime had a direct impact on campaigning. Maxwell Little was passing out flyers in support of Chicago's 15th Ward aldermanic candidate Joseph Williams on Sunday when he was shot in the leg. He was canvassing in West Englewood. The 15th Ward is located in Chicago's South Side, which, along with the West Side, sees a high concentration of the city's violent crimes and homicides. In 2017, the city had the 14th highest homicide rate of all U.S. cities with populations over 100,000, according to the Pew Research Center. Hungry for more Chicago political news? Subscribe to The Deep Dish, Ballotpedia's weekly newsletter on Chicago's 2019 elections Oklahoma school board elections see second-lowest unopposed rate in six-years Sixteen of 30 (53.3 percent) Oklahoma school board races scheduled for 2019 and covered by Ballotpedia were canceled outright because only one candidate filed to run. This is the second-lowest percentage of unopposed seats since 2014 (in other words, there is a higher percentage contested races in the state than in any year but one since 2014). In six years of tracking, the lowest percentage of unopposed Oklahoma school board elections was 52.9 percent in 2017. The highest was 85.7 percent in 2015. 2019: 53.3% 2018: 76.7% 2017: 52.9% 2016: 80.0% 2015: 85.7% 2014: 62.5% From 2014 to 2016, an average of 29 percent of school board races were unopposed in the country's 1,000 largest districts. General elections in Oklahoma races with opposition are scheduled for April 2. Primaries are scheduled for February 12 in the three races where more than two candidates filed. If a primary candidate wins more than 50 percent of the vote, they will win the election outright. We're also covering elections in Oklahoma City in 2019, where four city council seats are up. Thirteen candidates filed to run for those seats. See which Oklahoma school districts held elections in 2018→ USDA loosens school nutrition standards in response to executive order The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced on December 6 a final rule reversing some school lunch requirements set by the Obama administration. Under the new rule, schools serving meals as part of federal child nutrition programs will be allowed to offer flavored, low-fat milk, and to take more time to reduce the sodium levels of their meals. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said the new rule will give local schools flexibility to serve healthy and appealing meals. The Obama administration standards were championed by Michelle Obama as part of the 2010 Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, which required schools to offer more fruits and whole grains, to lower maximum calories, and to reduce sodium. The rule is part of the agency’s response to Presidential Executive Order 13771, which required eliminating two old regulations for each new regulation issued. Final rules are federal regulations that pass through the proposed rule and comment period and are published in the Federal Register. Track all changes made to the Federal Register here→