SACRAMENTO, California: Election day is here for City of Los Angeles voters. May 21st marks the sixth date in 2013 when local ballot measure elections are scheduled to take place in California. Polls open at 7 am and close at 8 pm PT. Today voters will decide on ballot measures, mayors and school boards. Below are quick links to each of those issues.

Three seats on the board of the Los Angeles Unified School District are up for election in 2013, covering Districts 2, 4 and 6. Incumbents Mónica García and Steve Zimmer won Districts 2 and 4. District 6, however, remained pending following the March 5 elections.

Incumbent Nury Martinez did not run for re-election in District 6, campaigning instead for the District 6 seat on the Los Angeles City Council. Antonio Sanchez and Monica Ratliff emerged as the top two candidates in the March 5 elections. Both will face-off in today’s elections. In the March primary, 44% of voters voted for Sanchez, while 34% selected Ratliff. Through May 15, 2013, a total of $244,298.17 has been contributed to all direct candidate campaign committees in 2013 school board elections. An additional $2 million had been spent via independent expenditure; all independent expenditures were spent on behalf of just one District 6 candidate, Antonio Sanchez. Click here for more campaign finance details.

Los Angeles elections

• Ballot measures:
  • City of Los Angeles Limits to Campaign Spending and Rights of Corporations, Measure C (May 2013)
  • City of Los Angeles Medical Marijuana Dispensaries, Measures D, E and F (May 2013)
• Mayoral elections:
  • Los Angeles mayoral election, 2013
• School boards:
  • Los Angeles Unified School District elections (2013), District 6 runoff election between Monica Ratliff and Antonio Sanchez.

RICHMOND, Virginia: All three state executive offices up for election this year in Virginia are occupied by Republicans, and none are seeking re-election to their current posts. Term-limited Governor Bob McDonnell cannot run, and Attorney General of Virginia Ken Cuccinelli is vying for the seat. Cuccinelli has already secured the 2013 GOP nomination for governor, being the only member of his party to file by the convention’s Jan. 13th deadline,^[1] whereas the lieutenant governor and attorney general primary fields are both contested. Seven Republican candidates filed for retiring Lt. Gov Bill Bolling’s seat, while two entered the race to replace Cuccinelli as attorney general. This upcoming weekend, delegates of the Republican Party of Virginia will vote to decide which two of their party’s candidates will appear on the general election ballot for the offices of lieutenant governor and attorney general.^[2]

Here is a complete list of candidates competing in the May 17-18 Republican primary convention:

The Democratic candidates for governor, lt. governor, and attorney general will compete in the taxpayer funded primary election on June 11, 2013. The winners will face the Republican convention nominees in the general election taking place November 5, 2013.

RICHMOND, Virginia: Heading into the 2013 election, all three state executive offices up for election this year in Virginia are occupied by Republicans, and none are seeking re-election to their current posts. Term-limited Governor Bob McDonnell cannot run, and Attorney General of Virginia Ken Cuccinelli is vying to replace to him. Cuccinelli secured the GOP nomination for governor, being the only member of his party to file for the chief executive post.^[1]

Lieutenant governor Bill Bolling (R) had also been in the race, but he suspended his campaign on November 28, 2012, citing his slim chances beating Cuccinelli, the tea party favorite, in the newly instated closed primary convention setting. The Republican party of Virginia switched their method for selecting certain statewide office nominees.^[2] Effective in 2013, the party nominates its gubernatorial, lt. gubernatorial, and attorney general candidates via convention (that is, delegate vote) rather than statewide primary election. Although Bolling was explicit about ending his pursuit of a place on the Republican ticket last November, he waited until March 12, 2013 before completely ruling out the possibility of running as an Independent candidate instead.^[3]

McDonnell had previously pledged his support for Bolling’s candidacy- in part because Bolling refrained from challenging McDonnell for governor in 2009. After Bolling bowed out, McDonnell chose to endorse fellow Republican Cuccinelli for his successor, despite Cuccinelli’s outspoken opposition to McDonnell’s Transportation Initiative, which is considered to be the centerpiece of his gubernatorial legacy. Meanwhile, Cuccinelli’s future general election opponent, former Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe, has been equally outspoken on the issue, but as an advocate and defender of the outgoing governor’s approach to amending the state’s transportation funding policy. ^[4][5][6]

Like Cuccinelli, McAuliffe faces no primary contest. The two contenders will square off in the general election on November 5, 2013.^[7]

Seven Republican candidates filed for Bolling’s lt. governor seat, while two entered the race to replace Cuccinelli as attorney general by the Jan. 13 GOP convention filing deadline. On Mar. 28, the signature filing window came to a close for Democratic primary candidates seeking their party’s nomination for governor, lt. governor, and attorney general. Democratic primary candidates will compete in the taxpayer funded primary election on June 11, while the Republican nominee will be voted on by delegates of the Virginia Republican Party at the party-funded statewide primary convention on May 18. The following list of candidates for both the Republican primary convention and the Democratic primary election is official as April 10, 2013. ^[8]

Governor candidates:

Terry McAuliffe Ken Cuccinelli

McAuliffe Campaign Website Cuccinelli Campaign Website

Lieutenant Governor candidates:

Aneesh Chopra Ralph Northam Pete Snyder Corey Stewart Steve Martin Jeannemarie Devolites Davis Susan Stimpson E.W. Jackson Scott Lingamfelter

Chopra – Campaign website Northam – Campaign website Snyder – Campaign website Stewart – Campaign website Martin – Campaign website Devolites Davis – Campaign website Stimpson – Campaign website Jackson – Campaign website Lingamfelter – Campaign website

Attorney General candidates:

Mark Herring Justin Fairfax Rob Bell Mark Obenshain

Herring – Campaign Website Fairfax – Campaign Website Bell – Campaign Website Obenshain – Campaign Website

Most of today’s local ballot measures are being decided in Illinois, where there are over a hundred propositions waiting for the voters’ decision in towns, cities, counties and school districts across the state.

Addison Township in Illinois is requesting that voters authorize switching the responsibility for the pension costs of the local school district from the state of Illinois to the property tax payers of the district. Also waiting the decision of the voters is over $112 million in requested school bond money.

In California, there are only seven measures, three of which are recall elections for the Coastside Fire Protection District in San Mateo County. The remaining four measures deal with parcel taxes, business taxes and utility taxes in different cities of Los Angeles county.

Florida’s election features six ballot measures across three counties. Four measures are city charter amendments dealing with term limits and city governance. One measure seeks to authorize an electric franchise and the remaining measure asks Defuniak Springs voters if they want to abolish the right of the Mayor to decide tie votes in city council meetings.

Below is a break down of the elections:

California

There are seven measures, three of which are recall votes. The other four measures deal with parcel taxes, business taxes and utility taxes in different cities of Los Angeles county:

• Measure K: City of Vernon Business License Tax Increase
• Measure L: City of Vernon Parcel Tax on Commercial Properties
• Measure M: City of Vernon Utility Users Tax
• Measure S: City of Burbank Parcel Tax for Sewer/Refuse
• Coastside Fire Protection District: Michael Alifano recall
• Coastside Fire Protection District: Douglas Mackintosh recall
• Coastside Fire Protection District: Gary Riddell recall

See full election coverage here.

Florida

Only 6 measures are being decided in this election.

• 4 charter amendments dealing with term limits and city governance
• 1 electrical franchise permission measure
• 1 measure changing the power of a city Mayor to vote in certain council meeting situations

Below is a list of articles giving details about each measure:

• Cottondale City Charter Amendment Proposition (April 2013)
• Marianna City Electric Franchise Referendum Proposition (April 2013)
• Zephyrhills City Council Term Limits Amendment Proposition (April 2013)
• Zephyrhills City Vice President Presiding Amendment Proposition (April 2013)
• Zephyrhills City Mayor Term Limits Amendment Proposition (April 2013)
• Defuniak Springs City Mayor’s Right To Vote Removal Proposition (April 2013)

See full election coverage here.

Illinois

There are well over a hundred measures on the ballots in Illinois elections. One measure looks for pension reform to make the local school district pension costs independent of the state. Other measures feature over $112 million in requested bond money and many school tax measures. Four video gambling measures and one measure prohibiting the sale of alcoholic beverages will also be decided.

Notable measures:

• Bethany Village Alcohol Prohibition Proposition (April 2013)
• Addison Township School Pension Costs Question (April 2013)

See full election coverage here.

Unlike previous elections where multiple individuals filed to run, Pridemore was the only challenger to submit the necessary signatures required to appear on the ballot before the^{[3] [4]}filing deadline passed on January 2, 2013^[4], thus negating the need for the scheduled February 19, 2013 primary election.^[5]

In the weeks leading up to the April 2 election, Evers and Pridemore debated the merits of education proposals put forth by Gov. Scott Walker (R) in his budget plan, in addition to salient issues such as the department’s current policies on school mascots, school safety measures, and vouchers.^[6][7]

Here of some highlights from the debate:

Pridemore supports Walker’s plan to expand the use of vouchers in the state while not increasing public school spending. Meanwhile Evers opposes both measures and wants to increase spending by $225 per student.^[8]

Pridemore said budgets are tight and schools should not expect more money. “A lot of these common core standards really started with international standards. Now, why should we be beholden to some worldwide organization that’s just trying to dumb down America,” he stated.^[9]

Regarding school safety, Pridemore proposed allowing schools to have armed volunteers to provide security, which Evers said risks turning schools into the “wild west.”

The contenders have come together in opposition to Walker’s proposal to create a separate school board to oversee charter schools, offsetting the otherwise stark contrast between the candidates’ views as expressed throughout this year’s campaign.^[10]

In Wisconsin, all polls are open from 7:00 AM to 8:00 PM, Central Standard Time.^[11]

MADISON, Wisconsin: This edition of The Executive Summary features a breakdown of the current partisan count and a look at the recent fluctuating positions of Republican governors regarding Medicaid expansion.

Partisan count

Ballotpedia currently covers 13 major state executive official positions across the country, totaling 727 officials. As of today, March 7, Republicans hold 217 (29.8%) of those seats, Democrats hold 125 (17.2%), 1 (0.13%) is an Independent, and 384 (52.8%) are officially non-partisan.

Looking at just the 344 seats that are partisan affiliated, Republicans control 63 percent, Democrats 36.3 percent, and Independents hold 0.29 percent. In each position Republicans hold more seats than Democrats, with the exception of Controller and Natural Resources Commissioner, where the two parties are tied.

In the top four offices – Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, and Secretary of State – Republicans hold 113 seats (59.5%), Democrats have 76 (40%), and Independents have 1 (0.5%).

There were 94 state executive seats up for election in 2012. While most seats were retained by the party previously in control, a total of 17 seats had partisan change.

• 7 seats changed to Democratic
• 10 seats changed to Republican

Going forward, The Executive Summary will provide an updated partisan count each month.

Here’s a full breakdown by position.

Office	Democratic	Republican	Independent	Nonpartisan	Total seats
Governor	19	30	1	0	50
Lieutenant Governor	14	30	0	0	44
Secretary of State	19	27	0	1	47
Attorney General	24	26	0	0	50
Treasurer	17	18	0	13	48
Auditor	10	15	0	9	34
Superintendent of Schools	3	6	0	41	50
Insurance Commissioner	5	7	0	38	50
Controller	5	5	0	3	13
Agriculture Commissioner	1	11	0	38	50
Natural Resources Commissioner	1	1	0	46	48
Labor Commissioner	0	3	0	47	50
Public Services Commissioner	7	38	0	148	193
Total	125 (17.2%)	217 (29.8%)	1 (0.13%)	384 (52.8%)	727

Happenings

Republican governors reverse position on Medicaid expansion

Since our last edition, Governors Rick Scott (Florida) and Chris Christie (New Jersey) have joined the growing brood of reluctant Republican governors endorsing Medicaid expansion as outlined under the Affordable Care Act, commonly referred to as “Obamacare.”^[1]

The Affordable Care Act, the controversial federal health care reform bill commonly referred to as “Obamacare,” was passed in March 2010 to the dismay of many Republican elected officials, including the group of governors – Christie makes eight – who have since changed their tune on Medicaid expansion. An almighty effort, led by a coalition of Republican state Attorneys General, to invalidate the law before several key measures could go into effect ended with the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold Obamacare on June 28, 2012. Officials who had long fought for its repeal were left in a state of dilemma over how to proceed with the few choices which they had been reserved. Going forward, states would have to decide for themselves whether to participate in the federally controlled Medicaid expansion, and a state versus federal health-exchange program. As a statement of dedicated protest of Obamacare, or otherwise guided by their mistrust of the federal government to honor its long term financial promises for the expansion, nearly all GOP governors pledged initially to keep their states outside the sphere of medicaid expansion. As of March 7, 2013, eight Republican governors — from Arizona, Florida, Michigan, New Jersey, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio — have since reconsidered the law, if only with respect to Medicaid expansion. Here is some additional information on a selection of these governors and their respective roads to supporting this provision:

Nevada

Despite Governor of Nevada Brian Sandoval’s opposition to Obamacare, he became the first Republican governor in the country to support Nevada’s participation in the Medicaid expansion after the Supreme Court ruling.^[2] An estimated 604,000 Nevada residents were uninsured as of Dec. 2012, when Sandoval decided to bring a pro-expansion budget proposal to the Nevada Legislature with the intention of entering the state into the federal program. After some initial reluctance to cooperating on any aspect of the controversial law, he concluded that it was in Nevada’s “best interest to expand coverage to 78,000 residents” currently ineligible for the state’s Medicaid rolls. To encourage the legislature to join him in support of the expansion, Sandoval made the case that participating would save the state $16 million in mental health programs that otherwise would be paid for out of the state general fund. “It would cost the state…more not to opt in,” he said.^[3]

Arizona

In her 2013 State of the State address, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer resolved her Obamacare dilemma^[4]by focusing on the considerable popular support Arizona has shown for expanding patient eligibility. Arizona has voted twice to require the state to provide free care for everyone up to the federal poverty line, which is about $20,000 in household income for a small family.^[4] During her speech, Brewer appealed to the Republican controlled chambers of the state legislature to not reject the opportunity to have the federal government finance an expansion seems likely to happen within Arizona anyway. She also highlighted to the economic and job saving potential of including Arizona in the federal expansion.^[4]

Even though she decided to embrace this feature of the Affordable Care Act, Brewer made it clear she was not going to settle for less federal funding than what she believes the state needs and will need to finance the estimated hundreds of thousands of newly eligible low-income Arizonans added to the Medicaid rolls, and “protect rural and safety-net hospitals from being pushed to the brink by growing their cost in caring for the uninsured.”^[5]

Florida

On Feb. 20, well after the court’s ruling, Florida Gov. Rick Scott’s endorsement of expanding Medicaid arrived in time for him to lay a groundwork persona of compassion for his 2014 re-election campaign. Scott had previously expressed staunch commitment to shunning optional provisions to Obamacare, namely expanding Florida’s Medicaid rolls. But the prospect of having to put 3.5 million Florida patients into managed care plans under a federal action waiver convinced him to agree to a three year trial period for expansion, during which the federal government can absorb the costs of adding 1 million low-income Florida residents to the state’s Medicaid rolls. “Three years is a reasonable period to judge just how well the expansion is working and to explore further reforms to improve cost, quality and access in health care — both in the public and private markets.”^[6]

Scott’s appeal to the Republican-dominated Florida legislature to consent to a three year trial expansion pointed to the estimated $26 billion federal dollars Florida could receive in the next 10 years under the expansion, and how providing care to a tremendous share of Florida’s 4 million currently uninsured residents is the right thing to do. Reversing his position on the expansion “is not a white flag of surrender to government-run health care,” Scott insisted.^[6]

New Jersey

One week after Scott’s change of heart, New Jersey’s Gov. Chris Christie unveiled his own pro-Medicaid expansion budget proposal. Like Scott, Christie insists that his overall opposition to Obamacare has not wavered despite his support for entering New Jersey into the federal expansion- a move that could extend insurance coverage to an additional 300,000 low-income residents and inject up to $300 million federal dollars into the state in the upcoming year.^[7] Months prior to his announcement on Medicaid, Christie affirmed his disapproval of the federal health care overhaul when he vetoed a bill from the New Jersey Legislature to establish a state-based health care exchange, the other state-level provision within the Affordable Care Act.^[8]

Unlike Scott, Christie is not vulnerable for re-election, however he must take into account the relative immediacy of his campaign.^[9] Christie’s riding a record high wave of popularity in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, and he is no doubt hoping to sustain his current party-blind approval rating through to the general election, which will be held November 5, 2013. With that goal in mind, among other factors, Christie stated frankly, “It’s simple. We are putting people first,” about broadening the Medicaid eligibility requirements for New Jerseyans during his state budget address.^[10]

Elections

2013

See also: State executive official elections, 2013

State Executive Official Elections Results in 2013
Office	Incumbent	Incumbent Party	Incumbent Running?	2013 Winner	Partisan switch?
Governor of New Jersey	Chris Christie	Republican	Yes	Pending
Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey	Kim Guadagno	Republican	Yes	Pending
Governor of Virginia	Bob McDonnell	Republican	No	Pending
Lieutenant Governor of Virginia	Bill Bolling	Republican	No	Pending
Attorney General of Virginia	Ken Cuccinelli	Republican	No (running for governor)	Pending
Superintendent of Wisconsin	Tony Evers	Non-partisan	Yes	Pending

There are three states holding state executive official elections in 2013 — New Jersey, Virginia and Wisconsin. A total of six officials will be elected. The attention-grabbing positions up for election are Governor of New Jersey and Governor of Virginia. Both made The Washington Post’s list of the top 5 races to watch in 2013.

Wisconsin

The first state executive election in 2013 will take place in Wisconsin, incumbent Wisconsin Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Evers is running for re-election. Unlike previous elections where multiple challengers filed to run, Evers only had one challenger submit the necessary signatures required to appear on the ballot.^[11][12] The filing deadline passed on January 2, 2013.^[11] This negated the need for the scheduled February 19, 2013 primary election. The two will instead face off in the general election on April 2nd.^[13]

Virginia

Heading into the 2013 election, all three state executive offices up for election this year in Virginia are occupied by Republicans, and none are running for re-election to their current posts. Term-limited Governor Bob McDonnell cannot run, and Attorney General of Virginia Ken Cuccinelli is vying to replace to him. Meanwhile, incumbent Bill Bolling decided to pursue the governorship rather than seek another term as lt. governor, only to find himself shunted aside by Cuccinelli and his party’s decision to change the primary candidate selection format from election to convention. Cuccinelli secured the GOP nomination for governor, being the only member of his party to file by the convention’s Jan. 13th deadline, leaving Bolling to explore an alternative track to the ballot, most likely as an Independent candidate. He is expected to make a formal announcement about his candidacy on March 14, 2013.^[14] Seven Republican candidates filed for Bolling’s seat, while two entered the race to replace Cuccinelli as attorney general.

Democratic primary candidates have until March 28 to file their nominating petitions with the state board of elections. They will be elected at the taxpayer funded primary election on June 11, and the Republican nominee will be voted on by delegates of the Virginia Republican Party at the party-funded statewide primary convention on May 18. The following list of Republican primary convention candidates is official as of January 13, 2013:

Lieutenant Governor candidates

• Pete Snyder – Fox News commentator, tech entrepreneur^[15]
• Corey Stewart – Chairman of the Prince William County Board of Supervisors
• Scott Lingamfelter^[16]
• Stephen Martin^[17][18]
• Jeannemarie Devolites-Davis (former State Senator)^[19]
• Susan Stimpson – Chairwoman of the Stafford County Board of Supervisors
• E.W. Jackson – Chesapeake minister, former U.S. Senate candidate.

Attorney General candidates

• Rob Bell – a current state Delegate^[20]
• Mark Obenshain – a current state Senator

New Jersey

One by one, names of potential Democratic candidates for New Jersey Governor have defected to a new list of names- supporters of presumptive nominee Barbara Buono, a state Senator and currently the only individual from her party to formalize a gubernatorial bid for the upcoming election. On February 2, 2013, Buono’s campaign reported that it had surpassed the fundraising threshold to qualify for the public funding program whereby candidates who raise at least $380,000 can accept campaign funds from the state–controlled by the state election law enforcement commission–in amount proportionate to what the campaign receives directly from the public.^[21] The purpose of the program is to lessen the influence of corporate contributions in elections;^[22] candidates who choose to accept public funds may not spend more than $12.2 million on their gubernatorial campaigns, and the maximum amount of public (tax-generated) funds that any candidate may receive is $8.2 million.^[23] New Jersey employs a two-to-one matching program for qualified contributions.

By the time Buono reached the qualifying mark, incumbent Chris Christie (R) had already raised $2 million for his re-election campaign. Unlike in 2009, Christie stated that he will not accept matching funds in the 2013 primary.^[22] Despite Buono’s expanding campaign coffer and list of endorsements, which now includes the Democratic Governors’ Association, she faces what appears to be an uphill battle. The incumbency advantage aside, Christie’s fundraising prowess and popularity–especially since Hurricane Sandy–among heavyweights from both major parties shield him against an upset in November.

Indeed, a Quinnipiac University Poll released February 20, 2013 accentuated Christie’s popularity with New Jersey voters post-Hurricane Sandy. At 74% job approval – “the highest of any New Jersey governor in 17 years of Quinnipiac University surveys” – and 71-23% believing that Christie deserves to win re-election in 2013, the governor is the clear favorite for the 2013 gubernatorial race.^[24] According to the poll, Christie’s strength is just one of Buono’s weaknesses heading into the primary election season. In a head-to-head match-up, respondents preferred Christie to Buono 62-25, a wide margin that the poll summary suggests is related to her anonymity: 83% of respondents said they did not know enough to form an opinion about Buono. Somewhat ominously for the Buono campaign, this figure indicates that her name recognition has diminished slightly since voters were last asked about her back in Jan. 2013.

Appointments

Iowa Natural Resources Commission

Legal as it may be, many Iowans are not pleased with their Governor’s latest decision to appoint his son to the state Natural Resources Commission, an unpaid panel charged with handling “contested cases related to fish, wildlife, conservation law enforcement, and park and forestry programs.”^{[25] [26]} Gov. Terry Branstad, a Republican currently serving his fifth non-consecutive term as Iowa’s chief executive official, named his 29 year old son, Marcus Branstad, a lifelong outdoor sportsman and “advocate for Iowa’s hunting, fishing and wildlife,” to the seven member, partisan-balanced, panel last week.^[25]

The younger Branstad (R) and fellow commission nominee Phyllis Reimer (D) will now have to be confirmed by the State Senate, where Democrats hold the majority. After Branstad revealed his list of appointments on March 1, Iowa Sen. Jeff Danielson, the Democratic chairman of the Senate State Government Committee predicted there might be some resistance in the State Senate to his son’s confirmation, despite assurances from the governor that he had preemptively cleared the choice with the chamber’s Majority leader Michael Gronstal.^[27]

Greg Drees, one of the two commissioners who will lose their seats on the board this year, did not conceal his disappointment at the prospect of being replaced by Marcus Branstad while speculating to a reporter from ‘’The Des Moines Register,’’ “You would think a guy would get notice after serving six years…And he appoints his son. Isn’t that interesting?”^[27]

Branstad was first elected governor in November, 1982. From 1983-1999, he was the state’s longest serving chief executive officer. He retired after 1999 only to re-emerge in 2010 to run for, and win, election to a fifth term.^[28]

 This week in State Executive Trivia

  Who are the current youngest and oldest governors?

The youngest governor in the nation is South Carolina’s Nikki Haley (R). Born January 20, 1972, Haley is currently 41 years old. When she was elected in 2010 she became the state’s first female governor, first minority governor, and youngest governor.^[29] Richard Nixon was serving as President when she was born and the number 1 song in the country was Don McLean’s American Pie.^[30]

At the other end of the spectrum, California Governor Jerry Brown (D), born on April 7, 1938, is 74 years old, making him the oldest incumbent governor in the country and the oldest to serve in California.^[31] Of course, this is Brown’s second time serving as governor. He first held the position from 1975-1983 (known at the time by the nickname ‘Governor Moonbeam’), making him just 37 when he took office. When Brown was born, Franklin D. Roosevelt was serving as President and the number 1 song in the country was Benny Goodman’s Don’t Be That Way.^[32]

SACRAMENTO, California: California’s March 5 elections are less than a day away. A total of four counties – Alameda, Los Angeles, Napa and San Bernardino – will head to the polls tomorrow.

Voters will cast their votes on local ballot measures, mayoral elections and three seats for the Los Angeles Unified School District.

The Los Angeles Unified School District election, in particular, has drawn nationwide interest. A total of three seats are up for a vote – District 2 • District 4 • District 6.

As of March 1, “Coalition for School Reform” has raised $3.5 million, including $1 million from billionaire Michael Bloomberg, the mayor of New York City.^[1] Independent expenditures, including those from the Service Employees International Union and United Teachers Los Angeles, have already exceeded $4.2 million and may eclipse the $4.5 million record set in 2009.^[2][3]

In a guest post for LA School Report on February 13, 2013, Jason Mandell, Director of Public Affairs at United Way of Greater Los Angeles, listed three reasons why everyone, including those without school-age children, should care about the outcome of the LAUSD elections:

• “The school board has way more power than you think.” In LA, the school board, not the mayor, has final authority over all district matters, including the superintendent’s contract.
• “A city is only as strong as its schools.” LAUSD is an important part of developing the Greater LA area’s workforce and economy.
• “Education is a civil rights issue and the school board makes the rules.” The LAUSD board “ha[s] an incredible opportunity to bridge the civil rights gap in our schools and make sure Latino and African-American students get the education they deserve.”^[4]

The campaign for the 3 seats up for election has been heavily influenced by two rival groups:

• Coalition for School Reform (CSR)
• United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA), the union for public school teachers in LAUSD

CHICAGO, Illinois: Illinois Democrats and Republicans saw completely different outcomes when polls closed for the 2nd congressional district special election primary. With over 50% of the vote, Robin Kelly (D) advanced to the general election on April 9, 2013. Republicans Paul McKinley, Eric Wallace, and Lenny McAllister split the vote and no winner has been declared.^[1][2]

The special election is being held to fill the vacancy left by the resignation of Representative Jesse Jackson Jr. (D).^[3]

Read more here.

Edited by Joel Williams
This week’s tracker features a look at recent action on voter identification laws.

Weekly highlight

Missouri: Republicans in the Missouri House of Representatives passed voter identification measures this week. The new laws include a photo identification requirement for voters, along with companion legislation to set up a framework for process and a constitutional amendment. Before it is signed into law, the package of legislation requires approval from the Missouri Senate and voters at the polls in 2014. Missouri currently requires some form of identification at the polls in order to vote, but is not standardized, so voters can bring items like utility bills or voter registration cards. Proponents of the legislation believe the current rules allow too much room for voter fraud, and are backing photo identification to make a difference.^[1]As of today, 47 states have kicked off 2013 sessions. Voter identification laws have been a source of serious contention following the 2012 general election, with the debates centered mostly on an argument between fraudulent ballots and voter suppression. Here’s an update on some states that are taking action:

• New Hampshire: 2012 was the first time that voters in New Hampshire were asked to present valid identification or sign an affidavit to swear their identity. While even some opponents of the law admit there is no evidence that any voters were turned away from the polls for a lack of identification, there is the possibility that people stayed home thinking they needed photo identification. The affidavit process is problematic, with the Secretary of State having to follow up with each individual voter. The voter identification law has a second phase set to go into effect this fall that would require poll workers to photograph anyone who refuses to present photo identification and attach the picture to their signed affidavit. Bills have been introduced to repeal the bill as a whole, while others focus on eliminating or pushing back the second phase of the law.^[2]

• Pennsylvania: A bitter legal battle over Pennsylvania’s voter identification law will make it ineffective for the primary elections this May. The law, signed by Governor Tom Corbett last March, has faced stiff legal arguments ever since. It was blocked from taking effect last October when a judge determined the state did not make enough effort to provide photo identification for voters. The decision to not require photo identification for May’s primary elections came Thursday from lawyers on both sides of the lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the law. The lawsuit trial is expected to begin in July.^[3]

• Virginia: Two new bills introduced by state legislators are now being considered in the Virginia State Legislature. The House Appropriations Committee approved Senator Mark Obenshain‘s bill requiring photo identification at the polls, allowing it to be debated on the floor. Meanwhile, Delegate Mark Cole‘s voter identification bill passed the Virginia Senate on Friday. Cole’s bill would not require photo identification, but would no longer allow utility bills, paychecks, or social security cards as valid identification. Cole’s measure passed the Senate by the narrowest of margins, with Lt. Governor Bill Bolling breaking the tied vote. Both bills have attached provisions requiring a year delay on the bill’s enactment and appropriate funding by the legislature before going into effect.^[4]

• Sessions
• Redistricting
• 2013 Legislative Elections
• Special Elections

 Regular sessions

See also: Dates of 2013 state legislative sessions

Click here to see a chart of each state’s 2013 session information.

Currently 46 out of 50 state legislatures are meeting in regular session. One state, California, is meeting in special session concurrent with their regular session. Two states have yet to begin their 2013 sessions. Floridawill get under way on March 5, while Louisiana will convene April 8.

The following states have convened their 2013 legislative sessions:^[5]

• December 3: California
• December 5: Maine
• January 1: Rhode Island, Pennsylvania
• January 2: Massachusetts, New Hampshire
• January 7: Idaho, Indiana, Montana, Ohio, Wisconsin
• January 8: Delaware, Kentucky, Minnesota, Mississippi, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota,Tennessee, Texas, Wyoming
• January 9: Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina,Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia

• January 14: Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Iowa, Kansas, Washington

• January 15: Alaska, New Mexico
• January 16: Hawaii
• January 28: Utah

• February 4: Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon

• February 5: Alabama

Special sessions

Snapshot of State Legislatures: Monday, February 18, 2013
There are 7,384 Total State Legislators
Total Democratic state legislators	3,466 (47%)
Total Republican state legislators	3,814 (52%)
There are 99 Total State Legislative Chambers
Total Democratic Party-controlled chambers	40
Total Republican Party-controlled chambers	57
Total tied or non-partisan chambers	2
2013 Session Information
Total Special Elections	15
Total Special Sessions	1

There is one special session ongoing this week in California. No additional special sessions have been scheduled.

California

During his State of the State address on January 24, Gov. Jerry Brown (D) called for the Legislature to hold a special session concurrent with the regular session in order to bring the state in compliance with the federal Affordable Care Act. The special session began January 28 and is expected to last for several months.^[6][7]

In recess

As of today, February 11, 1 state’s session is currently in recess:

• West Virginia - In recess from January 10 to February 12.^[8]

Edited by Greg Janetka
This week’s tracker features a partisan count update and look at recent action on gun laws.

Weekly highlight

New Mexico: Although New Mexico has long been a Democratic stronghold, particularly in the state legislature, it has comparatively loose gun control laws. Pat Davis, leader of a liberal group seeking tighter gun control laws in the state, went so far as to say ” The N.R.A. has always been the only game in town.” Times could be changing, however, as Democratic Rep. Miguel Garcia introduced a bill in January requiring background checks for both gun shop and private sales, which are currently unregulated. Should this bill and others like it down the line pass, New Mexico may find itself removed from the list of states where it is legal to carry a weapon in the Capitol.^[1]As of today, 47 states have kicked off 2013 sessions. West Virginia’s legislature returns on the 13th after a month of recess. The January 21 edition of the Tracker took a look at the status of gun-control measures around the country, here’s an update on recent action:

• Oklahoma: Following the formation of a school safety commission following the Sandy Hook Massacre, Oklahoma state legislators are considering a bill that would allow for armed teachers and more guns on campus. A House committee has already passed a law allowing teachers with lawenforcement training to carry weapons on school property, and several other bills are being considered that would allow handgun license holders to bring guns on campus. On the other hand, the commission is creating its own set of recommendations for school safety regulations that do not include provisions for more guns. It will be interesting to see if the commission’s findings will prevent the strong pro-gun legislative considerations from passing.^[2]

• Washington: A new universal background check bill has shockingly picked up bi-partisan support from the Washington Legislature. Although laws currently require background checks for gun shop sales, it would expand the requirement to sales between private parties as well. A bill once thought to have no chance by the gun-control group Washington Ceasefire now has the support of Senate Majority Leader Rodney Tom and other Senate Republicans.^[3]