Politics and Campaigns

A voter shows ID at Ohio polling station.

Why Republican-led states keep leaving a group that verifies voter rolls

BY: - May 22, 2023

Eight Republican-led states this year left an interstate cooperative that seeks to maintain accurate voter registration rolls, and three more may join them — a move that election security experts say is fueled by conspiracy theories. Earlier this month, Virginia’s top election official said the state would become the latest to stop participating in the […]

Top State Stories: Washington bans sale of AR-15s and other semi-automatic rifles

BY: - April 26, 2023

WA: Washington bans sale of AR-15s and other semi-automatic rifles, effective immediately seattletimes.com Washington has become the 10th state to prohibit sales of AR-15s and dozens of other semi-automatic rifles, as Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee signed the ban into law, effective immediately. The state Capitol was closed to the public for the signing ceremony out […]

More States Allow Residents With Felony Convictions to Vote

BY: - April 4, 2023

Last week, thousands of people with felony convictions regained the right to vote in New Mexico, the latest in a growing number of states seeking to reintegrate residents into society by allowing them to participate in elections upon leaving prison. New Mexico Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed a wide-reaching voting rights package into law […]

Top State Stories 3/8

BY: - March 8, 2023

MO: Federal judge tosses Missouri gun law, calling it unconstitutional kansascity.com A federal judge has overturned a Missouri law that declared certain federal gun laws “invalid” if they don’t have a state-level equivalent, after the U.S. Department of Justice sued to overturn the measure. OK: Oklahoma voters reject legalization of recreational marijuana oklahoman.com Oklahomans gave a […]

Top State Stories 3/7

BY: - March 7, 2023

US: Three more GOP-led states withdraw from partnership to protect voter access cnn.com Florida, Missouri and West Virginia withdrew from the Electronic Registration Information Center, the bipartisan multi-state partnership aimed at helping states maintain accurate voter rolls to fight voter fraud. Alabama and Louisiana had previously retreated from the partnership. CA: California to cut ties […]

The Fight Against Election Lies Never Ends for Local Officials

BY: - March 2, 2023

State and local election officials across the country have begun pursuing strategies to combat election lies ahead of the 2024 presidential election: They’re meeting with community organizations, posting social media videos and even inviting skeptics to visit election offices in efforts to “pre-bunk” falsehoods they know are coming. The threat, officials said, has not gone […]

Feds Push Local Election Officials to Boost Security Ahead of 2024

BY: - February 23, 2023

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Some of the nation’s top cybersecurity leaders are warning state and local election officials of ongoing foreign and domestic national security threats to election systems, urging them to upgrade their defenses ahead of next year’s presidential election. At separate conferences this month, federal officials warned gatherings of the National Association of Secretaries […]

Top State Stories 2/21

BY: - February 21, 2023

TX: Texas Republicans take battle against blue cities to a new level houstonchronicle.com This could be the most productive legislative session yet for Texas Republican lawmakers looking to rein in the state’s largest cities and counties, most of which are run by Democrats. Their ideas include enhancing state oversight of county-run elections, taking aim at progressive judges and prosecutors, slashing […]

As Abortion Measures Loom, GOP Raises New Barriers to Ballot Initiatives

BY: - February 15, 2023

Read more Stateline coverage on how states are either protecting or curbing access to abortions. Roused by voters’ recent endorsement of abortion rights — even in conservative states — Republican legislators are ramping up efforts to make it tougher for citizens to change laws or amend state constitutions through ballot measures. Some of the GOP proposals would […]

‘Democracy Vouchers’ Put Free Campaign Cash in the Hands of Voters

BY: - February 7, 2023

Seattle voters are about to get their democracy vouchers for this year’s city council elections: envelopes of gift cards that voters direct to their choice of local political campaigns. Every February of municipal election years, Seattle voters receive four “democracy vouchers” — blue slips of paper totaling on which voters can write in candidates and […]

Top State Stories 2/7

BY: - February 7, 2023

KS: Kansas AG says abortion pill effort violates state law, despite court stay cjonline.com Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach said in a letter to Walgreens executives that state law forbids the company’s plans to offer the abortion pill mifepristone through the mail. The law Kobach cited, however, was blocked by the Kansas Court of Appeals in […]

Top State Stories 2/6

BY: - February 6, 2023

VT: Vermont Senate bill would expand aid-in-dying to those living outside the state vtdigger.org The Vermont bill would strike the residency requirements from the state’s 2013 aid-in-dying law, which protects licensed health care providers from being prosecuted for writing a lethal prescription for a patient. In August, a Connecticut woman sued Vermont for the right to end her […]