What Just Happened in the States

Partisan Control of State Legislatures Remains Largely Unchanged

In November 2020, nearly 6,000 of the nation’s 7,383 state legislative seats were up for election. Come January 2021, the partisan control of state legislatures will look almost identical to how they looked two years prior: of the 98 chambers that have partisan control, 59 are held by Republicans, 37 by Democrats (as of this writing, the Arizona Senate and House remain in flux; Nebraska is a unicameral, nonpartisan chamber).

Though communities of color in Arizona, Nevada, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan beat back Donald Trump’s fascism and division federally, gerrymandering and other structural barriers kept their state legislatures relatively unchanged. For example, in Wisconsin, Joe Biden won 49.4% of the vote (as of November 5th), but Republicans retained 61% of all state legislative seats.

Progressive Policy Victories Were Achieved via Ballot Measure

Voters of all political persuasions overwhelmingly support progressive public policy options, mostly through direct democracy in the ballot measure process.

Alabama voters removed racist language from their state constitution.
In California, voters restored voting rights to individuals serving parole for felony convictions.
In Colorado, voters rejected a ban on later abortion—in even higher numbers than they voted for Joe Biden—again affirming broad bipartisan support for abortion access.
In Colorado, voters also approved a new national standard for paid family and medical leave, which will begin in 2024.
In Florida, almost 61% of voters approved raising the minimum wage to $15 by 2026.
In Utah and Nebraska, voters stripped the “slavery as a punishment” clause from their state constitutions.
Marijuana was decriminalized, legalized, and/or taxed in five states: Arizona, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, and South Dakota.

Statehouses Across the Country Will Be More Diverse

The 2020 election produced a diverse new class of progressive electeds in red and blue states alike.

Oklahoma elected the country’s first openly nonbinary state legislator, Mauree Turner– and they are a Muslim millennial!
In New Mexico, there is now a 37–33 majority of women in the House.
Five newly elected state legislators will become the first Muslim legislators in their states: Mauree Turner in Oklahoma, Madinah Wilson-Anton in Delaware, Iman Jodeh in Colorado, Samba Baldeh in Wisconsin, and Christopher Benjamin in Florida.

Several LGBTQIA “firsts” were celebrated throughout the country: In Delaware, Sarah McBride became the first transgender person elected to a state Senate. Two other Democrats became the first openly transgender people to win seats in their states’ Houses: Taylor Small in Vermont and Stephanie Byers in Kansas. Tenessee elected its first openly gay and openly bisexual legislators, Eddie Mannis and Torrey Harris, respectively.
In Washington state, the number of Black women legislators tripled from the previous year.

The pipeline of public leadership is starting to look more like America— but we still have far to go. We can never achieve justice if our decision-makers are older, whiter, and more affluent than the people they represent; only 29% of state legislators who hold office are women and 78% are white.

In many states, legislators are part-time, paid very little (if at all,) and required to drop everything to be fully available for their legislative sessions. This has led to state legislatures being disproportionately composed of retirees, independently wealthy people, and those whose educational and career privileges allow them to hit pause on their careers for up to several months per year without repercussions.

What Comes Next

The most immediate challenge facing all state legislatures next year will be swelling budget deficits due to the pandemic and the recession. At the same time, state legislators face an extreme risk across the progressive movement—that all hopes are laid at the feet of the new President without an acknowledgment that state legislatures have significant power to shape the political terrain for generations to come.

We know that bold champions can make a difference in every legislative context — majorities, minorities, and split governance states — and our champions need resources and support to create transformative change. SiX is designed precisely for this work.

The road ahead isn’t easy, but the work to transform this country is a long arc. We stand on the shoulders of our ancestors and are so grateful to be in this generational struggle.

What the Pandemic Primaries Can Teach Us for November

SiX and representatives from the National Task Force on Election Crises to discuss lessons learned from the 2020 primary elections in the midst of a pandemic and what this means for ensuring the November election is safe and accessible. The National Taskforce on Election Crises will share lessons learned and state-level implications from their new report, "Lessons from the Primary Elections: Recommendations for a Free and Fair Election in November."

The conversation will include action items for state legislators to contribute to urgent election preparations happening in your states. Join this conversation to deepen your knowledge of voting processes and to learn about the most critical issues facing the 2020 General Election.

Floridians Want State Lawmakers to Act on Threats Created by COVID Crisis

Strong support for progressive solutions to help working families and ensure the elections are accessible and safe

A recent poll commissioned by the State Innovation Exchange (SiX) shows Florida voters hold deep concerns over the risk that COVID-19 poses to their health and the impact on the economy and the election. Two in three Floridians believe the worst of the pandemic is yet to come (65%).

The Role of Government in Issues Facing Florida

When asked if the state government should play a role in some of the issues facing working families, voters overwhelmingly supported government engagement in:

Safely and fairly administering elections (92%);
Stopping the spread of the coronavirus (90%);
Ensuring equal access to high-quality K-12 education (89%);
Ensuring struggling families and children have access to food (84%); and
Equal pay for equal work (81%).

Voters Support Steps to Ensure Safe and Accessible Elections

Florida voters overwhelmingly believe that the state government has a role to play in safely and fairly administering elections (92%). The majority of Floridians report that they will vote by mail (52%). However, 47% still plan to vote in person, with 27% planning to vote on Election Day and 20% planning to early vote.

Whether or not they are choosing to vote in person or by-mail, voters supported policies to ensure the election is safe and accessible for all eligible voters:

Open additional polling locations to reduce crowds and lines (84%);
Lengthen the window for early voting and allow voters to cast ballots in person up through the day before Election Day (82%);
Allow any registered Florida voter to cast a ballot at any polling location in their county (71%); and
Mail all registered voters applications to vote-by-mail (61%).

Voters Concerned about COVID Impact and Strongly Support Progressive Economic Policies

By a four to one margin voters believe Florida state government should invest more in its residents to ensure they are safe, healthy, and economically secure (64%) rather than state government keeping taxes low and cutting funds to key services like education, infrastructure and unemployment insurance (16%).

Florida has been hard hit by the pandemic with one in three of Floridians responding that they have been laid off or had their hours cut (34%). Two out of three Floridians support extending and expanding unemployment for those workers who have been laid off (65%). Support for this policy cuts across partisan lines with Democrats (78%), Republicans (52%) Independents (65%) in favor.

The pandemic is a top of mind concern for Floridians who report they are concerned about the people losing work and income due to the virus (84%), small businesses and restaurants closing down permanently (84%), Floridians contracting the virus and dying (79%), people of Florida unable to afford their rent or mortgage (79%) and people in Florida being forced to choose between their health and their job (71%).

Given the current crisis, Floridians support policies that will address the hardships being faced by many and make life easier for working families:

Providing low-interest loans to small businesses to help them make it through the crisis (94%);
Extending the grace period for people to pay health insurance bills before their coverage can be canceled (88%);
Limiting what drug companies can charge for prescription drugs (87%);
Offering people in Florida the option to buy into the same public health insurance plans that are available to state employees if they want to (86%); and
Banning the practice of surprise medical billing (85%).

Click here for more results.

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As State Legislature Goes Into Special Session, New Poll Shows Nevadans Support Action on Threats Created by COVID Crisis

Strong support for bold policy solutions to help working families and ensure the safety and accessibility of elections

As the Nevada state legislature is set to begin a special session to address COVID-19 related issues, a recent poll commissioned by the State Innovation Exchange (SiX) shows Nevada voters hold deep concerns over the risk that COVID-19 poses to their health, the impact on the economy and the election and they support bold policy action.

Voters Support Steps to Ensure Safe and Accessible Elections

Nevada voters overwhelmingly believe that the state government has a role to play in safely and fairly administering elections (89%). The majority of Nevadans report that they will vote either early in person (39%) or vote by mail (34%). However one-in-five believe that they will go to the polls (22% on Election Day).

Whether or not they are choosing to vote in person or by-mail, voters supported policies to ensure the election is safe and accessible for all eligible voters:

Open additional polling locations to reduce crowds and lines (92%);
Lengthen the window for early voting and allow voters to cast ballots in person up through the day before Election Day (87%);
Allow any registered Nevada voter to vote by mail (74%); and
Mail all registered voters applications to vote-by-mail (61%).

"Nevadans want this legislature to take action to ensure all eligible voters have the opportunity to vote and aren’t forced to choose between their health and their vote," said Stacey Shinn, Nevada State Director for SiX.

The Role of Government in Issues Facing Nevada

When asked if the state government should play a role in some of the issues facing working families, voters overwhelmingly supported government engagement in:

Safely and fairly administering elections (89%);
Ensuring equal access to high-quality K-12 education (85%);
Ensuring struggling families and children have access to food (84%);
Stopping the spread of the coronavirus (82%);
Equal pay for equal work (78%); and
Ensuring access to affordable health care (77%).

Voters Concerned about COVID Impact and Strongly Support Bold Economic Policies

By a three-to-one margin, voters believe Nevada state government should invest more in its residents to ensure they are safe, healthy, and economically secure (58%) rather than state government keeping taxes low and cutting funds to key services like education, infrastructure and unemployment insurance (23%).

Nevada has been hard hit by the pandemic with over half of respondents reporting that they have been laid off or had their hours cut (52%). Nevadans report they are concerned about the people losing work and income due to the virus (89%), small businesses and restaurants closing down permanently (89%) and people of Nevada unable to afford their rent or mortgage (81%).

Given the current crisis, Nevadans support policies that will address the economic hardships being faced by many and make life easier for working families:

Providing low-interest loans to small businesses to help them make it through the crisis (94%);
Offering people in Nevada the option to buy into the same public health insurance plans that are available to state employees if they want to (90%);
Limiting what drug companies can charge for prescription drugs (86%);
Extending the grace period for people to pay health insurance bills before their coverage can be canceled (86%);
Creating an insurance plan to provide paid family and medical leave for employees (79%); and
Requiring workplaces to provide paid sick days to their employees (77%).

“These results show how hard hit Nevada has been by this pandemic. People all across this state are hurting and they strongly support bold policy action by this legislature,” said Shinn.

Click here for more results.

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Defending Our Democracy: State Solutions to Strengthen Election Security

American elections face dire and unprecedented security threats. Ahead of the 2016 election, Russia launched a two-pronged campaign to sow chaos and doubt into our democracy. Hackers “scanned” election systems in all 50 states and attempted to breach systems in at least 21 states—exposing major weaknesses in our election infrastructure, regulations, and personnel readiness. At the same time, Russian internet trolls orchestrated a divisive, digital disinformation campaign to agitate and misdirect the American public. Threats to American election security have evolved and proliferated since 2016 as enemies experiment with new tactics and inspire new malicious actors.

Declining public confidence is perhaps the greatest risk to our democracy’s health today and is a key objective of our adversaries. In a recent poll conducted for C-SPAN, 58 percent of voters expressed concern that foreign governments pose a threat to American elections, and a mere 31 percent of Americans have confidence that the government has done enough to protect elections from foreign interference. Conspiracy theories of vote rigging, often elevated by President Trump, have exacerbated negative perceptions of U.S. election integrity, particularly in the aftermath of close races, like Kentucky’s 2019 gubernatorial election, or administrative bungles, like the 2020 Iowa caucus. Whether perceived or legitimate, concerns that votes will not be counted accurately could negatively impact participation and increase the chance that voters and candidates will not accept the outcome of our elections.

African-american man voter in polling place

In the face of these threats, states have largely been left to fend for themselves. Despite efforts to secure election systems and update technology across the country, state and local officials on the frontlines of our democracy are not uniformly prepared to defend against these attacks in 2020 and beyond. Federal legislation has been introduced to improve election security— offering more funding for states, mandating post-election audits, streamlining information sharing, and imposing stronger deterrents and penalties—but these efforts have generally stalled or failed.

In the absence of a strong, coordinated response from Washington, D.C., to protect our democracy, this crisis requires bold action from the states. While no one state can combat the multi-faceted and evolving set of security challenges we face, state legislators and administrators can work together as a network and lead by example to protect our elections, inspire public confidence, and spur stronger federal action. State legislators play a critical role, and the foundation of our electoral system relies on their active, informed, and vigilant engagement in election security. Whether using their platform to draw attention to solutions, supporting administrators, or passing legislation, state lawmakers have a responsibility to help strengthen election security and protect the present and future of American democracy. This brief aims to help state legislators meet this challenge.

To connect with experts, advocates, or peer legislators advancing the solutions covered here, or to receive support on legislative research, communications, or strategy, please contact the SiX Democracy Team at democracy@stateinnovation.org.

Ending Prison Gerrymandering

During the decennial census, the Census Bureau, state, and local governments have traditionally counted incarcerated individuals as residents of the areas where they are imprisoned, rather than in their home communities. This data is then used for redistricting—resulting in distorted local and state representation and hidden transfers of political power to communities that host prisons. By inflating the apparent size and therefore the political influence of areas with incarceration facilities, prison gerrymandering violates our constitutional right to equal political power based on population size. This problem is especially urgent and harmful in today’s era of mass incarceration and limits the voices and power of communities of color.

Despite advocacy to the change the practice, the 2020 Census will once again count prisoners where they are incarcerated. While the Census Bureau is best positioned to end prison gerrymandering permanently and on a national scale, state action is needed to address this problem in the meantime— particularly ahead of the next redistricting cycle.

As of January 2020, seven states had enacted legislation to prohibit prison gerrymandering and count incarcerated individuals at their last known home address in the state: California (2011), Delaware (2010), Maryland (2010), Nevada (2019), New Jersey (2020), New York (2010), and Washington (2019). Colorado, Michigan, Tennessee, and Virginia have addressed prison gerrymandering at the local level, either by barring or discouraging county and local governments from counting prison populations when drawing local districts (e.g., for town or school board elections).

State legislators have a crucial role in advancing accurate and equitable redistricting that strengthens the voices of marginalized black, white, and brown communities. To help end the harmful practice of prison gerrymandering, the State Innovation Exchange (SiX) and Prison Policy Initiative have put together the following brief with messaging guidance, policy design considerations, practical lessons on bill drafting, coalition building, and implementation, and example legislation.

Download the full report to read more.

Progressive Victories in the Maryland Legislature

During this year’s legislative session, progressive Maryland state lawmakers secured victories on policies to put more money in the pockets of working people, lower the cost of health care, care for our environment, improve access to early and higher education, strengthen our democracy and more.

Highlights of legislation passed by the General Assembly include:

A $15 Minimum Wage!

Sponsored by Sen. McCray and Del. Fennell, this became law March 28 when the legislature overrode the governor’s veto. The law will raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025 (and 2026 for businesses with fewer than 15 employees).

A first-in-the-nation Prescription Drug Affordability Board!

Authored by Sen. Klausmeier and Del. Peña-Melnyk, this bill will create a Prescription Drug Affordability Board that will have the authority to establish maximum costs to be paid by state and local governments for certain high-cost medications.

A Styrofoam Ban!

Sen. Kagan and Del. Lierman sponsored this Styrofoam Ban, making Maryland the first state in the nation to do so. Passed with bipartisan support, this legislation will help Maryland reach its goal of diverting 85% of waste by reduction, reuse, and recycling by 2040.

The Clean Energy Jobs Act!

In a major environmental achievement, Sen. Feldman and Del. Lisanti passed the Clean Energy Jobs Act. This legislation requires utilities to buy a certain percentage of electricity each year from renewable sources, taking it from the current target of 25% by 2020 to 50% by 2030.

The Maryland Health Insurance Option!

Another first-in-the-nation bill passed by Maryland! Sen. Feldman and Del. Peña-Melnyk sponsored this bill establishing the Maryland Health Insurance Option designed to facilitate insurance coverage through a check box on Maryland Tax Returns. The bill is expected to lead to tens of thousands of Marylanders signing up for health insurance, which will expand the pool of people who are insured and bring down premium costs for other enrollees.

The Maryland Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit

Sen. King and Del. Kelly passed this important bill to increase funding for the Maryland Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit, which will benefit approximately 110,000 Marylanders who are currently struggling to pay for adequate child care.

Election Day Voter Registration!

Maryland voters approved Election Day registration last year and it will now be implemented under this bill authored by Sen. Pinsky and Del. Reznik. It is expected to increase Maryland voter turnout between 3% and 7%.

Equal Pay!

Del. Pam Queen passed the Equal Pay Remedies and Enforcement Act which requires an employer to pay a civil penalty for violating the Equal Pay for Equal Work Law.

Oversight of For-Profit Colleges

This first-in-the-nation bill protects students by combating the emerging trend of for-profit colleges becoming non-profit entities to evade regulations. This was sponsored by Sen. Pinsky and Del. Hettleman.