In several elections for state auditor, GOP nominees are saying their state’s elections systems need auditing, amid broader conservative rhetoric questioning election integrity.
Bolts
What’s on Your Local Ballots: Your Questions Answered - Bolts
Bolts responds to six reader questions about what’s happening downballot.
In Los Angeles, a new set of public defenders is running for judge in November. Their goal? They insist that the job of a judge should be more about finding creative solutions to foster rehabilitation than doling out punishment.
Bolts
Public Defenders Look to Grow Their Presence on the Bench in Los Angeles - Bolts
Hoping to reform county courts, three public defenders are running for judge this fall. They want to build on the success of one candidate in 2022 ...
A law expanding voting rights restoration in Nebraska was set to go into effect on July 19, before the state's Attorney General declared it unconstitutional. Voting rights groups sued, and the state's top court just ruled in their favor:
Bolts
Nebraskans Rush to Undo Harm, After Court Rebuffs GOP Bid to Block Thousands of Voters - Bolts
Tens of thousands of Nebraskans who’d been blocked for months from registering to vote regained ballot access on Wednesday, though with little ti...
Local prosecutors and sheriffs hold tremendous influence over prison terms, jails conditions, and immigration enforcement. Bolts is watching these 33 races where these issues are central this November.
Bolts
The 33 Prosecutor and Sheriff Elections that Matter to Criminal Justice in November - Bolts
These offices have wide powers over the scope of incarceration and the conditions of detention, issues that are on the ballot from Tampa and Savann...
Partisan control of supreme courts is on the line this fall in Michigan and Ohio. Five seats are at play in November across these two states:
Bolts
Your State-by-State Guide to the 2024 Supreme Court Elections - Bolts
The article was updated in September 2024 to reflect summer primaries, filing deadlines, and new developments in Georgia, Louisiana, Michigan, Mont...
We reported this week that the Fort Worth sheriff was flouting state law requiring outside investigations into jail deaths, which have skyrocketed on his watch. Fort Worth Report says a Texas agency is now pressuring the sheriff to address the issue:
State says Tarrant County violated law requiring independent jail death investigations | Fort Worth Report
NEW: As November’s presidential race continues to heat up, Bolts responds to reader questions about what’s happening downballot.
Bolts
What’s on Your Local Ballots: Your Questions Answered - Bolts
Bolts responds to six reader questions about what’s happening downballot.
Many Republicans turned hard against Alaska's new voting system after Sarah Palin lost to Mary Peltola in 2022. Palin herself called ranked-choice voting “crazy, convoluted, confusing.” The system is now up for repeal next month.
Bolts
Native Leaders Organize to Defend Alaska's Ranked Choice Voting System - Bolts
The Alaska Federation of Natives is hoping to defeat a November ballot measure that would repeal the state’s new election rules, adopted just fou...
It may not be the hottest item on the ballot, but you should pay attention to the elections for state auditors next month. These offices look into how well government agencies are doing their job, and the person who holds the office can set priorities.
Bolts
What’s on Your Local Ballots: Your Questions Answered - Bolts
Bolts responds to six reader questions about what’s happening downballot.
The Arizona GOP has put a constitutional amendment on the ballot that would set new geographic signature requirements for citizen-led initiatives. In short, this would make it prohibitively difficult for future ballot measures to meet the criteria.
Bolts
Arizona Republicans Set Up a Ballot Measure to Squash Future Ballot Measures - Bolts
Editor’s note: Arizonans rejected this ballot measure in November 2024. An initiative to protect abortion access in Arizona has gathered more...