Welcome to the April 24, Brew.
By: Ethan Sorell
Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:
- Forty-one of the 100 largest U.S. cities by population and 50 state capitals are holding mayoral elections this year.
- Today marks 68 years since Alaska voters approved statehood
- Upcoming voter participation deadlines
Forty-one mayoral elections are taking place in the 100 largest U.S. cities and 50 state capitals this year
Ballotpedia’s coverage scope includes the elections in the 100 largest U.S. cities by population and the 50 state capitals. As of 2020, 64,537,560 individuals lived in the 100 largest cities, accounting for 19.47% of the nation’s total population.
Two upcoming mayoral battleground races are the May 14 Democratic primary for mayor of Baltimore, Maryland, and the May 14 runoff election for mayor of Anchorage, Alaska.We will also be covering other mayoral battleground elections later in the year as their election dates near, including:
- The June 11 primary for mayor of Las Vegas, Nevada
- The Nov. 5 general election for mayor of Portland, Oregon
- The Nov. 5 general election for mayor of San Francisco, California
Forty-one mayoral elections are taking place across the 100 largest U.S. cities by population and 50 state capitals this year.
Thirty-four of the 100 largest cities are holding mayoral elections this year.
- Eighteen of those cities currently have a Democratic mayor.
- Eleven cities holding elections have a Republican mayor.
- The other cities holding elections this year have independent or nonpartisan mayors.
Fourteen state capitals are holding mayoral elections in 2024.
- Eight state capitals holding mayoral elections have a Democratic mayor.
- One has a Republican mayor.
- The other state capitals holding elections this year have an independent or nonpartisan mayor or a mayor whose partisan affiliation we have not been able to determine.
Six of the 41 cities with mayoral elections this year have already held their elections, and all six re-elected the incumbent. Between 2014 and 2023, 66.6% of incumbent mayors in Ballotpedia’s coverage scope sought re-election. Of these, 16.6% were defeated.
Of the 41 cities with mayoral elections in 2024, 38 hold nonpartisan elections, and three hold partisan elections. In cities where mayoral elections are nonpartisan, Ballotpedia uses at least one of the following sources to identify each mayor’s partisan affiliation: direct communication from the officeholder, previous candidacy for partisan office, or identification of partisan affiliation by multiple media outlets.
Ballotpedia has tracked the partisan affiliation of the mayors of the 100 largest U.S. cities since 2016, and the partisan affiliation of state capital mayors since 2021.
To read Ballotpedia’s coverage of partisanship in United States municipal elections in 2024, click here.
Today marks 68 years since Alaska voters approved statehood
Ballotpedia’s Historic Ballot Measures project (HBM) will document nearly 200 years of direct democracy in the United States. This ongoing research effort will provide an unparalleled resource for researchers, reporters, and the voting public on how ballot measures have evolved, the issues they’ve covered, and the role they have played in our civic life.
Today, let’s take a look at Alaska Proposition 1, Constitution Ratification Measure which voters approved on April 24, 1956. The proposition asked voters:
- “Shall the constitution for the state of Alaska prepared and agreed upon by the Alaska Constitutional Convention be adopted?”
The state constitution included a provision providing for ballot initiatives in the form of indirect initiated state statutes and veto referendums.
Voters ratified the Alaska Constitution 68.12% to 31.88%.
Alaska voters also approved two other ballot measures on April 24, 1956 proposed at the Constitutional Convention of 1955-56.
- Proposition 2, the Alaska Tennessee Plan Proposition, called for the immediate election of two senators and one representative to Washington D.C.
- On Oct. 9, 1956, Alaskan’s elected two U.S. senators, Earnest Gruening and William A. Egan, and one representative, Ralph J. Rivers. The three elected officials lobbied for Alaska statehood in Washington D.C.
- Proposition 3 abolished fish traps in Alaskan waters.
Laws governing ballot measures in Alaska
- Citizens of Alaska may initiate legislation as indirect initiated statutes that first go before the Alaska Legislature before appearing on the ballot.
- Alaska is one of nine states that allow indirect initiated state statutes. The others are: Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.
- The legislature either adopts, does not take up, or votes down the statute. If the legislature never takes up, or votes down the statute, it then appears on the ballot. In Alaska, citizens also have the power to repeal legislation via veto referendum.
- The legislature may place measures on the ballot as legislatively referred constitutional amendments, legislatively referred bond measures, or advisory questions. Referred amendments require a two-thirds (66.67%) vote from each chamber during one legislative session, while bond measures and advisory questions only require a simple majority. Bond measures must be signed by the governor to appear on the ballot.
- Alaska’s constitution requires that a constitutional convention question appear on the ballot once every 10 years. Forty-two states have rules on how a constitutional convention can be called.
State Constitutional Conventions Highlights Across the Country
- The last time voters approved a constitutional convention question was in 1966 in Hawaii. The ballot measure was approved 50.5% to 49.5%. Although the measure was approved, no convention was held. The Hawaii 1996 constitutional convention question was initially considered approved, but because many voters left their ballots blank when answering the question, the Hawaii Supreme Court ruled that the question had actually not passed, and as a result no convention was held.
- The last constitutional convention question that resulted in a convention being held was in Rhode Island in 1984. The approval of Proposal 1 led to the state of Rhode Island holding a constitutional convention in 1986.
- Scheduled automatic ballot referrals for constitutional convention question include Alaska (2022), Missouri (2022), New Hampshire (2022), Rhode Island (2024), Michigan (2026), Connecticut (2028), Hawaii (2028), Illinois (2028), Iowa (2030), Maryland (2030), Montana (2030), Alaska (2032), New Hampshire (2032), and Ohio (2032).
Be sure to check out Ballotpedia’s coverage of 2024 ballot measures by clicking here.
Upcoming voter participation deadlines
With the 2024 election season well on its way, we are regularly publishing the important deadlines voters need to be aware of over the next two weeks to take part in their state’s primary election. Check out our most recent Daily Brew report on voter participation deadlines from April 10.
Ten states have important voter participation deadlines this month. These include voter registration deadlines, early voting opening and closing dates, deadlines to request absentee/mail-in ballots, and deadlines to return those ballots.
The map below shows the states that have voter participation deadlines scheduled in the next two weeks. The bulleted list below includes every state with deadlines between April 24 and May 8, 2024.
- Georgia: April 29 to May 17 (early voting period).
- Idaho: April 26 (mail-in voter registration deadline), May 6 to May 17 (early voting period).
- Idaho (Democratic presidential primary): May 23 (in-person voter registration deadline), Apr. 30 (mail and online voter registration deadline).
- Indiana: April 9 to May 6 (early voting period), April 25 (deadline to request an absentee/mail-in ballot), May 7 (deadline to return an absentee/mail-in ballot).
- Kentucky: May 7 (deadline to request an absentee/mail-in ballot).
- Maryland: May 2 to May 9 (early voting period), May 7 (deadline to request an absentee/mail-in ballot by mail or online), May 14 (deadline to request an absentee/mail-in ballot in person).
- Montana: May 6 (mail-in voter registration deadline), May 6 to June 3 (early voting period).
- Nebraska: April 29 (in-person voter registration deadline), May 3 (mail and online voter registration deadline; deadline to request an absentee/mail-in ballot).
- New Mexico: May 7 (mail-in voter registration deadline), May 7 to June 4 (early voting period).
- Oregon: April 30 (voter registration deadline).
- West Virginia: May 1 to May 11 (early voting period), May 8 (deadline to request an absentee/mail-in ballot).
Looking ahead
We’ll bring you all the information you need to know to vote next month as well, so stay tuned!