Runner-up gets endorsement of third-place finisher in Mississippi Republican gubernatorial runoff
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Welcome to the weekend! Here's your review of what happened this week in state and local politics. Want more? Click the link below to launch this week's full review.

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** ALL THREE SEATTLE CITY COUNCIL INCUMBENTS ADVANCE TO GENERAL ELECTION AFTER PRIMARY 
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Media outlets, including _The Seattle Times_, projected ([link removed]) the top two finishers of Seattle’s seven nonpartisan city council elections held on August 6. All three incumbents running for re-election advanced to the November 5 general election. Seattle conducts its municipal elections by mail and results will be certified August 20.

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Incumbents Lisa Herbold in District 1 and Kshama Sawant in District 3 will each face a candidate endorsed by the local Chamber of Commerce's political action committee in the general election, while District 5 incumbent Debora Juarez was herself endorsed by the group. 

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Herbold in District 1 will face attorney Phil Tavel.

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In District 3, Sawant, who is a member of the Socialist Alternative Party, goes up against Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce Director Egan Orion. 

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Juarez faces attorney Ann Davison Sattler in District 5.

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Between seven and 14 candidates filed to run in each of the four open-seat council races. One candidate backed by the Chamber of Commerce and one endorsed by the King County Democrats advanced to the general election in each race.

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In District 2, community organizer Tammy Morales will face Seattle Police Department Crime Prevention Coordinator Mark Solomon. 

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Alex Pedersen, who worked as a legislative aide for former councilmember Tim Burgess, is facing journalist Shaun Scott in District 4. 

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In District 6, Dan Strauss, who is policy advisor to councilmember Sally Bagshaw, is running against Heidi Wills, who served on the city council from 1999 to 2003. 

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And finally, in District 7, Assistant City Attorney Andrew Lewis is up against former Police Chief Jim Pugel.

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The Chamber of Commerce backed Solomon, Pedersen, Wills, and Pugel. Morales, Scott, Strauss, and Lewis were endorsed by the King County Democrats.

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The elections are taking place a year after the city council passed and then repealed a head tax proposal designed to fund affordable housing ([link removed]) programs for the homeless. The city council voted unanimously to pass the head tax in May 2018 and then repealed it by a vote of 7 to 2 the following month after it was opposed by the city’s business community, including the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Amazon. Sawant and another councilmember not up for re-election in 2019 were the two votes against repeal, and Herbold was a main supporter of the initial proposal.

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Amazon contributed $250,000 to the Chamber of Commerce's political action committee, which spent more than $350,000 supporting endorsed candidates and opposing Herbold and Sawant ahead of the primary. Overall, the seven primary races featured $874,000 in independent expenditures which was more than was spent in the primary and general elections combined in 2015—the last time these same seven seats were up for election.

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** THIRD-PLACE FINISHER ENDORSES RUNNER-UP IN MISSISSIPPI’S REPUBLICAN GUBERNATORIAL PRIMARY RUNOFF
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State Rep. Robert Foster ([link removed]) endorsed former state Supreme Court Chief Justice Bill Waller Jr. ([link removed]) in the August 27 Republican gubernatorial primary runoff ([link removed])  Tuesday. 

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Foster finished third in the August 6 primary with 18% of the vote. Waller was second with 33%. First-place finisher Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves ([link removed]) received 49% of the vote. Because no candidate received a majority, Reeves and Waller advanced to a runoff.

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At a news conference announcing his endorsement, Foster said ([link removed]) , “In the end, we each just have one vote, or we can stay home. But if you don’t want to see Jim Hood win in November, I encourage you to join me in voting for Bill Waller." 

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Reeves and Waller both began airing new ads this week. Reeves' ad criticized Waller for supporting Medicaid expansion in Mississippi and backing an increase in the state gas tax. Waller's ad said that while Reeves was focused on attacking him, Waller was focused on proposing solutions to the challenges facing Mississippi.

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The most recent campaign finance reports show Reeves with $5 million cash on hand to Waller's $118,000. The next campaign finance reporting deadline is August 20—one week before the runoff.

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The winner of the Republican primary runoff will face the Democratic nominee—Attorney General Jim Hood—in the general election November 5. Ronnie Musgrove was the last Democrat elected governor of Mississippi. He defeated Rep. Mike Parker (R) 49.6-48.5% in 1999.

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In order to win election as governor of Mississippi, a candidate must both win the statewide popular vote and carry a majority of the 122 state House districts. If no candidate does both, the state House decides the winner. 

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** PRESIDENT TRUMP TO HEADLINE FUNDRAISER FOR KENTUCKY GOV. BEVIN (R)
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President Donald Trump ([link removed]) (R) is scheduled to headline a fundraiser for Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin ([link removed]) ’s (R) in Louisville on Wednesday. Vice President Mike Pence ([link removed]) (R) appeared with Bevin earlier this month in Clay County where he spoke in support of the governor. Bevin faces Kentucky Attorney GeneralAndy Beshear ([link removed]) (D) andJohn Hicks ([link removed]) (L) in the general election November 5. Beshear is the son of former Gov. Steve Beshear ([link removed]) (D), who served from 2007 to 2015. 

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_Sabato's Crystal Ball_ rates the race as ”Lean Republican” and _The Cook Political Report_ and _Inside Elections_ rate it as a “Toss-up.”

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This race will decide the state's trifecta status until at least the 2020 state legislative elections in Kentucky. If Bevin wins, Republicans will maintain their trifecta control of the state, while a Beshear or Hicks victory would result in divided government.

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** LEE DEFEATS LUNDQUIST IN LOS ANGELES CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL ELECTION
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Former city council staffer John Lee ([link removed]) defeated university professor Loraine Lundquist ([link removed]) 52-48% in a special election ([link removed])  for a vacant seat on the Los Angeles City Council Tuesday. Lee and Lundquist had advanced from a primary field of 15 candidates June 4.

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The city council vacancy was created when—who was the only Republican on the city council—resigned his seat in December 2018 to work for a sports and entertainment firm.

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Lee is Englander’s former chief of staff and is described by the _Los Angeles Times_ as a Republican. He was endorsed by the L.A. Jobs PAC, which is sponsored by the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce. Lundquist—who was endorsed by the _Los Angeles Times_ and Our Revolution—describes herself as a Democrat.

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Los Angeles ([link removed]) is the second-largest city in the U.S. by population.

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** BALLOT MEASURES UPDATE
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** 2019:
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Twenty-three statewide measures ([link removed]) are certified for the 2019 ballot so far in Colorado, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington.

* Four of the 26 states ([link removed]) with a process for citizen-initiated measures allow for ballot initiatives or veto referendums on ballots in any odd-numbered years: Colorado ([link removed]) , Maine ([link removed]) , Ohio ([link removed]) , and Washington ([link removed]) .

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** 2020:
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Thirty-eight statewide measures ([link removed]) in 18 states have been certified for the 2020 ballot so far.

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Four of the 38 certified 2020 measures are citizen-initiated measures. Thirty-three are legislative referrals. One is an automatic constitutional revision commission question.

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Proponents of one measure, an initiative in California to establish ([link removed]) a _split-roll_ property tax structure, announced that they would start signature gathering over with a revised version.

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** SPECIAL ELECTIONS
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So far this year, 72 state legislative special elections ([link removed]) have been scheduled in 24 states. Special elections have been held for 50 seats so far; heading into those races, Democrats had previously controlled 30 of the seats while Republicans previously controlled 20. Four seats have flipped from Democratic control to Republican control. One seat has flipped from Republican control to Democratic control. One seat has flipped from Republican control to an independent officeholder. 

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In special elections between 2011 and 2018, one party (either Republicans or Democrats) saw an average net gain of four seats nationally each year.

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An average of 91 seats were filled through special elections in each of the past four odd years (2011 ([link removed]) : 94, 2013 ([link removed]) : 84, 2015 ([link removed]) : 88, 2017 ([link removed]) : 98).

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An average of 55 seats were filled through special elections in each of the past five even years (2010 ([link removed]) : 26, 2012 ([link removed]) : 45, 2014 ([link removed]) : 40, 2016 ([link removed]) : 65, 2018 ([link removed]) : 99).

 
** UPCOMING SPECIAL ELECTIONS INCLUDE:
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August 20

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Alabama House of Representatives District 42 (primary) ([link removed])

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New Hampshire House of Representatives Rockingham 9 (primary) ([link removed])

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Pennsylvania House of Representatives District 85 ([link removed])

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South Carolina House of Representatives District 19 ([link removed])

August 27

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Alabama House of Representatives District 74 (primary runoff) ([link removed])

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California State Assembly District 1 (primary) ([link removed])

September 3

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Arkansas House of Representatives District 36 (primary runoff) ([link removed])

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Georgia House of Representatives District 71 ([link removed])

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** STATES IN SESSION
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Five states—California, Massachusetts, Michigan, North Carolina, and Wisconsin—are in regular session ([link removed]) . Ohio is in skeleton session. In a typical skeleton session, a clerk, a presiding officer, and another legislative member are the only people present. The presiding officer will convene the session day and adjourn it minutes later. New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Virginia are in recess. Forty-one states have adjourned their 2019 legislative sessions.

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