Phoenix voters to decide pension and light-rail initiatives

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Your weekly review of the week in state and local politics is here! Check out the highlights below, and click the link for a more comprehensive review of last week and preview of the week to come. We'll see you again in two weeks; there will be no Tap next week due to Labor Day. Enjoy your holiday!

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** REEVES, WALLER COMPETE IN MISSISSIPPI'S REPUBLICAN PRIMARY RUNOFF
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The Republican nomination for governor of Mississippi will be decided by a primary runoff ([link removed]) between Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves ([link removed]) and former state Supreme Court Chief Justice Bill Waller Jr. ([link removed]) Tuesday. Reeves and Waller were the top two finishers in the August 6 primary but neither won the majority of the vote necessary to win outright.

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Reeves, who is in his second term as lieutenant governor after serving two terms as state treasurer, says that his experience in state government would make him an effective chief executive. He says that he is the more conservative of the two, and has criticized Waller for supporting Medicaid expansion and an increase in the state gas tax. 

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Waller says he is a conservative Republican and would win more support from Democratic and independent voters than Reeves would in the general election. He has criticized the tone of Reeves' campaign, saying that Reeves is more focused on attacking him than on proposing policies to address the problems Mississippi faces. 

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Both candidates have secured new endorsements since the August 6 primary. Reeves, who already had the endorsement of term-limited incumbent Phil Bryant (R), was endorsed by a series of state officials including former Gov. Haley Barbour (R) and state Sen. Chris McDaniel (R). Waller was endorsed by third-place primary finisher Robert Foster (R). Together, Foster and Waller received a combined 51.1% of the primary vote to Reeves' 48.9%.

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Campaign finance reports filed Tuesday show that Reeves spent $1.9 million and Waller spent $315,000 between July 28 and August 17. During the same period, Waller raised $550,000 to Reeves' $300,000. The two met for a final debate Wednesday night.

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Because Mississippi has open primaries, the runoff is open to registered Democrats and independents who did not vote in the Democratic primary on August 6. The winner will face Attorney General Jim Hood (D) in the November 5 general election ([link removed]) . To win the general election, a candidate must both win the statewide vote and carry a majority of the 122 state House districts. If no candidate does both, the state House will decide the winner. No Democrat has won election as governor of Mississippi since Ronnie Musgrove (D) in 1999.

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** PHOENIX VOTERS TO DECIDE PENSION AND LIGHT-RAIL INITIATIVES 
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Phoenix voters will go to the ballot for a special election on Tuesday to decide two citizen initiatives.

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Proposition 105 ([link removed]) would end construction of light rail extensions and redirect funds to infrastructure improvements in Phoenix. Building a Better Phoenix sponsored the initiative and argued, “Phoenix taxpayers are wasting BILLIONS on light rail expansion at the expense of other critical infrastructure. This is money that can be used to fix our streets and sidewalks, expand bus and dial-a-ride service, improve lighting and address other infrastructure improvements.”

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Proposition 106 ([link removed]) would do the following:

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require annual assessments of the city's pension debt,

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limit budget growth if pensions are not 90% funded,

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earmark revenue over the budget limit to paying down pension debt, and

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require city officials to reimburse the city for pension benefit employer contributions.

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Responsible Budgets Inc. sponsored Proposition 106. Councilmember Sal DiCiccio (District 6) argued, “The City of Phoenix owes $4.4 BILLION on our pensions! Responsible Budgets takes the first steps to addressing Phoenix’s long term funding deficit[.]”

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Opponents joined to form the Invest in PHX, No on 105 and 106 campaign. Concerning Proposition 105, the campaign argued, “Prop 105 stops all light rail construction and kills light rail plans already approved by voters three times. … It also sends billions in federal dollars to cities in other states.” Concerning Proposition 106, the campaign argued, “Prop 106 is dangerous, and would slash access to critical city services like parks, libraries, senior centers, and support for those experiencing homelessness, just as Phoenix emerges from the worst recession in generations.”

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Proponents of each initiative had to submit 20,510 valid signatures to qualify their measure for the ballot. In Phoenix, initiative petition signatures must equal 15 percent of the voters who voted in the previous mayoral election.

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** ST. PETERSBURG, FLORIDA, TO HOLD PRIMARIES FOR FOUR COUNCIL SEATS 
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On Tuesday, the city of St. Petersburg, Florida, is holding nonpartisan primaries ([link removed])) for Districts 3, 5, and 7 on the city council. The general election is scheduled for November 5, 2019. The candidate filing deadline passed on June 21, 2019.

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District 3 incumbent Ed Montanari faces challenges from Orlando A. Acosta and Zachary James Collins. District 7 incumbent Lisa Wheeler-Bowman is running for re-election against Eritha Brandis Cainion, Chico Cromartie, and Sarah Elizabeth Moore. 

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District 1 incumbent Charlie Gerdes and District 5 incumbent Steve Kornell are both unable to run for re-election due to term limits. The District 1 race will not appear on the primary ballot. The two candidates who filed, Robert Blackmon and John Hornbeck, will both advance directly to the general election on November 5. In District 5, six candidates are competing for the open seat in the August 27 primary.

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The St. Petersburg City Council is made up of eight members, each of whom is elected by one of the city's eight districts. Council members serve four-year terms. St. Petersburg ([link removed]) is the fifth-largest city in Florida and the 77th-largest city in the U.S. by population.

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** TUCSON DEMOCRATS VIE FOR SPOT ON GENERAL ELECTION BALLOT IN PARTISAN PRIMARY FOR MAYOR
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The city of Tucson, Arizona, is holding partisan primary elections ([link removed]) for mayor and three of seven city council seats on Tuesday. Six of the city council seats are elected at large, and the mayor occupies the seventh seat. The general election is scheduled for November 5, and the filing deadline passed on May 29.

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Four candidates filed in the mayoral race ([link removed]) . Three of the four candidates—Randi Dorman, Steve Farley, and Regina Romero—are competing in the Democratic primary. The fourth candidate, independent Edward Ackerley, will face the Democratic primary winner on the general election ballot. No Republican candidates filed to run. Incumbent Jonathan Rothschild (D) announced in December 2018 that he would not seek re-election, ensuring a newcomer will take the office. Rothschild was first elected mayor in 2011 and re-elected in 2015.

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Tucson City Council Wards 1, 2, and 4 are also on the ballot. In Ward 1, incumbent Regina Romero chose to run for mayor rather than for re-election. Four Democrats filed to run for her seat. In Ward 2, Democratic incumbent Paul Cunningham is running for re-election against Republican Ewart Williams Jr. Ward 4 incumbent Shirley Scott did not file to run for re-election. Democrat Nikki Lee and Republican Michael Hicks are running for that open seat.

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Tucson ([link removed]) is the second-largest city in Arizona and the 32nd-largest city ([link removed]) 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.

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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]) .

[The Tuesday Count]

 
** 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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** 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 52 seats so far; heading into those races, Democrats had previously controlled 30 of the seats while Republicans previously controlled 22. 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 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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[States in session]

Six states—California, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, and Wisconsin—are in regular session ([link removed]) . Tennessee is in special session. 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. Pennsylvania and Virginia are in recess. Forty states have adjourned their 2019 legislative sessions.

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The Lucy Burns Institute, publisher of Ballotpedia, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. All donations are tax deductible to the extent of the law. Donations to the Lucy Burns Institute or Ballotpedia do not support any candidates or campaigns.
 

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