Welcome to the Tuesday, Aug. 25, Brew. Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:

1. A look at the Massachusetts Democratic Senate primary
2. Uber and Lyft to continue rideshare operations in California ahead of Prop
3.  22 vote
4. Winner declared in TX-23 GOP primary runoff

A look at the Massachusetts Democratic Senate primary 

We’re one week out from the Massachusetts statewide primary elections, which will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 1. One race we’ll be watching is the Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate, in which incumbent Sen. Ed Markey will face Rep. Joseph Kennedy III. 

Markey first won the seat in a 2013 special election after John Kerry was confirmed as Secretary of State. Markey went on to win a full term in 2014, defeating Brian Herr (R) 59% to 36%. Before joining the U.S. Senate, Markey had served in the U.S. House since 1976.

Kennedy has been a member of the U.S. House since 2013. Before that, he was assistant district attorney for multiple Massachusetts counties. Kennedy is the great-nephew of former President John F. Kennedy and former Sen. Ted Kennedy.

Markey has received endorsements from U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Kennedy has been endorsed by U.S. Reps. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas), John Lewis (D-Ga.) and Mark Pocan (D-Wis.).

So far, Markey has raised $11.9 million to Kennedy’s $7.8 million.  

Election forecasters rate the general election as Solid Democratic.

In addition to the Senate race, all nine of Massachusetts’ congressional districts are holding primaries that day. All eight seats on the Governor’s Council are also up for election, along with all 40 seats in the state Senate and all 160 seats in the state House. Follow along with us as the results come in here.

Learn more

       

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Uber and Lyft to continue rideshare operations in California ahead of Prop 22 vote

California residents still have access to Uber and Lyft. 

On Aug. 20, the California First District Court of Appeal stayed a superior court judge’s decision, effectively allowing rideshare companies Uber and Lyft to continue operating in the state ahead of a vote on Proposition 22 on November 3. Prop 22 would define app-based drivers as independent contractors rather than classifying them as employees.

In case you have not been following this case, here’s a timeline of how we got here:

• Dec. 3, 2018: AB 5, which would codify a three-factor test to decide a worker’s status as an independent contractor, was introduced in the California legislature.

• Aug. 30, 2019: DoorDash, Lyft, and Uber each contributed $30 million into campaign accounts to fund a ballot initiative campaign should the legislature pass AB 5 without compromising with the companies. 

• Sept. 18, 2019: Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed AB 5 without an exemption for app-based drivers and employers. 

• Oct. 29, 2019: DoorDash, Lyft, and Uber filed the ballot initiative, which became known as Proposition 22.

  • The ballot measure, which was certified on May 22, 2020, would override AB 5 for app-based drivers. Prop 22 would also enact labor and wage policies that are specific to app-based drivers and companies.

• Jan. 1, 2020: AB 5 went into effect.

  • Uber and Lyft did not change how their workers are classified. Tony West, the chief legal officer for the Uber, said, "Because we continue to believe drivers are properly classified as independent, and because we’ll continue to be responsive to what the vast majority of drivers tell us they want most—flexibility—drivers will not be automatically reclassified as employees. ... We expect we will continue to respond to claims of misclassification in arbitration and in court as necessary, just as we do now.” 

• May 5, 2020: California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer, San Diego City Attorney Mara Elliott, and San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera sued Uber and Lyft, alleging the firms were in violation of AB 5 for considering their workers to be independent contractors. 

• Aug. 10, 2020: Superior Court Judge Ethan Schulman granted an injunction in favor of Becerra and the city attorneys. 

  • Schulman wrote, "Defendants’ [Uber and Lyft] position cannot survive even cursory examination. ... To state the obvious, drivers are central, not tangential, to Uber and Lyft’s entire ride-hailing business.” Schulman stayed his injunction until August 20. Both Uber and Lyft appealed the decision to the California First District Court of Appeal.

  • Lawyers for Uber and Lyft said that their companies could suspend rideshare operations in the state unless the judge’s injunction was stayed.

• Aug. 20, 2020: The California First District Court of Appeal temporarily blocked Schulman’s ruling. Instead, the Court of Appeal gave Uber and Lyft until Aug. 25 to file written consents to expedited procedures. Uber and Lyft have until Sept. 4 to file opening briefs, as well as sworn statements from their CEOs confirming that the companies have developed AB 5 implementation plans should Proposition 22 be rejected and the courts uphold the injunction.

Winner declared in TX-23 GOP primary runoff

The final results are in after a recount in the Republican primary runoff for Texas’ 23rd Congressional District. Tony Gonzales defeated Raul Reyes Jr. by a margin of 39 votes out of more than 24,000 cast. The final vote tally was 12,346 to 12,339 votes.

The runoff was held on July 14. On July 31, the Republican Party of Texas certified Gonzales as the winner of the primary, with unofficial vote totals showing him leading by 45 votes. Reyes filed a request for a recount on Aug. 3 and abandoned the recount on Aug. 21. 

Gonzales will face Gina Ortiz Jones (D) and two others in the Nov. 3 general election.

Speaking of elections decided by small margins, in the 2018 congressional elections, the winning candidate's margin of victory (MOV) in 102 races was less than 10%, and was 5% or less in 50 races. 

• Twelve of those were elections for the U.S. Senate, while 90 were elections for the House of Representatives. 

• The Democratic candidate won 49 of these elections, while the Republican candidate won 53.

Here are some of the closest congressional and state legislative races from 2018:

• U.S. Senate race in Florida (MOV: 0.12%)

• Georgia’s 7th Congressional District (MOV: 0.15%)

• Kentucky House of Representatives District 13 (decided by one vote)

• Alaska House of Representatives District 1 (decided by one vote)

You can check out our full analysis of close congressional races on this page, and our analysis of close state legislative races here.

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