New Hampshire governor re-nominates attorney general to state supreme court 

In the Nov. 3 elections, Republicans in New Hampshire gained control of both the state House of Representatives and state Senate, giving them a state government trifecta. New Hampshire had been under divided government since the 2018 elections. If you follow the Brew regularly, you likely already knew about that.

But what you might not know is that the 2020 elections also resulted in a partisan switch of the New Hampshire Executive Council, which is a five-member state executive board that oversees the state budget and approves gubernatorial appointments. This includes appointments to the New Hampshire Supreme Court.

After the new members of the executive council were sworn in, New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu (R) announced on Jan. 6 that he will re-nominate his attorney general, Gordan MacDonald (R), to the state supreme court. Sununu first nominated MacDonald to the court in 2019, but the state executive council rejected MacDonald's nomination. Before last year’s elections, the council had three Democratic members and two Republicans. 

After the council had rejected MacDonald’s nomination, Sununu left the supreme court seat vacant throughout 2020. Of the four current justices on the New Hampshire Supreme Court, two were appointed by Gov. John Lynch (D), and two were appointed by Sununu.

Republican candidates defeated two incumbents on Nov. 3, which changed the partisan composition of the council to four Republicans and one Democrat.

Members are elected by district every two years. The two executive council incumbents that lost re-election last year were both within four percentage points. In executive council District 1, Joseph Kenney (R) defeated incumbent Michael Cryans (D), 52% to 48%. In District 5, Dave Wheeler (R) defeated incumbent Debora Pignatelli (D), 51% to 49%.

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Outcome of House race in New York’s 22nd District still undecided 

There is one U.S. House election held on Nov. 3 for which we still don't have a certified winner—in New York's 22nd Congressional District. Here's a quick update on where this race currently stands.

The latest vote count, completed on Dec. 30, showed former Rep. Claudia Tenney (R) with a 29-vote lead over incumbent Anthony Brindisi (D). This race was one of 56 U.S. House rematches from 2018 when Brindisi defeated Tenney, 51% to 49%.

Litigation over the validity of certain absentee and affidavit ballots began the day following the election and is ongoing. Problems with mislaid ballots, missing documentation of ballot challenges, and errors in vote tabulation slowed the process.

Oswego County Supreme Court Justice Scott DelConte has not made a final ruling on these issues, and official results have not been certified. DelConte also asked both campaigns to file legal briefs by Jan. 14 on 2,418 voter registration applications submitted through the Department of Motor Vehicles that the county board of elections did not process before election day. These voters had the option to cast an affidavit ballot, but these ballots weren’t counted since it appeared the voters weren't registered. At least 63 affidavit ballots from this group are being reviewed.

Final oral arguments on all court proceedings in the case are scheduled for Jan. 22.

Here are some other recent elections where the result was not confirmed until weeks after the elections:

• In 2018, the North Carolina Board of Elections did not certify the results in the 9th Congressional District race and voted unanimously to call for a new election on Feb. 21, 2019. Rep. Dan Bishop (R) won the special election on Sept. 10, 2019. 
• In the 2016 North Carolina governor's race, incumbent Pat McCrory (R) conceded on Dec. 5, 2016, after a recount in Durham County verified that Roy Cooper (D) would remain ahead. 
• In 2014, Martha McSally (R) was declared the winner over incumbent Ron Barber (D) in Arizona's 2nd Congressional District at the conclusion of a recount on Dec. 17, 2014.

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Supreme Court grants review in 14 additional cases this term

The U.S. Supreme Court announced on Jan. 8 that it would review 14 additional cases during its 2020-2021 term. The cases have not yet been scheduled for argument and came from eight different federal appeals courts.

The Court has agreed to hear 60 cases so far during the 2020-21 term, including 12 that were originally scheduled for the 2019-2020 term but were delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic. It heard 60 cases during its 2019-2020 term and 69 cases during its 2018-2019 term. 

The Court has issued opinions in 10 cases this term, including four that were decided without argument. The court issued decisions in 63 cases in its 2019-2020 term.

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