In 2020 Gubernatorial Elections Are All About Covid
Montana is seeing a surge in new daily COVID-19 cases at one of the fastest rates in the country.
The state’s current Democratic governor has led the state through the pandemic by leaning heavily on county public health officials to make decisions for their own communities, but also through statewide mandates, like requiring people to wear masks in public spaces.
Gianforte has been vague in his exact plans for responding to the pandemic but has said he doesn’t think statewide mandates are the right approach. During his victory speech, he named the pandemic one of many issues he’ll tackle.
“We face some real challenges. We need to defeat this invisible enemy that is COVID-19. We need to get our economy going again. We need to soberly address the state’s budget. We need to overcome the scourge of addiction and meth,” Gianforte said.
Montana Democrats Reflect On Big Losses In 2020
Montana Democrats are having to reconcile with a sweeping defeat in the 2020 election that knocked them out of every statewide office. They also lost seats in the legislature and failed to win contests for the U.S. Senate and U.S. House.
When election results started rolling in on Nov. 3, University of Montana student Clara McRae was still at the Missoula County Courthouse. She had already voted, but wanted to make sure people waiting in line stayed there after the 8 p.m. deadline to cast their ballot.
McCrae grew up in Helena and now studies political science and history at UM, where she was a campus organizer for Democrats.
She thought the races were going to be tight, but Democrats ended up losing every statewide position on the ballot by eight points or more.
McCrae said it was pretty devastating.
I think we had put a lot of stock into this sort of legendary independent streak of the Montana voter with split-tickets and people voting for the person not the party. And I dont think any of us expected it to be such a Republican sweep, McCrae said.
Montana politics have long had streaks of purple sending members of both parties to Congress in recent election cycles and electing Democratic governors with Republican majorities in the statehouse.
But that split ticket voting didnt show up in 2020.
In a post-election analysis on MTPRs Campaign Beat, political scientist Rob Saldin said this years losses could be hard for Democrats to come back from.
Map: Republican Vs Democrat Control In The States
Republicans have full control of the legislature and governorship in 24 states.
Democrats have full control of the legislature and governorship in 7 states.
This week, Andrew Cuomos star went down in flames. While the smoke clears, lets take a moment to sit back and reminisce about the governors long history with ethical and legal violations.
Cuomos controversies regarding sexual harassment and nursing homes deaths were far from his first abuses of power. In fact, his administration has a long history of it, ranging from interfering with ethics commissions, to financial corruption.
In July 2013, Cuomo formed the Moreland Commission to investigate corruption in New Yorks government. At first it was a success, giving Cuomo good PR. Yet as it went on there were rumors that, contrary to his claim that Anything they want to look at they can look at, Cuomo was interfering with the Commissions investigations. There was friction within the Commission, itself with two factions forming: Team Independence and Team We-Have-a-Boss.
The Commission eventually implicated two Republicans who were allies of Cuomo. Soon after, Cuomo approved some ethics reforms and shut the Commission down. Cuomo responded to rumors of interference by saying Its my commissionI can appoint it, I can disband it. I appoint you, I can un-appoint you tomorrowI cant interfere with it, because it is mine.
The IRS did not meet these standards.
Key Findings:
Don’t Miss: When Did Political Parties Switch Platforms
A Different America: How Republicans Hold Near Total Control In 23 Us States
In those states, Republicans hold the governorship and the legislature, giving them the power to take aim at abortion access, trans rights, voting and gun safety
Democrats across the US cheered last month, as Texas legislators staged a walkout from the statehouse to block the passage of a Republican bill that would enact a number of restrictions on voting access.
But the victory seemed short-lived, as the states Republican governor, Greg Abbott, quickly announced he planned to call a special session to get the legislation passed.
The walkout and the probably only temporary relief it provides for Democrats demonstrated the immense legislative power that Republicans have in dozens of states across the country and the ability that gives them to pass a hard-right agenda on a vast range of issues from abortion to the ability to vote.
In 23 US states, Republicans hold the governorship and the legislature, giving the party near total control to advance its policies. This year, Republicans have used that power to aggressively push their conservative social agenda taking aim at abortion access, transgender rights and gun safety, as well as voting laws.
During the Texas legislative session, which concluded late last month, Republicans approved bills to allow permitless carry of firearms, ban abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy and increase criminal penalties for protesters who block intersections.
Politicos Explain Montanas Red Wave
Thank you for being a member!
Your continued support fuels the future of independent, public-powered news in Montana. If you wish to give again, know that your donation will be matched through the end of the year, helping us do more of the reporting you value every day.
Fuel the future of independent news.
Help us report on more stories like this. Become a member of Montana Free Press through the end of the year, and your contribution will be matched dollar-for-dollar.
Its been decades since a single political party swept a Montana election. Political watchers could be forgiven, then, for expecting the Nov. 3 results to continue the states long tradition of split-ticket politics. Instead, Republicans won every seat on the statewide ballot, from president to state auditor, and expanded their majority in the state Legislature for good measure.
I was completely shocked, said Rep. Barbara Bessette, one of several Democratic lawmakers unseated last week in Cascade County, referring to the lopsided Republican wins there.
The decisive victories across many counties surprised more than just Democrats.
I was as surprised at the margins as everyone else, said Jeff Essmann, a former state lawmaker and GOP party chairman from Billings.
Voters that year also sent Republican Rep. Denny Rehberg back to Washington, D.C. by 30 points while picking Democrats to serve as superintendent of public Instruction and state auditor by 10-point margins.
Read Also: 33×12.50r20 Tires Mt
What Are The Names Of The Political Parties In Montana
The parties are as follows: Constitution , Democratic , Populist , Republican , and a tie or coalition within a group of elected officials . 13R, 5D, 2P, 1 Fus. 17D, 13R, 2 Prog. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Governor of Montana Territory. ^ a b c d e f g h Acting. ^ With a Republican Lt. Governor, the GOP organized the chamber.
Republicans And Democrats Contemplate A Future Without Donald Trump
Lets assume you have spent at least a few minutes this week thinking about former President Donald Trump or something he has said or done. So ask yourself: Did anything seem different? Was it the same thought process with the same attitude as when you thought of him, say, two weeks ago?
You may not have noticed any difference. Or it may seem too subtle to measure or describe. Trump has been such an enormous force and phenomenon on our political landscape that a small change in his salience or trajectory may not be perceptible right away. Both have evolved over time and continue to evolve.
If, on the other hand, you sensed something in the air, it may have been more than the belated arrival of autumn after the summers lingering heat.
Consider this: November brought the first election in six years that was neither directly nor indirectly a referendum on Donald Trump. The big story of the night was Virginia and the huge rural and Republican turnout for businessman Glenn Youngkin, who, after the GOP primary, had done all he decently could to separate himself from the former president and run on his own.
Trump immediately attributed the victory to my base, and indeed most of Youngkins voters had surely been Trumps voters first. But this month, they turned out for another, distinctly different model of Republicanism and Trumps minimal involvement did not seem to matter that much.
Read Also: How Many Republican Vs Democrat Presidents
Opinionwe Want To Hear What You Think Please Submit A Letter To The Editor
For instance, in 2020, Yarmuth won his Louisville district with a comfortable 62.7 percent of the vote. By turning Yarmuths single district into portions of two or three new districts, Republicans could turn his safe blue seat into swing districts and safe Republican strongholds. But the naked politicking of that kind of move would invite dozens of court challenges from outraged Democrats and election integrity organizations, tying up GOP time and treasure in the middle of campaign season.
Yet relying on the Republican-aligned Supreme Court to find a remedy is a gamble that could just as easily backfire on Democrats. In the 2019 case Rucho v. Common Cause, the conservative majority ruled 5-4 that Congress, not the federal courts, must address partisan gerrymandering. As a result, half a dozen Democrat-filed federal cases were tossed out and the gerrymandered district maps allowed to stand. More outcomes like that would be catastrophic both for Democrats and democracy.
For now, the National Democratic Redistricting Committee is fighting back against Republican efforts in a flurry of high-profile lawsuits. The organization, chaired by former Obama administration Attorney General Eric Holder Jr., has said it is committed to countering the Republican plan to split up blue cities.
Politics Podcast: Should Washington Dc Be The 51st State
Statehood for Puerto Rico actually has moresupport among the public than statehood for the District of Columbia, but congressional Democrats havent demonstrated the same level of commitment to making the island a state. Although the House has introduced statehood legislation for Puerto Rico, the bill has fewer than 20 cosponsors less than one-tenth of the support the D.C. bill is getting. But in contrast to the D.C. legislation, the Puerto Rican statehood bill actually got some House Republicans to sign on. And while Puerto Rico doesnt have any companion legislation in the Senate, Florida Republican Sens. Marco Rubio and Rick Scott haveexpressed support for the islands statehood.
People advocating for Puerto Rican statehood may be able to drum up Republican support because some conservatives think that residents desire for autonomy within the U.S. federalist governing structure might actually make Puerto Rico less receptive to Democratic candidates. But Puerto Ricans have more mixed views about statehood than Washingtonians do. Although 97 percent of voters backed statehood in a 2017 referendum, only 23 percent of registered voters turned out, and a 2018 poll found that 48 percent of Puerto Ricans supported statehood compared to 26 percent who wanted to it remain a territory and 10 percent who wanted it to become an independent nation. Nonetheless, Gov. Ricardo Rossello is pushing hard for statehood.
Don’t Miss: 1970 Senate Elections
Voter Registration And State Political Control
| This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. |
The state Democratic or Republican Party controls the governorship, the state legislative houses, and U.S. Senate representation. Nebraskas legislature is unicameral, i.e., it has only one legislative house and is officially non-partisan, though party affiliation still has an unofficial influence on the legislative process.
The simplest measure of party strength in a state voting population is the affiliation totals from voter registration for the 30 states and the District of Columbia as of 2019 that allow registered voters to indicate a party preference when registering to vote. 20 states do not include party preference with voter registration: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin. The party affiliations in the party control table are obtained from state party registration figures where indicated. Only Wyoming has a majority of registered voters identifying themselves as Republicans two states have a majority of registered voters identifying themselves as Democrats: and Kentucky .
States With Republican Governors Had Highest Covid Incidence And Death Rates Study Finds
States with Democratic governors had the highest incidence and death rates from Covid-19 in the first months of the coronavirus pandemic, but states with Republican governors surpassed those rates as the crisis dragged on, a study released Tuesday found.
From March to early June, Republican-led states had lower Covid-19 incidence rates compared with Democratic-led states. On June 3, the association reversed, and Republican-led states had higher incidence,the study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Medical University of South Carolina showed.
For death rates, Republican-led states had lower rates early in the pandemic, but higher rates from July 4 through mid-December, the study found.
Don’t Miss: When Did The Democrats And Republicans Switch Platforms
Democrats May Have Control At The Federal Level But Republicans Are Pushing Back Through States
30 state legislatures are now controlled by Republicans, while only 18 are controlled by Democrats.
Though the hotly anticipated Blue Wave did not sweep over the country as thoroughly as some analysts had predicted in the weeks and months leading up to the American election on November 3, 2020, theres no denying that Democrats notched major victories in both the Senate and the White House, despite losing several seats in the House of Representatives.
But that victory is beginning to be undercut by the majority of state legislatures, which are Republican-controlled, as they begin to enact stricter voting laws, pass state sovereignty bills and push through highly conservative legislation to push back against Democratic ideologies in Washington.
Map: Republicans To Have Full Control Of 23 States Democrats 15
In 2021, Republicans will have full control of the legislative and executive branch in 23 states. Democrats will have full control of the legislative and executive branch in 15 states.
Population of the 24 fully R-controlled states: 134,035,267Population of the 15 fully D-controlled states: 120,326,393
Republicans have full control of the legislative branch in 30 states. Democrats have full control of the legislative branch in 18 states.
Population of the 30 fully R-controlled legislature states: 185,164,412Population of the 18 fully D-controlled legislature states: 133,888,565
This week, Andrew Cuomos star went down in flames. While the smoke clears, lets take a moment to sit back and reminisce about the governors long history with ethical and legal violations.
Cuomos controversies regarding sexual harassment and nursing homes deaths were far from his first abuses of power. In fact, his administration has a long history of it, ranging from interfering with ethics commissions, to financial corruption.
In July 2013, Cuomo formed the Moreland Commission to investigate corruption in New Yorks government. At first it was a success, giving Cuomo good PR. Yet as it went on there were rumors that, contrary to his claim that Anything they want to look at they can look at, Cuomo was interfering with the Commissions investigations. There was friction within the Commission, itself with two factions forming: Team Independence and Team We-Have-a-Boss.
You May Like: Are Republicans Or Democrats More Educated
Montanas 2020 Elections: A Political Turning Point For The State
On the brink of the biggest Montana election year in two decades, state Republicans make no secret of their political playbook for 2020: Tie themselves to President Trump and his policies and ride to victory statewide including the governors office for the first time in 16 years.
I think its a Republican year I think with the president on the ballot box, were going to have a really good turnout, Don Kaltschmidt, chair of the Montana Republican Party, told MTN News. If we have the House, the Senate and a Republican governor, were going to be able to move further with the Trump economy.
Montana Democrats will argue the state has done well under their leadership from the governors office and that the GOP is bent on undercutting things like public education and Medicaid expansion, which is helping keep rural hospitals open.
And as for the shadow of President Trump?
In a state where Trump remains relatively popular, Democratic Party leaders and some statewide candidates tread lightly, preferring to focus on local issues and touting Montana voters as a really independent lot.
We have a Republican and Democratic U.S. senator in the state of Montana, says Robyn Driscoll, the Democratic Party chair. We have a Democratic governor and Republican secretary of state, state auditor.
Yes, but in 2016, with Trump at the top of the ticket, Montana Republicans won five out of six statewide offices on the ballot, including three that Democrats had dominated for decades.
Citizens United Supreme Court Ruling
Tester opposed the Supreme Courts Citizens United ruling. The ruling allowed corporations and unions to donate unlimited amounts of money to third-party political groups. He proposed a constitutional amendment to reverse the decision, and argued that the ruling had a bad impact on American democracy.
You May Like: House Republicans Vote
Don’t Miss: Donald Trump 1998 People Magazine Article
