Welcome to the Wednesday, February 21, Brew.
By: Mercedes Yanora
Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:
- No open U.S. House seats in Illinois for the first time in a decade
- Six candidates are running in the Republican primary for North Carolina’s 6th Congressional District on March 5
- New Mexico State Legislature sends two more constitutional amendments to the November ballot
No open U.S. House seats in Illinois for the first time in a decade
Illinois is tied for fifth (with Pennsylvania) for most U.S. House districts in Congress. For the first time since 2014, none of Illinois’ 17 districts will be open in the upcoming House election cycle.
Forty-four candidates are running for Illinois’ 17 U.S. House districts, including 23 Democrats and 21 Republicans. That’s 2.59 candidates per district. In 2022, the first election after the number of congressional districts in Illinois decreased from 18 to 17, 5.59 candidates ran per district.
In 2020, when the state still had 18 congressional districts, 4.1 candidates per district ran. In 2018, 4.4 candidates did.
Here are some other highlights from this year’s filings:
- This is the fewest total number of candidates to run for the U.S. House since at least 2014.
- All incumbents are running for re-election this year, meaning no seats are open for the first time since 2014. In 2022, four seats were open, and one seat was open in 2020, 2018, and 2016.
- Six candidates — five Democrats and one Republican — are running in the 7th district, including incumbent Danny K. Davis (D). That’s the most candidates running for a district this year.
- Eleven primaries are contested this year — five Democratic and six Republican. That’s the fewest contested primaries since 2014, when there were nine.
- Five incumbents are facing primary challengers — four Democrats and one Republican. That’s also the fewest since 2014, when three incumbents faced primary challengers.
- The 4th District is guaranteed to Democrats because no Republican candidates filed. The 15th and 16th Districts are guaranteed to Republicans because no Democrats filed.
Illinois, alongside Ohio, is one of two states holding primaries on March 19. This year’s filing deadline in Illinois was Dec. 4, 2023.
In Illinois, the winner of a primary election is the candidate who receives the greatest number of votes, even if they do not win an outright majority of votes cast.
Illinois is one of 49 states we are featuring as part of our candidate filing analysis in 2024. We will publish analysis for each state as individual filing deadlines pass.
Six candidates are running in the Republican primary for North Carolina’s 6th Congressional District on March 5
Throughout the year, we’ll bring you coverage of the most compelling primaries — the battlegrounds we expect to have a meaningful effect on the balance of power in governments or to be particularly competitive.
Last week, we previewed the March 5 Democratic primary for Texas’ 7th Congressional District. You can catch our previous coverage of other battleground races here.
Six candidates are running in the Republican primary for North Carolina’s 6th Congressional District on March 5. Four lead in endorsements and local media attention: Christian Castelli, Bo Hines, Addison McDowell, and Mark Walker.
Incumbent Kathy Manning (D) is not running for re-election after redistricting shifted the partisan makeup of the district toward Republicans. According to Roll Call, Joe Biden (D) would have carried the district in 2020. After redistricting, Donald Trump (R) “would have won with at least 57 percent.” Manning is one of 11 House Democrats who have announced they are retiring from public office. Fifteen House Republicans are also retiring.
Castelli is a businessman and U.S. Army veteran. Castelli said he is running because “the world is on fire and Congress is broken. We must put America first and send a Green Beret to take that hill.” Castelli said he will prioritize border security, eliminating inflation, and defending freedom.
Hines is a local businessman and former college football player. Hines said he is running because “[o]ur nation under Joe Biden faces a crisis of leadership, and many in the next generation of Americans – my generation – have abandoned the values that made this country great. I cannot sit on the sidelines and watch the nation I love decline any further.” Hines said he will be the most effective ally to Donald Trump of any candidate on the ballot.
McDowell is a former government relations liaison who represented Blue Cross Blue Shield and staffer to former U.S. Rep. Ted Budd (R). McDowell said securing the southern border is a policy priority after he lost a brother to a fentanyl overdose. McDowell also said Trump and Budd endorsed him “because they believe he is the candidate who will put up the strongest fight to help them promote the America First Agenda and secure our Southern border.”
Walker represented North Carolina’s 6th Congressional District from 2015 to 2021. Walker is running on his legislative record, describing himself as “the highest-rated conservative to ever serve in U.S. House leadership.” Walker said he had a 100% record of voting in favor of restrictions on abortion, earned an “A” rating from the National Rifle Association, and was the last member of the House to successfully move for a floor vote on a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget.
Mary Ann Contogiannis and Jay Wagner are also running in the primary.
If no candidate wins more than 30% of the vote, the top two finishers will advance to a May 14 runoff.
No Democratic, minor party, or independent candidates filed to run in the district, meaning the winner of the primary will be unopposed in the general election.
We are covering an additional congressional battleground in North Carolina: the 8th Congressional District’s Republican primary.
New Mexico State Legislature sends two more constitutional amendments to the November ballot
On Feb. 14, the New Mexico State Legislature voted to send two constitutional amendments to the November ballot. These two constitutional amendments follow two others that were certified for the ballot during last year’s legislative session.
One of the previously certified amendments would proportionally apply the disabled veteran property tax exemption according to a veteran’s disability rating. The other amendment would increase the property tax exemption for veterans from $4,000 to $10,000, adjusted annually for inflation.
The new constitutional amendments on the ballot are Senate Joint Resolution 1 (SJR 1) and Senate Joint Resolution 16 (SJR 16).
SJR 1 would make changes to the appellate judges nominating commission.
The amendment would specify that the dean of the University of New Mexico’s law school could have a designee, who must be an associate dean, a faculty member, a retired faculty member, or a former law school dean. Currently, the dean serves as the chair of the commission and tiebreaker. The amendment would add that the dean’s designee is also authorized to serve as the commission chair.
SJR 1 passed in the Senate by a vote of 27-10, with five members absent, and in the House by a vote of 55-6, with nine members excused or absent.
SJR 16 would authorize the board of county commissioners to set salaries for county officers and clarify that fees collected by the county are deposited into the county treasury. Currently, the state constitution authorizes the state legislature to set the salaries of county officers.
SJR 16 passed in the Senate by a vote of 37-0, with five members absent, and in the House by a vote of 64-0, with six members absent.
In New Mexico, a total of 125 ballot measures appeared on even and odd-year statewide ballots between 1994 and 2022. One hundred and three ballot measures were approved, and 22 ballot measures were defeated.
