Monday, November 2, 2015

Your Complete Guide to Election Night 2015

Most political junkies have already mentally moved on to those other elections starting in early 2016. But while there may not be any federal elections left in 2015, there is no shortage of action in the states, where the real policy is made. November 3 is Election Day in 32 states and will decide the fates of governorships, ballot measures, mayors, constitutional offices, legislative seats, and more. Some highlights? How about the attempted comebacks of two Michigan Tea Party representatives who had an affair (with each other), Ohio's ballot questions on redistricting and marijuana legalization, and the Lance Berkman–opposed transgender-rights bill in Houston?

To help guide those who haven't been following these hyper-local campaigns but are interested in following them on election night, I've created this viewer's guide for Tuesday night. Sorted by poll-closing times (all times Eastern), it's a state-by-state rundown of what's on the ballot in 2015.

6pm ET


Indiana: Municipal elections in most of the state, including mayor of Indianapolis (unofficial results).
Kentucky: Judicial and municipal elections in eastern Kentucky.

7pm ET


Florida: Municipal elections across most of the state, including mayor of Orlando (unofficial results) and three city council seats in St. Petersburg (unofficial results), where the Rays' lease at Tropicana Field is a perennial issue.
Georgia: Nonpartisan special elections in SD-43, HD-92, and HD-122 (unofficial results); municipal elections, including mayor of Savannah (unofficial results).
Indiana: Municipal elections in the northwest and southwest corners of the state.
Kentucky (unofficial results): The high-profile governor's race, but equally close races for attorney general, secretary of state, treasurer, auditor, and commissioner of agriculture; more judicial and municipal elections in western Kentucky.
New Hampshire: Municipal elections, including mayor of Manchester.
South Carolina: Municipal elections, including the race to elect Charleston's first new mayor in 40 (!) years (unofficial results).
Virginia (unofficial results): All 40 seats in the closely contested State Senate (keep an eye on these seats in particular); all 100 seats in the less competitive House of Delegates; municipal elections.

7:30pm ET


North Carolina: Municipal elections, including mayor of Charlotte (unofficial results).
Ohio (unofficial statewide results): Issue 1, creating a bipartisan redistricting commission; Issue 2, an anti-monopoly ballot question intended to invalidate Issue 3; Issue 3, which would legalize marijuana in Ohio; judicial and municipal elections, including mayoral races in Columbus (unofficial results) and Toledo (unofficial results) and an anti-fracking ballot measure in Youngstown (unofficial results).

8pm ET


Connecticut (unofficial results): Municipal elections, including for New Haven mayor and Hartford mayor.
Florida: Municipal elections on the Florida Panhandle.
Maine (unofficial results): Three ballot questions, including Question 1, which would strengthen Maine's clean-elections and campaign-finance laws; municipal elections, including a mayoral race and minimum-wage increase in Portland and a high-drama race for mayor of Lewiston; special elections in HD-19 and HD-23.
Maryland: Municipal elections.
Massachusetts: A special election for the Second Plymouth and Bristol State Senate District; municipal elections, including Worcester and Springfield mayors.
Michigan: Three primary special elections for State House—one in HD-75, one in HD-80 (where Cindy Gamrat is trying to win back the seat she was expelled from for having an affair with Todd Courser), and one in HD-82 (where Todd Couser is trying to win back the seat he resigned from for having an affair with Cindy Gamrat); municipal elections in most of the state.
Missouri (unofficial results): Three special elections for the State House (HD-29, HD-36, and HD-89); municipal elections.
Mississippi (unofficial results): Statewide races for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, treasurer, auditor, commissioner of agriculture and commerce, and commissioner of insurance; all 52 seats in the State Senate and all 122 seats in the State House; Initiative 42, a racially charged public-school initiative, and its alternative, Alternative Measure 42A; judicial and municipal elections.
New Jersey (unofficial results): All 80 seats in the State Assembly (Democrats will retain their majority, but there's still action in several seats); an uncontested special election in SD-05; municipal elections.
Pennsylvania (unofficial results): Municipal elections, including mayor of Philadelphia; judicial elections, including three contentious seats on the state Supreme Court; a special election in SD-37.
Tennessee: Municipal elections, including mayor of Knoxville.
Texas: Municipal elections across most of the state, including a wide-open Houston mayoral race and the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance (unofficial results); a nonpartisan special election in HD-118 (unofficial results).

9pm ET


Arizona: Municipal elections, including mayor of Tucson (unofficial results).
Colorado (unofficial results): Proposition BB, a ballot measure asking whether marijuana revenue should be subject to TABOR; municipal elections, including the entire controversy-racked Jefferson County Board of Education.
Michigan: Municipal elections in parts of the Upper Peninsula.
Minnesota: Municipal elections, including mayor and a ballot measure to adopt ranked-choice voting in Duluth (unofficial results); an uncontested special election in HD-46A.
New Mexico: Municipal elections, including mayor of Las Cruces.
New York (unofficial results): Three special State Assembly elections (in AD-29, AD-46, and AD-128); special State Senate elections in SD-19 and the hard-fought SD-52; judicial and municipal elections.
Texas (unofficial results): Seven proposed constitutional amendments, including a "right to hunt"; municipal elections in the western tip of the state.

10pm ET


Idaho: Municipal elections in the southern part of the state, including mayor of Boise (unofficial results).
Iowa: Municipal elections, including mayor of Des Moines (unofficial results); an uncontested special election in HD-05.
Montana: Municipal elections.
Utah: Municipal elections, including mayor of Salt Lake City (unofficial results); a ballot measure in 17 counties to increase taxes for transportation.

11pm ET


California: Municipal elections, including in San Francisco (unofficial results), which will decide whether to reelect Mayor Edwin Lee, to reelect the sheriff who controversially released the undocumented immigrant who killed a young woman this summer, to restrict Airbnb's operations in the city, and to approve the Mission Rock development near AT&T Park.
Idaho: Municipal elections in the Panhandle.
Oregon: Municipal elections, including the Second Amendment Preservation Ordinance in Coos County (unofficial results).
Washington (unofficial results): Initiative 1366, which would decrease the state sales tax unless the legislature puts a different anti-tax ballot measure up for a vote; Initiative 1401, which cracks down on animal trafficking; four non-binding advisory questions; a special election in HD-09A between two Republicans; a special election in HD-30B; judicial and municipal elections, including mayor of Spokane (unofficial results) and a Initiatives 1 and 1B, a $15 minimum wage and $12 minimum wage respectively, in Tacoma (unofficial results).

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