Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds called a special election for House District 29 on October 12 to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Rep. Wes Breckenridge on September 10.

There is no primary, and candidates will be nominated directly by political parties.

The winning candidate will serve the remainder of Breckenridge’s term, which runs through 2022. 

The veto session of the first regular session of the 101st Missouri General Assembly adjourned sine die on September 16 with no vetoes overturned by the Legislature.

During the session, House Majority Leader Dean Plocher was chosen to succeed Speaker Rob Vescovo, who will exit in 2023 due to term limits.

The appointment must be approved by the House during the 2023 session, and Plocher will continue in his current role as majority floor leader until then.

This does not affect lobbyist reporting.

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds issued a proclamation to convene a special legislative session on October 5 to consider and enact a plan of legislative and congressional districting.

This does not affect lobbyist reporting.

Iowa Republican Mike Bousselot beat Democrat Andrea Phillips by 377 votes to win the special election for House District 37.

The seat became vacant in July following the death of Rep. John Landon.

Republicans now hold a 59-40 lead in the House.

There will be one more special election on October 12 to replace Rep. Wes Breckenridge, a Democrat who resigned.

Justin Bibb, a nonprofit executive, and City Council President Kevin Kelley will square off in Cleveland, Ohio’s mayoral general election this November after receiving the most primary votes out of a field of seven candidates.

The winner will replace Frank Jackson, first elected in 2005 and now the longest-serving mayor in Cleveland history.

The first special session of the Kentucky General Assembly adjourned sine die on September 9.

Lawmakers passed five bills in the three days of the special session shifting power away from Gov. Andy Beshear to local governments to address the pandemic.

This does not affect lobbyist reporting.

The Illinois House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 539 with the amendatory veto issued by Gov. JB Pritzker.

The bill passed along party lines in a vote taken September 9, after it was rejected in an earlier vote last week.

The bill, which now goes back to Pritzker for his signature, expands state lobbyist registration requirements to the local level; prohibits all fundraising statewide during legislative sessions; expands revolving door restrictions; and requires certain consultants hired by a lobbyist or lobbying entity to register and report.

If signed, the bill will be effective January 1, 2022. 

Rep. Wes Breckenridge is resigning from the Iowa House effective September 10 after taking a job at the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy.

Breckenridge has represented House District 29 since 2016.

Iowa law requires a special election to be called within five days following a vacancy in the Iowa Legislature.

There is no primary, and candidates will be nominated directly by political parties.

The winning candidate will serve the remainder of Breckenridge’s term, which runs through 2022. 

The Illinois House of Representatives has returned to Springfield for a special session starting at noon today to consider urgent energy legislation and vote on the amendatory veto of Senate Bill 539 issued by Gov. JB Pritzker in August.

The Senate adopted the change on August 31, but the House rejected the change with a vote taken late in the evening after some members had left the session.

The bill expands state lobbyist registration requirements to the local level; prohibits all fundraising statewide during legislative sessions; expands revolving door restrictions; and requires certain consultants hired by a lobbyist or lobbying entity to register and report.

If the Amendatory Veto is accepted the bill will be effective January 1, 2022. 

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear called a special session of the General Assembly to begin Tuesday, September 7.

The call comes two weeks after the Kentucky Supreme Court ruled a lower court was wrong to block new laws limiting the scope of the governor’s emergency powers, giving the Republicans’ legislative supermajority a substantial say over any new policy measures to address the pandemic.

The session will focus on legislation addressing the pandemic, but Beshear is asking lawmakers to consider a few unrelated matters.

Illinois State House lawmakers killed an ethics omnibus bill by rejecting the Amendatory Veto of Senate Bill 539 issued by Gov. JB Pritzker last week.

The requested amendment was a minor change to the bill to keep the current process regarding ethics investigations.

The Senate adopted the change, but the House, which had passed the bill by a vote of 113 to 5, rejected the change by a vote of 59 to 35.

Kentucky Secretary of State Michael Adams announced that special elections will be held on November 2 to fill three vacancies in the General Assembly per writs of election issued by Gov. Andy Beshear.

Voters will choose two new state representatives and one state senator.

House District 51 was vacated by the death of Rep. John “Bam” Carney; House District 89 was vacated by the resignation of Rep. Robert Goforth; and Senate District 22 was vacated by the death of Sen. Tom Buford.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker issued an amendatory veto of Senate Bill 539 lawmakers requested to maintain the current process regarding ethics investigations.

Pritzker pledged to certify the bill once the amendatory veto passes the Legislature.

The bill expands state lobbyist registration requirements to the local level; prohibits all fundraising statewide during legislative sessions; expands revolving door restrictions; and requires certain consultants hired by a lobbyist or lobbying entity to register and report.

If signed, the bill will be effective January 1, 2022.

Wisconsin lawmakers introduced seven bills to address a campaign finance system perceived to favor wealthy donors.

The proposed campaign finance reforms include lower contribution limits for statewide candidates; a broader definition of political action committee; a prohibition on making expenditures for certain mass communications if coordinated with a candidate; a prohibition on corporate or labor organization contributions to a segregated fund; and disclosure of donor employment information for cumulative contributions of more than $100.