Gov. John Bel Edwards delayed Louisiana’s presidential primary a second time due to COVID-19.

The primary was originally scheduled for April 4. Edwards initially postponed the election until June 20 at the request of Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin.

Now the primary election has been pushed back an extra three weeks to July 11, making it one of the last states on the current primary calendar.

Ardoin also asked lawmakers to approve emergency procedures for the election. He sought to expand early voting from seven to 13 days.

Additionally, he wants to widen the availability of mail-in absentee ballots to people impacted by the virus.

With a 5-1 vote, the Senate and Governmental Affairs rejected an emergency certification that Ardoin needed to move ahead with the changes to polling places, early voting timelines, and absentee-by-mail voting eligibility.

The vote’s impact on the election is uncertain.

Campaign Finance

Georgia: “Ga. Lawmakers in COVID-19 Campaign Fundraising Limbo” by Beau Evans (Capitol Beat News Service) for Rome News-Tribune

Washington: “Washington AG Ferguson Sues Facebook Again, Saying It’s Still Selling Political Ads Without Adequate Disclosures” by Jim Brunner for Seattle Times

Elections

Arizona: “November Ballot Measures Threatened by Lack of Public Gatherings, Backers Warn. Judge Weighs Online Petitions” by Andrew Oxford for Arizona Republic

Kentucky: “Kentucky Legislature Overrides Veto of GOP Voter ID Measure” by Elise Viebeck for Washington Post

Ethics

National: “Supreme Court for First Time to Hold Arguments Via Teleconference Next Month” by Robert Barnes for Washington Post

National: “Sexual Assault Allegation by Former Biden Senate Aide Emerges in Campaign, Draws Denial” by Beth Reinhard, Elise Viebeck, Matt Viser, and Alice Crites (Washington Post) for MSN

Lobbying

National: “Pentagon Looks to Undo Parts of McCain Anti-Lobbying Law” by John Donnelly for Roll Call

National: “Senator Richard Burr Sold D.C. Townhouse to Donor at a Rich Price” by Robert Faturechi for ProPublica

The Georgia Campaign Finance Commission issued formal opinions to reiterate the General Assembly is still legally in session.

Lawmakers have not officially adjourned sine die, nor has the governor issued an executive order adjourning both houses.

Members of the General Assembly and other statewide elected public officers remain subject to the session ban on campaign contributions.

However, they are permitted to issue reimbursements to themselves and campaign staff for expenses incurred during the suspended session.

To mitigate the spread of COVID-19 due to in-person voting, Gov. Janet Mills issued Executive Order 39.

Executive Order 39 postpones the primary from June 9 to Tuesday, July 14.

The order also allows applications for absentee ballots to be made in writing or in person up to and including the day of the election without specifying a reason.

The new application process permits voters to obtain and return the absentee ballot before the polls close on July 14.

Campaign Finance

Washington: “Bankruptcy Judge Orders Tim Eyman to Pay $270,000 in State Court Contempt Fines by April 19” by Daniel Beekman for Seattle Times

Elections

New York: “New York’s Smaller Political Parties Must Quickly Meet New Ballot Thresholds” by Samar Khurshid for Gotham Gazette

Wisconsin: “Upset Victory in Wisconsin Supreme Court Race Gives Democrats a Lift” by Reid Epsein (New York Times) for MSN

Ethics

National: “Who’s Getting These Hundreds of Billions in the Government Aid? For Now, the Public May Be in the Dark.” by Peter Whoriskey and Heather Long (Washington Post) for Beaumont Enterprise

South Dakota: “South Dakota’s Governor Resisted Ordering People to Stay Home. Now It Has One of the Nation’s Largest Coronavirus Hot Spots.” by Griff Witte (Washington Post) for MSN

Lobbying

National: “Lobbyists, Political Consultants Sue U.S. for Coronavirus Bailout” by Robert Burnson (Bloomberg) for Washington Post

California: “FPPC Offers Guidance on Lobbying Filing Deadlines in Wake of COVID-19” by Staff for Vallejo Times-Herald

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Mayor Steve Adler signed an additional emergency order on April 13.

The new order suspends all deadlines imposed by city code, ordinance, rule, or other regulation until May 30.

Under Section 7 of the order, the deadline for all lobbyist quarterly activity reports has been extended from May 1 to May 30.

No late fees will be accrued for failure to file prior to May 30. 

St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson has requested the Board of Elections postpone the special elections currently scheduled for May 19.

The elections are to fill two vacancies on the Board of Aldermen.

The death of Ward 4 Alderman Sam Moore on February 25, and the resignation of Ward 12 Alderman Larry Arnowitz on March 3 caused, the two vacancies.

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves has announced the special election to fill House District 87 will be held on November 3.

A runoff election is set for November 24 if needed.

The seat was vacated when Billy Andrews resigned in March.

The resignation, like Ramona Blackledge’s resignation in January, was due to House leadership ruling members could not collect state government pension while receiving legislative pay.

The Maryland Board of Elections has announced there will be three in-person voting centers for the 7th Congressional District special general election on April 28.

The centers are for voters who are unable to cast their ballots by mail.

One voting center will be located in each local jurisdiction: Baltimore City, Baltimore County, and Howard County.

The board is recommending all 7th district voters who can vote by mail do so.

Voting by mail is the safest way to vote.

However, concerns over safeguarding the voting rights of those unable to vote by mail led to the decision to open the three in-person voting centers.

The local elections boards will select the location of the in-person voting centers.

Locations will be announced no later than April 20.

Campaign Finance

National: “Bloomberg Campaign Transfer of $18 Million to DNC Sparks Complaints to Federal Regulators” by Michelle Ye Hee Lee (Washington Post) for MSN

Elections

National: “Democrats Scramble to Close YouTube Deficit Amid Quarantine Campaign” by Alex Thompson for Politico

National: “GOP Pushes Voting by Mail – with Restrictions – While Trump Attacks It as ‘Corrupt’” by Amy Gardenr and Elise Viebeck (Washington Post) for MSN

New Hampshire: “New Hampshire Governor to Allow Absentee Voting in November Because of Coronavirus Outbreak” by Amy Gardner and Colby Itkowitz (Washington Post) for MSN

Ethics

Wisconsin: “‘Not as Wisconsin Nice as We Used to Be’: The divisions in Dairyland” by Dionne Searcey (New York Times) for MSN

Legislative Issues

National: “Sidelined by Coronavirus Pandemic, Congress Cedes Stage and Authority to Trump” by Mike DeBonis and Paul Kane (Washington Post) for MSN

Lobbying

Florida: “Florida Ethics Panel Rejects COVID-19 Announcements Plan, Upholds Ban on Free Publicity or Exposure” by Jim Turner (News Service of Florida) for Orlando Weekly

The Senate confirmed the appointment of Robert C. Cook of Ashland to the Missouri Ethics Commission.

Confirmation happened on April 8, ending three weeks of limbo.

The commission had been unable to meet or take any action after the terms of three of its six members expired on March 15 because commissioners cannot serve once their terms expire.

The Kentucky General Assembly’s 2020 session will reconvene on April 14, one day earlier than previously announced.

Lawmakers will consider overriding vetoes cast by Gov. Andy Beshear.

The governor’s time to veto recently passed bills expires on April 13.

Lawmakers also have the option to convene on April 15, the latest possible day they can meet in regular session this year under state constitution guidelines.

The Legislative Council of Iowa met virtually to suspend the legislative session until April 30.

The council makes rules when the legislative body isn’t in session.

The suspension comes due to concerns over the increasing number of coronavirus cases in the state.

Lawmakers have not passed a budget for next year and the current fiscal year ends June 30, but a bill passed in March before the session’s suspension extends this year’s budget through the end of August.

This does not affect lobbyist reporting.

Campaign Finance

South Carolina: “SC Ethics Commission Launches Investigation into Horry County Chairman Over Campaign Loan” by Tyler Fleming for Raleigh News and Observer

Elections

Georgia: “Georgia Further Delays Primary Election to June” by Max Greenwood for The Hill

Ethics

National: “Treasury’s Mnuchin ‘Properly’ Followed Guidance in Refusing to Give Trump’s Tax Returns to Congress, Inspector General Finds” by Jeff Stein, Erica Werner, and Tom Hamburger (Washington Post) for MSN

Alabama: “Alabama Supreme Court Upholds 6 Counts Against Mike Hubbard, Reverses 5” by Melissa Brown for Montgomery Advertiser

Missouri: “Amid COVID-19 Funding Scramble, Missouri Senate Gets Ethics Panel Back on Track” by Kurt Erickson for St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Lobbying

National: “‘Choosing Winners and Losers’: Behind the battle to be deemed essential” by Theodoric Meyer and Anna Gronwold for Politico

New Jersey: “NJ Lawyer-Lobbyists Saw Big Payday in 2019, See Uncertainty For 2020” by Suzette Parmley for Law.com