A year after the midterm congressional elections and still a year away from the 2016 presidential decision, election year 2015 is something of a sleeper. But decisions made by voters in several cities and states could be an important bellwether of sentiment ahead of next year’s presidential elections. Here’s a look at the major decisions playing out in polling stations across the country on Tuesday:
Governor’s races in Kentucky and Mississippi
Closely watched is the battle for Kentucky’s open gubernatorial seat, which features a two-term Democratic attorney general and a Republican businessman looking to upend the political dynamic in a southern state where Democrats still control statewide offices. A third candidate, independent Drew Curtis – the founder of Fark.com – is also in the mix.
The governor’s race in Mississippi has been largely overshadowed by a fight over a constitutional amendment that would allow people to sue the state to increase funding for public schools. In Mississippi, Governor Phil Bryant, a Republican, has outraised and outspent Democratic challenger Robert Gray, a long-haul trucker and political newcomer, by a wide margin. Much of the attention has shifted to two statewide education initiatives.
Initiative 42, a citizen-sponsored constitutional amendment, would allow residents to sue the state to seek additional money for schools. Critics say it would take budget decisions away from Mississippi lawmakers and give the courts too much power. The legislature has put forward its own ballot measure, Initiative 42-A, that would prohibit “judicial enforcement” of school funding.
Mayoral races
Houston, Philadelphia and Salt Lake City are among the handful of larger cities choosing mayors. The Salt Lake City race features two-term incumbent Ralph Becker, one of Obama’s appointees on a climate change taskforce, and former state lawmaker Jackie Biskupski. If Biskupski wins, she will be the city’s first openly gay mayor.
Non-discrimination protection in Houston
In Houston, the nation’s fourth-largest city, efforts to secure non-discrimination protections for gay and transgender people will face a key test. Now that same-sex marriage is legal, such laws have become a priority for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender groups. Opponents, including a coalition of conservative pastors, contend the measure infringes on their religious beliefs.
Recreational marijuana in Ohio
The only pot-related question on any state ballot this year is in Ohio, where voters were deciding on Tuesday whether to legalize marijuana for recreational and medical use in a single stroke.
If it passes, Ohio would become the fifth state to legalize recreational marijuana and would hand over exclusive rights in the state’s pot business to a limited circle of private investors, including some famous names.
The proposed constitutional amendment, known as Issue 3, would allow adults 21 and older to grow, possess and use pot while making it available for medical use. Ohioans would be able to buy marijuana, pot-infused candies and other related products from potentially 1,100-plus retail stores.
Home-growers would be limited to four flowering marijuana plants and eight ounces of usable marijuana at a given time for personal use.
In Colorado, meanwhile, voters will decide what to do with $66m in tax revenue generated from the sale of recreational marijuana.
Airbnb in San Francisco
Voters in San Francisco will decide on a citizen-backed initiative that would restrict the operations of Airbnb, the room-rental site, and a $310m bond package for affordable housing. On Monday, opponents of the housing-rental site occupied its headquarters in support of the initiative.
Ousted Michigan lawmakers want back in
Two Michigan lawmakers who were booted from office over an extramarital affair and a convoluted cover-up scheme are running on Tuesday in crowded primary fields to win back their seats.
Tea Party leaders Todd Courser, who resigned in September while facing expulsion, and Cindy Gamrat, who was expelled, are seeking the Republican nominations in special primary elections, which come less than two months after their 11 September ouster.
Their bids are not impossible because so many Republicans are running. There are 11 in Courser’s district in Michigan’s Thumb region and eight for Gamrat’s seat in the south-western part of the state.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
