Highlights from the Week
On June 8th, 2023, former President Donald Trump was indicted on the mishandling of classified documents facing 37 felony counts, obstructing justice and making false statements, in which he pleaded not guilty. Felony violations include national security laws as well as participating in a conspiracy to obstruct justice. This is the first time ever the Department of Justice has charged a former President with a crime. To read a statement from the former President regarding his indictment, click here. To read a statement from the Representative Raul Grijalva, who represents District 7 in Arizona, click here. To read a statement from Representative Wiley Nickel, who represents District 13 in North Carolina, click here. Lastly, to read a statement from Representative Jim Jordan, representing District 4 in Ohio, click here.
On June 8, 2023, the Supreme Court decided on the Allen v. Milligan redistricting case. The court, decided on a 5-4 vote with Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Kavanaugh joining the liberal faction for a majority, ruled that Alabama’s congressional district map was in violation of Section 2 of the 1965 Voting Rights Act and unconstitutional by discriminating against black voters. Furthermore, the court ruled that Alabama must redraw their district lines to include a second minority-majority district. Currently, Alabama has only one minority-majority district–the 7th congressional district–but 27% of the state’s population is black. This is in violation of the Voting Rights Act because the law prohibits voting procedures that discriminate on the basis of race, and it is unconstitutional because it is in violation of the 14th amendment of the constitution. To read a statement from President Joe Biden, click here. To read a statement from Representative Terri Sewell, who represents the 7th congressional district in Alabama, click here. To read a statement from Senator Katie Britt of Alabama, click here. Lastly, to read a statement from Representative Steve Horsford of Nevada, who chairs the Congressional Black Caucus, click here.
On June 14, 2023, the U.S. House passed a resolution calling on the Russian government to immediately release former U.S. Marine, Paul Whelan and Wall Street Journal Reporter, Evan Gershkovich. Russia has held Whelan since December 28, 2018, when he was arrested and charged with espionage. The U.S. stated charges against them are baseless and considered them to be wrongly detained. The 422-to-0 vote in the House was a bipartisan statement that echoes and amplifies appeals that have been stated previously by President Biden and other U.S. Officials. To read a statement from Representative Gregory Meeks of New York, click here. To read a statement from Representative Michael McCaul of Texas, click here. To read a statement from Representative Debbie Dingell of Michigan, click here. To read a statement from Representative French Hill of Arkansas, click here.
Elections
By the Elections Research team: Nick, Zachary, Seth, and Caleb and Interns Riya, Francesca, David, Golsa, and Nicholas
Biographies:
Want to learn more about the candidates running for Virginia’s State Legislature this year? You can see the full list here:
Want to learn more about the leadership in each state legislature? You can see the full leadership rosters here:
Want to learn more about which committees elected officials are a part of? You can see the full list of committees for each state here:
Want to learn more about some special elections happening in 2023? You can see some of the elections that have been held so far this year here:
Officials
By the Officials Research team: Sam, Johanan, Neal, Thomas, Quinn, Max, and Jessica and Interns: Mark, Laura, Alexa, Henry, Jordan, Margaret and Nicholas.
Public Statements: 639 statements were added this week. See highlights from the week for notable statements.
Key Votes:
States: 48 new votes were added.
Oregon House passed HB 2005 - Amending various state gun control laws
Louisiana Senate passed HB 464 - Prohibiting possession of firearms by convicted felons
Georgia House passed HB 505, Establishing criminal charges for violent rioting
Georgia Senate Concurrence vote passed and Government Signed SB 44 - Increasing penalties for gang recruitment
Florida Senate passed and Government Signed HB 543 - Authorizing conceal carry without a permit
U.S. Congress: 0 new votes were added
Special Interest Groups (SIGs)
This year to date, the SIGs team has entered 11,412 ratings and 1,717 endorsements for candidates.