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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsDemocratic wins in these 9 states will have seismic policy consequences
Maine: Medicaid expansion is comingJanet Mills beat Republican Shawn Moody decisively 51 percent to 43 and Democrats flipped the one Maine Senate Seat they needed to take over that chamber. They already controlled the House.
First and foremost, the Democratic takeover means the end of Maines Medicaid expansion drama. Maine voters overwhelmingly approved the expansion in a ballot initiative last year, but archconservative LePage used every legal and procedural quirk in the book to slow it down. A year after the ballot initiative passed, the 70,000 low-income people Medicaid expansion would cover in Maine still dont have Medicaid.
Colorado: Democrats could institute an ambitious environmental agenda
Democrat Jared Polis was the first openly gay man to be elected governor in US history, keeping the seat in Democratic hands, and Democrats also won the Colorado Senate to notch a new trifecta in the Rocky Mountains.
Polis ran on an ambitious policy platform, particularly on environmental issues. He wants more restrictions on fracking, and he has proposed making the state entirely dependent on renewable energy by 2040, the Denver Post reported.
Kansas: time for some centrism and some tax fights
One of the most satisfying wins of the night for Democrats was Laura Kelly toppling Republican Secretary of State Kris Kobach an immigration hardliner and former leader of Trumps voter fraud commission to become Kansass next governor.
Shell be working with a solidly Republican legislature, which means an aggressively progressive agenda is out of the question. But that wasnt Kellys style anyway. The governor-elect instead ran on expanding Medicaid and fully funding the states schools after years of GOP control left the state budget in tatters.
Wisconsin: a dog fight between a new Dem governor and GOP legislature
Wisconsin was another big Democratic win in the governors race, with Democratic state schools superintendent Tony Evers finally toppling Republican Gov. Scott Walker as he sought his third term. But the state legislature is still firmly in Republican hands.
Itll be an adjustment in the Badger State, after nearly a decade of total GOP control. And despite Walkers loss, the remaining Republican leaders dont sound like they plan to play nice with Evers. House Speaker Robin Vos is already talking about trying to claw back power from the executive branch in the lame duck session, to limit Everss ability to implement his agenda on his own.
New Mexico: Michelle Lugan Grisham targets a minimum wage hike and early education
Grisham won back the governors mansion for Democrats, after eight years of Republican Gov. Susana Martinez, and the party expanded its majorities in the state legislature.
During her campaign, Lujan Grisham said she wanted to raise the states minimum wage (just $7.50 currently) and pump more money into early childhood education. She has also expressed support for legalizing recreational marijuana, touting the tax revenue it could bring in.
New Mexico: Michelle Lugan Grisham targets a minimum wage hike and early education
Grisham won back the governors mansion for Democrats, after eight years of Republican Gov. Susana Martinez, and the party expanded its majorities in the state legislature.
During her campaign, Lujan Grisham said she wanted to raise the states minimum wage (just $7.50 currently) and pump more money into early childhood education. She has also expressed support for legalizing recreational marijuana, touting the tax revenue it could bring in.
Connecticut: Democrats must focus on the economy with a new trifecta
Ned Lamont won in Connecticut to hold the governors mansion for Democrats, though it looked like they might lose it even in a good Democratic year. Lamont eked out his victory, but just barely, with outgoing Democratic Gov. Dannel Malloy deeply unpopular after years of economic stagnation in the state. Democrats also took over the Connecticut Senate, which had previously been evenly split between the parties.
The governor-elects priorities are raising the minimum wage to $15, free tuition for community college and new property tax credits that he says will help the middle class. He needs to address the states pension crisis, which is bad enough to warrant a recent credit downgrade for the state government. Lamont has also predicted the state could legalize recreational marijuana during the first legislative session of his term.
Illinois: a budget fix tops a billionaire governors agenda
J.B. Pritzkers win over Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner has been a foregone conclusion for months, so the governor-elect and the Democratic legislature have had plenty of time to draw up their agenda for next year.
After his victory, Pritzker said his first step would be balancing the state budget, per the Journal Star. The budget is a mess: Even after some clever accounting, Illinois had, in effect, a $1.2 billion budget deficit last year. More unfunded pension liabilities payments already promised to state workers that must be honored has helped give it the worst credit rating of any state in the country.
New Hampshire: divided government comes to the Granite State
Popular Republican Gov. Chris Sununu won an unexpectedly close reelection, but Democrats took over both chambers of the state legislature, bringing divided government to one of the nations most politically engaged states.
Family leave is one possible area for compromise. Democrats campaigned on six weeks of paid leave for new parents or family members who need to care for a loved one; Sununu threatened to veto a previous family leave bill, but indicated he would be open to another proposal, per the Salem Patch. The opioid crisis is also likely to be a focus, and Democrats in the state legislature have pushed a $10 million funding increase to address the epidemic, which has hit New Hampshire hard.
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/11/9/18075536/midterm-elections-2018-results-governors-state-legislatures-agenda
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Democratic wins in these 9 states will have seismic policy consequences (Original Post)
RandySF
Nov 2018
OP
Johnny2X2X
(18,968 posts)1. MICHIGAN!!
This should include MI. We elected female a Dem Governor, SOS, and Attorney General (who is openly gay.) also our first black lieutenant governor. Re-elected a woman US Senator.
Also 3 amazing props passed that legalize recreational marijuana, end gerrymandering, and make voting easy.
Big gains in both state houses too.
Michigan has a blue wave!
roamer65
(36,744 posts)3. Yes, Prop 1 is going to result in IL and probably other states legalizing MJ.
Prop 2 is going to shift the balance in the state legislature and in our congressional delegation.
dalton99a
(81,386 posts)4. Huge wins there
smirkymonkey
(63,221 posts)2. K&R
sunonmars
(8,656 posts)5. And Nevada, gop practically wiped away out of office there
Scurrilous
(38,687 posts)6. K&R