March 27, 2026

FL-SD14: No recount will be required in Florida Senate District 14 race

There will be no automatic machine recount in the Senate District 14 race between Democrat Brian Nathan and Republican Josie Tomkow, the Florida Division of Elections said Friday.

That’s because Nathan’s margin of victory — 405 votes — did not meet the statutory threshold to trigger a machine recount.

Florida law says that a machine recount must be ordered if the first set of unofficial returns, which were certified Friday, indicates a candidate was defeated by 0.5% or fewer of the total votes cast for the office.

Nathan led Tomkow after all votes were counted Tuesday night by 408 votes. After the first unofficial count was completed on Friday morning, his lead was reduced to 405 votes.



https://floridaphoenix.com/briefs/no-recount-will-be-required-in-florida-senate-district-14-race/

March 27, 2026

CA-11: San Francisco's establishment moves to sink a progressive House candidate

NOTE: In the spirit of transparency, I should mention that I support Connie Chan (D).


SAN FRANCISCO — Establishment Democrats in San Francisco are scrambling to bury Saikat Chakrabarti in the race to succeed Nancy Pelosi, suddenly viewing the progressive organizer as a credible competitor.

Chakrabarti, a centimillionaire and former founding engineer at Stripe, has emerged as a top contender in the race after spending millions of his own wealth and, beyond that, with his strategy — not unlike Zohran Mamdani in New York — of tapping into populist energy on the left.

Now Chakrabarti appears to be such a force he’s spooked his rivals and their backers in San Francisco, and they are waking up to the fact they have to hit him. Longtime powerbrokers in the city, including moderates and some progressive Democrats, are working to paint Chakrabarti as more of a carpetbagger than a transformative leftist.

Chakrabarti’s chief rival in the race, state Sen. Scott Wiener and a super PAC backing him, have leveled increasing attacks over the depth of Chakrabarti’s resume in local politics and questions about how long he’s lived in the city. The super PAC is funded by several of the city’s most prolific donors, including crypto billionaire Chris Larsen and Y Combinator CEO Garry Tan.



https://www.politico.com/news/2026/03/27/san-franciscos-establishment-moves-to-sink-a-progressive-house-candidate-00847914

March 27, 2026

WNBA's Connecticut Sun set to relocate to Houston following $300 million sale, per reports

The Fertitta family has agreed to a deal to purchase the Connecticut Sun for a record-breaking $300 million and move the WNBA franchise to Houston, according to reports from Paper City Magazine and ESPN. A sale would be subject to approval by the WNBA's Board of Governors, and it was not official as of Friday evening.

If the deal is approved, the Sun would reportedly play the 2026 season in Connecticut before moving to Houston in 2027. The team is expected to play at the Toyota Center, home of the NBA's Houston Rockets, and be renamed the Houston Comets, taking on the name of the original WNBA franchise in the city, which existed from 1997 until 2008. The original Comets, led by Cynthia Cooper, Sheryl Swoopes and Tina Thompson won the league's first four championships and were the first WNBA dynasty.

In June of 2025, after the WNBA announced further expansion to Cleveland (2028), Detroit (2029) and Philadelphia (2030), commissioner Cathy Engelbert said that the league had its "eye on" Houston as a city that could eventually get a team.

"There are a variety of cities that obviously bid, and one of those I wanted to shout out -- because they have such a strong history in this league and their great ownership group -- is Houston," Engelbert said at the time. "The Houston Comets were just an amazing one, the first four inaugural championships in the WNBA. So I would say that's the one, obviously, we have our eye on. [Owner] Tilman [Feritta's] been a great supporter of the WNBA, and we'll stay tuned on that."




https://www.cbssports.com/wnba/news/wnba-connecticut-sun-relocate-houston-300-million-sale/

March 27, 2026

Clifton election results in limbo after town finds 2 absentee ballots it forgot to count

Two absentee ballots found after a Tuesday election was called could change the winner of a Select Board seat in Clifton.

Clifton reported the results of its Select Board election Wednesday morning. Cynthia Grant was elected to a one-year seat, beating out Steve Armenia by just one vote, the town said.

But two ballots were found later that day, Deborah Hodgins, Clifton’s town clerk, said. The ballots were mistakenly put in a folder by a ballot clerk and not counted with the others, Hodgins said.

The two absentee ballots are still sealed and uncounted, Hodgins said, and could flip the election.



https://www.bangordailynews.com/2026/03/26/penobscot/penobscot-government/clifton-maine-select-board-election-absentee-ballots/

March 27, 2026

Meet the candidates running for Center school board in Kansas City

Kansas City residents will have a say on the next local leaders of their communities for the April 7 elections. This includes selecting the next board members of the Center 58 School District.

The district serves over 2,400 students in southern Kansas City. Four candidates will be on the ballot, with three spots up for grabs out of the eight available.

Ira Boydston IV is the incumbent running for the Center 58 School District board. Joining him on the ballot is Melissa Bellante, Marsha Brown and Kristin Stokely. Incumbent board members Marcie Calvin and Dr. Ronald Fritz will not be running for reelection.

The Kansas City Star reached out to all four candidates to get some background on who they are and what they believe they can bring to the board as the election creeps up. Here’s what they had to say.




https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/election/article315181059.html#storylink=cpy

March 27, 2026

Surry Elementary facilities upgrades may force special election

SURRY—At the March 17 meeting of the Surry School Board, Union 93 Superintendent Derek Perkins outlined the scope, and urgency, of facilities needs at Surry Elementary School. Perkins noted that rising costs would require voter approvals, but action was on a short timeline.

According to Perkins, current-year budgeted costs for facilities and maintenance at SES have been over-extended by $41,000. The costs have been driven largely by engineering and design work required to prepare a long-anticipated HVAC project for bid. Perkins said those costs are necessary to move the project forward, but cannot yet be offset by outside funding.

“At this point,” Perkins said, “the town hasn’t voted to accept the Revolving Renovations funds, so we can’t use those funds until that happens.”

Maine’s Revolving Renovation program is a loan-and-grant partnership administered through the Maine Municipal Bond Bank. Even though the funding comes from the state, towns must vote to accept it before any money can be used.



https://penobscotbaypress.com/articles/latestnews-theweeklypacket/surry-elementary-facilities-upgrades-may-force-special-election/

March 27, 2026

Merkley introduces bill banning sports, election gambling. Here's why

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) introduced a bill on Thursday aiming to crack down on prediction markets amid concerns that gambling on sports, elections and government activities invite corruption.

Sen. Merkley introduced the STOP Corrupt Bets Act alongside Congressman Jamie Raskin (D-MD).

The bill would ban prediction market betting on elections, government actions, sports and military actions, which the lawmakers note, are not commodities and have “little-to-no value in helping business investments.”

“When anyone can use prediction markets to make a well-timed bet on Congress passing a bill, government decisions, or a military strike, it’s ripe for corruption and erodes public trust,” Sen. Merkley said.





https://www.koin.com/news/politics/merkley-introduces-bill-banning-sports-election-gambling-heres-why/

March 27, 2026

Early Ontario special election results still hold with 'no' votes in the majority

Ontario’s special election results for two hospitality measures, V and W, on Thursday afternoon were still showing a majority “no” vote for both.

As of 5 p.m. Thursday, March 26, results on the registrar’s page showed 59.59% or 7,691 votes for no on Measure V and 53.02% or 6,802 votes for no on Measure W.

According to voting data from the registrar, only 9,618 of the city’s 98,239 registered voters participated in the special election, with the majority of ballots coming from mail-in.

Both measures need a 50% +1 majority vote to pass.



https://www.redlandsdailyfacts.com/2026/03/26/early-ontario-special-election-results-still-hold-with-no-votes-in-the-majority/

March 27, 2026

Golden (R) announces re-election bid for Montgomery County Mayor

Montgomery County Mayor Wes Golden announced his candidacy for re-election in the August 6 General Election, reflecting on the priorities he set during his first campaign and the progress made over the past three and a half years.

Since taking office, Montgomery County has secured major private investment, including two new hospitals and additional healthcare expansion that will bring hundreds of high-paying jobs to our community. As our population increases, expanding access to quality healthcare close to home is critical for local families. This level of investment strengthens our local economy and ensures residents have the services they need right here in Montgomery County.

Public safety has remained a top priority. During his first term, Golden led the creation of the Montgomery County Fire Department, strengthening daytime coverage to support the volunteer system and building long-term capacity to protect the community. The county also increased School Resource Officers across its schools, added an additional ambulance and staffing in North Clarksville, and launched a county-run medic program that is now fully staffed to serve residents.

Education continues to be central to the county’s long-term planning. To keep pace with enrollment and ensure students have the space and resources they need, Montgomery County will open its third new school in three years.



https://mainstreetmediatn.com/articles/uncategorized/golden-announces-re-election-bid-for-montgomery-county-mayor/?pubid=chronicleofmtjuliet

March 27, 2026

All five Rapid City Council wards to have contested races in June election

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KOTA) - All five Rapid City Council wards will have contested races in the June 2 municipal election.

The Rapid City Finance Office validated petitions for 11 candidates seeking three-year seats. All candidates will appear on the ballot.

It is the first time since 2002 that every ward has a contested race in the same cycle, and only the third time since 1995.

Ward Four has three candidates running. A runoff, if needed, will be held on June 23.



https://www.kotatv.com/2026/03/26/all-five-rapid-city-council-wards-have-contested-races-june-election/