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RandySF's JournalMI-SD35: Michigan's 35th Senate race 'most competitive' 2026 special election. Will decide control of MI state Senate
The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, which serves as the campaign arm of the Democratic Party for state legislatures, has named Michigan’s 35th state Senate district as the most competitive special election in the country in 2026 and added Democratic candidate Chedrick Greene to its list of “Spotlight” candidates, who will be promoted to the committee’s national donor base.
“All eyes should be on Michigan this spring. This will be the most competitive special election in a battleground state this year, and a chamber majority is on the line,” Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee President Heather Williams said in a press release issued Friday morning. “This election will set the tone for the midterms as we work to build state power across the country to safeguard against Trump’s abuses of power and his agenda that is raising costs. The stakes couldn’t be higher, and the DLCC will be with Michigan Democrats every step of the way between now and November.”
Greene, a Saginaw fire captain and a retired Marine, will face Jason Tunney, a lawyer at Tunney Law in Saginaw, in the special general election on May 5, which will decide control of the state Senate for the remainder of 2026.
Democrats currently hold a one-vote majority in the chamber at 19-18, meaning that if Republicans gain control of this seat in May, that majority would disappear. And while Democratic Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist would be able to cast a tie-breaking vote in the chamber, he can only do so if every member of the chamber is present and there is a 19-19 tie.
https://michiganadvance.com/briefs/dlcc-says-michigans-35th-senate-race-most-competitive-2026-special-election-spotlight-greene/
MI-SD35: DLCC says Michigan's 35th Senate race 'most competitive' 2026 special election, spotlight Greene (D)
The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, which serves as the campaign arm of the Democratic Party for state legislatures, has named Michigan’s 35th state Senate district as the most competitive special election in the country in 2026 and added Democratic candidate Chedrick Greene to its list of “Spotlight” candidates, who will be promoted to the committee’s national donor base.
“All eyes should be on Michigan this spring. This will be the most competitive special election in a battleground state this year, and a chamber majority is on the line,” Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee President Heather Williams said in a press release issued Friday morning. “This election will set the tone for the midterms as we work to build state power across the country to safeguard against Trump’s abuses of power and his agenda that is raising costs. The stakes couldn’t be higher, and the DLCC will be with Michigan Democrats every step of the way between now and November.”
Greene, a Saginaw fire captain and a retired Marine, will face Jason Tunney, a lawyer at Tunney Law in Saginaw, in the special general election on May 5, which will decide control of the state Senate for the remainder of 2026.
Democrats currently hold a one-vote majority in the chamber at 19-18, meaning that if Republicans gain control of this seat in May, that majority would disappear. And while Democratic Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist would be able to cast a tie-breaking vote in the chamber, he can only do so if every member of the chamber is present and there is a 19-19 tie.
https://michiganadvance.com/briefs/dlcc-says-michigans-35th-senate-race-most-competitive-2026-special-election-spotlight-greene/
TX-SD03: Texas Senate candidate (R) says "no strings attached" to $2 million donation from businessman
LUFKIN — In what appears to be one of the largest donations in a Texas legislative primary race this election cycle, a first-time candidate running for state Senate received nearly $2 million from a conservative East Texas businessman with a background in technology hardware.
James Moyer, a Sabine County resident, has almost single-handedly funded Rhonda Ward’s campaign for the state Senate seat that represents East Texas cities such as Nacogdoches, Orange, and Palestine.
The seat was long held by Sen. Robert Nichols, a Jacksonville Republican who announced his retirement last June. State Rep. Trent Ashby, a Lufkin Republican who worked closely with Nichols in Austin and who is Nichols’ preferred successor, announced his intentions to run for the seat on the same day.
Moyer’s donations through the end of 2025 transformed Ward, a novice politician with middling financial support, into a candidate with enough buying power to compete against a seasoned lawmaker.
https://www.texastribune.org/2026/02/20/rhonda-ward-trent-ashby-east-texas-senate-election/
AZ-SEN: Kyrsten Sinema accused of illegally spending $700,000 in campaign funds on personal expenses
A campaign watchdog group has accused former U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of illegally spending more than $700,000 in campaign cash on personal expenses, including on luxury hotel rooms, concert tickets and fancy meals.
In its complaint with the Federal Elections Commission, Campaign Legal Center says Sinema spent the money in 2025, after she left the U.S. Senate, in violation of the Federal Election Campaign Act’s prohibition on personal use of campaign funds.
“Ms. Sinema converted over $700,000 in campaign funds to personal use during 2025, after leaving the Senate, by spending it on travel, lodging, meals, staff salaries, and other expenses that were unrelated to any campaign or political activity,” Campaign Legal Center wrote in its complaint.
Federal law bars candidates from converting campaign funds to personal use, and it allows former officeholders like Sinema a six-month wind-down period for legitimate expenses needed to close down a campaign. The complaint alleges spending continued well after that window should have closed on July 3, 2025 — through at least October — with no apparent political activity to justify it.
https://azmirror.com/briefs/kyrsten-sinema-fec-complaint-illegally-spending-700000-in-campaign-funds-on-personal-expenses/
As Trump pushes voting restrictions, states have a rarely used option to push back
OTTAWA, Kan. — When Kansas began requiring residents to prove their U.S. citizenship before voting more than a decade ago, Steven Wayne Fish tried and failed.
A first-time father in his 30s at the time, he wanted a say in debates over public school funding despite having never voted before. But Fish, who was born on a since-decommissioned Air Force base in Illinois, couldn’t find his birth certificate, leaving him unable to register for the 2014 general election.
A federal court eventually blocked the Kansas law following a lawsuit in which Fish was the namesake plaintiff. For years, the Fish legal case served as a warning to politicians who wanted voters to produce documents proving their citizenship.
That’s changing, as President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress try to impose a similar proof-of-citizenship voter registration requirement nationwide through a long-shot proposal called the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act or SAVE America Act.
https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/trump-pushes-voting-restrictions-states-have-rarely-used-option-push-back
MI-SD35: Democrats launch $250K investment in Michigan special election
A Democratic group dedicated to expanding their presence at the state legislature-level is rolling out a six-figure investment on Friday ahead of a May special election for a Michigan Senate seat, a true bellwether race that could have consequences for the upper chamber’s majority.
The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) is spending $250,000 in the special election to support Democrat Chedrick Greene’s candidacy and spotlight the special election on May 5 for Michigan Senate District 35, according to details first shared with The Hill. The area includes portions of the Saginaw, Bay and Midland counties.
The seat was vacated by Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet (D-Mich.), after she won her election in 2024 to represent the state’s 8th Congressional District. There hasn’t been an election for the seat in over a year.
Greene, a former aide to McDonald Rivet when she was state senator, is running against Republican Jason Tunney, a lawyer and businessman. The seat narrowly went for former Vice President Harris with just over 50 percent.
The special election has consequences for Democrats’ narrow 19-18 majority in the Michigan Senate. If Democrats win, they’ll maintain their narrow edge. However, the chamber would be tied if Republicans flip the seat.
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/5746965-michigan-democrats-special-election/
It wants a Congressional Medal of Honor.
Donald Trump has suggested changing the law so he can give himself the Congressional Medal of Honor, bragging about his bravery in the same breath he mused about soldiers who lost their limbs in war.
In a meandering speech in Georgia on Thursday, the draft-dodging president recounted trying to give himself the medal after visiting Iraq in his first term but was talked out of it by his advisers.
“I’ve given out so many to guys that are seriously brave—I mean, they come in with—the arms are missing, the legs are missing, the stories are so unbelievable,“ Trump said. ”And I said: it’s a little stretch if I gave myself one of them.”
He added: “But it’s one of those things—someday I’m going to try."
https://www.thedailybeast.com/draft-dodging-donald-trump-thirsts-over-awarding-himself-medal-of-honor/
Dallas County election day locations finalized
Locations for voters to cast a ballot in the Republican or Democratic primary election have been finalized.
Election day locations were finalized after all contracts between each party and the vote centers were executed by end of the day on Tuesday.
Some previously hopeful polling locations were not available, some had been swapped for a different location and others chose not to participate.
County Elections Administrator Paul Adams cautioned that any changes to those lists would be updated on the county elections website.
https://www.keranews.org/news/2026-02-19/dallas-county-early-voting-election-day-locations-finalized?_amp=true
Arkansas school districts seeking millage rate increases in March 3 election What to know
ARKANSAS, USA — Voters in Greenland and Farmington will decide in the March 3 election whether to approve proposed millage increases aimed at improving school facilities and supporting growing enrollment.
Both the Greenland School District and Farmington Public Schools are asking voters to approve a 2-mill increase. State law requires districts to levy at least 25 mills in property taxes, but districts can request additional mills with voter approval to fund operations and improvements.
Greenland Superintendent Dr. Andrea Martin and Farmington Superintendent Jon Laffoon said if approved, the impact on taxpayers would be minimal.
"If you have $500,000 worth of property, it's $8 a month. That's a burger and a coke a month," Martin said. "If you had a property valued at $200,000 it's assessed about 20% of that in Arkansas, and so a 2-mill increase would cost about $80 a year," Laffoon explained.
https://www.5newsonline.com/article/news/politics/elections/arkansas-school-districts-millage-rate-increases-march-3-election/527-98b31fa2-5177-4395-b684-35cf81ca8899
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