2020 legislative elections

 Florida Man x 3 Reporting for National Journal, Mary Frances McGowan and Leah Askarinam wrote about the state of the crucial-- but largely ignored-- down-ballot battles over control of state legislatures.

  Remember when Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was bragging that his do-nothing response to the pandemic was just what the doctor ordered and how Florida would never be like New York or Italy. Today Florida has had 734,491 confirmed cases of COVID-19 (34,198 cases per million Floridians). New York has had 509,460 cases (26,189 cases per million New Yorkers) and Italy has had 354,950 cases (just 5,873 cases per million Italians). On Sunday Florida, still in the first wave, had 1,870 new cases.

  When we think about gerrymandering, it's often in the context of trying the almost impossible task of flipping red districts blue. But in isolating Democrat-heavy communities, we are creating oases from which progressivism can spring.

  Most of the West Coast is still suffering one of the worst, if not THE worst fire season in recorded history. Contrary to the lies coming from the White House, the reason they are so bad is that humans have altered the climate, so things are hotter and drier than they have been for millennia.

  Florida, the ultimate swing state, has played a decisive role in too many presidential elections. Every single vote counts in any statewide election there. In 2018, Republican Ron DeSantis beat Democrat Andrew Gillum 49.6% to 49.2% in the gubernatorial race and Rick Scott beat Bill Nelson (basically a walking corpse) 50.1% to 49.9% in the Senate election. Two years earlier, Trump had beaten Hillary 49.0% to 47.8%.

  Aaron Sklar called me up and told me about some extraordinary progressive Montana Democrats a few days ago. I called our old friend, Missoula-area state Rep. Tom Winter to get another opinion and some contact info. Tom was super-enthusiastic and told me that Mary Ann Dunwell is great but in a very tough Trump district and that she needs some help. I called her up.

  -by Kriss Marion, candidate Wisconsin Assembly district 51 As a wife, mom of four and a grandmother, I am fiercely committed to the well-being of my family, my neighbors, and Southwest Wisconsin. I run an award-winning bed and breakfast on our small farm in Blanchardville, and have long been involved in our village chamber of commerce and regional tourism promotion, including the Soil Sisters Tour.

  Last week the U.S. new cases numbers were back over 50,000-- even though cases were down in California and Texas, the two biggest states both population-wise and COVID-wise. All week the spiking has been in the Midwest. Friday, for example, Illinois was #4 with 2,805 new cases, Wisconsin was #5 with 2,504 new cases, Missouri #8 with 1,765 new cases, and climbing numbers in Kansas, Minnesota, Indiana, Ohio, and Iowa.

 Minnesota is closing in on 100,000 COVID cases and will get there before election day. Despite a significant and ongoing investment in the state by the Trump campaign, the margin between Trump and Biden continues to grow-- against Trump. The Real Cleat Politics polling average shows Biden up 10.2%-- 51.6% to 41.4%, which has got to be a big letdown for Trump since Hillary barely beat him in 2016-- 1,367,716 (46.44%) to 1,322,951 (44.92%).

  Today, Blue America endorsed a 6th progressive Democrat running for the Wisconsin Assembly-- Shaun Murphy-Lopez. Right now, the super-gerrymandered state Assembly has 63 Republicans, 35 Democrats and one vacant seat. Democrats need to start the road back to control of the legislature by making a big dent in the GOP majority this November.