Welcome to the Thursday, April 4, Brew.
By: Briana Ryan
Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:
- Check out the 100th episode of On the Ballot, our weekly podcast, featuring Ballotpedia’s CEO and founder Leslie Graves
- Wisconsin voters approve Questions 1 and 2 to ban private and non-governmental funding of elections and authorize only election officials to administer elections
- Joe Biden issued four executive orders in March
Check out the 100th episode of On the Ballot, our weekly podcast, featuring Ballotpedia’s CEO and founder Leslie Graves
In this episode, Leslie Graves, founder and CEO of Ballotpedia, joins Ballotpedia Social Media Manager Abby Campbell to discuss a topic close to her heart: how to engage voters. The two discuss everything from how voters can stay informed on key issues and candidates to how they can fact-check the information they find online.
Leslie founded Ballotpedia in 2007 and has since led the organization’s growth from a small group of dedicated volunteers writing on ballot measures into what is now America’s most trusted source of unbiased information on politics, elections, and policy.
And remember, new episodes of On the Ballot drop every Thursday afternoon. If you’re reading this on the morning of April 4, there’s still time to subscribe to On the Ballot on your preferred podcast app and catch Leslie’s interview!
Wisconsin voters approve Questions 1 and 2 to ban private and non-governmental funding of elections and authorize only election officials to administer elections
With 95% of the vote reported, Wisconsin voters approved Question 1, 54.4% to 45.6%, to prohibit any level of government in the state from applying or accepting non-governmental funds or equipment for election administration. Question 2, which provides that only legally designated election officials may administer elections, was also approved 58.6% to 41.4%.
In 2023, Louisiana voters approved the first state constitutional amendment banning private or foreign election funding. The legislatively referred amendment was approved with 72.6% of the vote.
In 2022, Michigan voters approved a citizen-initiated constitutional amendment that allowed local governments to accept charitable and in-kind donations to assist with running elections as long as the donations are disclosed and aren’t from foreign entities. It was approved with 59.9% of the vote.
The debate over using private resources for election costs began after Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Dr. Priscilla Chan, announced on Sept. 1, 2020, that they were providing $300 million in funding to help nonprofits assist city and county election offices, with $50 million going to the Center for Election Innovation and Research (CEIR) and $250 million going to the Center for Technology and Civic Life (CTCL). Zuckerberg and Chan made a second donation of $100 million to CTCL on Oct. 13, 2020.
These organizations subsequently made a series of donations and grants to election administrators. According to the CTCL’s IRS Form 990, local jurisdictions in 38 of Wisconsin’s 72 counties received more than $10 million in grants from CTCL for the 2020 general election.
In addition to Wisconsin, Ballotpedia identified 27 other states that have enacted laws banning or otherwise restricting the use of private donations for election administration. Twenty-one of these states had a Republican trifecta when the law was adopted. Five states had divided governments at the time. No states banned or restricted private election funding before 2021.
Wisconsin has a divided government with Republicans controlling both legislative chambers and Democrat Tony Evers serving as governor. Louisiana also had a similarly divided government at the time of the 2023 election.
Joe Biden issued four executive orders in March
President Joe Biden (D) issued four executive orders in March, bringing his total to 137 since assuming office.
The four orders he issued in March were:
- Executive Order on Recognizing and Honoring Women’s History (March 27, 2024)
- Executive Order on Advancing Women’s Health Research and Innovation (March 18, 2024)
- Executive Order on Scaling and Expanding the Use of Registered Apprenticeships in Industries and the Federal Government and Promoting Labor-Management Forums (March 6, 2024)
- Executive Order on the Termination of Emergency With Respect to the Situation in Zimbabwe (March 4, 2024)
Biden issued 25 executive orders in January 2021, more than any other month of his presidency. He did not issue any executive orders in November 2022, January 2023, and January 2024.
Biden has issued an average of 42 executive orders per year in office, tied with George H.W. Bush (R) for the third-lowest average among the seven presidents who have held office since 1981. Donald Trump (R) averaged 55 executive orders per year, the most in that time. Barack Obama (D) averaged 35 per year, the fewest in that time.
Franklin D. Roosevelt (D) issued an average of 307 executive orders per year, the most of all U.S. presidents. William Henry Harrison (Whig) issued none during his one month in office. Three presidents issued only one executive order each: James Madison (Democratic-Republican), James Monroe (Democratic-Republican), and John Adams (Federalist).
