By: Samuel Wonacott
Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:
- Final statewide mask requirement ended in Hawaii March 26
- Don’t forget to vote in America’s Next Top Pet Tournament!
- An update on party committee fundraising
The country’s last statewide mask mandate has ended
On Saturday, March 26, the last statewide mask requirement in the country came to an end when Hawaii lifted its masking rules. This marks the first time since April 8, 2020 – a period of 720 days – in which no state has had a mask mandate in place. Gov. David Ige (D) announced on March 8 that he would end the requirement.
New Jersey was the first to enact a statewide mask mandate. Gov. Phil Murphy (D) issued the order for that requirement on April 8, 2020.
Counting Hawaii, Democratic governors in 11 states have ended statewide mask requirements since February. The last state with a Republican governor to end its mask mandate was West Virginia, which did so in June 2021.
Since the pandemic started:
- 39 states implemented statewide mask requirements at some point. Masking reached its widest extent in December 2020, when 38 states had mask requirements. Of those 38 states, 24 had a Democratic governor, while 14 had a Republican one.
- Five states with Democratic governors who allowed a statewide order to expire later reinstated the order.
- One state (New York) had its mask requirement overturned by a court. A higher court reinstated the requirement later that day.
- Thirty-six states ended mask requirements through executive order, two (Kansas and Utah) ended mask requirements through legislative action. A court order ended Wisconsin’s mask mandate.
The chart below shows the total number of days each state had a mask requirement in place since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.
Here are a handful of other tidbits from our coverage:
- Mississippi had the shortest mask requirement, lasting 56 days.
- The shortest statewide mask requirement in a state with a Democratic governor was in Wisconsin, which lasted 242 days.
- The longest statewide mask requirement was in Hawaii, which lasted 704 days.
- The longest statewide mask requirement in a state with a Republican governor was in Maryland, which lasted 393 days.
America’s Next Top Pet Tournament
In the spirit of March Madness, we are excited to announce that voting is live for our second annual presidential pet bracket competition! Pets have found a place in presidential administrations dating back to George Washington—and, goodness, have there been some interesting ones. We’re talking cows, squirrels, and yes, even badgers.
Our contestants are off to a great start in our grrr-ueling competition. Click the link below to learn more about our players, and then be sure to cast your vote by the end of the day today to ensure your favorite pet makes it on to the Final Four-Legged round!
Our 2021 cham-paw-ion was Bo Obama. Who will take the top spot this year? The fate of these presidential pets is in your hands.
An update on party committee fundraising
This election cycle, three fundraising committees associated with the Republican Party have raised 3.7% more than those associated with the Democratic Party—$484.1 million to $466.3 million.
The six party committees raised a combined $950 million in the first 14 months of the 2022 election cycle. In February, the committees raised $83 million, according to recent filings with the Federal Election Commission.
What follows is a breakdown of those numbers broken down by committee:
- Senate committees: In February, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) raised more money than the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) for the first time since April 2021. The DSCC raised $15.0 million and spent $6.4 million, while the NRSC raised $11.7 million and spent $9.2 million. So far, the NRSC has the edge in cumulative fundraising with $134.6 million to the DSCC’s $116.9 million.
- Congressional committees: The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) also reported its highest fundraising numbers of the cycle in February, with $19.3 million in receipts and $7.5 million in spending. The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) raised $10.0 million and spent $7.0 million. So far the DCCC has raised $177.4 million to the NRCC’s $161.5 million.
- National committees: Between the national committees, the Republican National Committee (RNC) raised and spent more than the Democratic National Committee (DNC) in February. The RNC raised $16.3 million and spent $22.5 million, while the DNC raised $10.9 million and spent $21.1 million. So far the RNC has raised $188.0 million to the DNC’s $172.0 million.
Click the link below to learn more about the six party committees and their fundraising and spending efforts this election cycle.
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