So it’s election day but we aren’t voting for the President so some may not even see the importance of voting.
So who are we voting for? Voters are electing two governors, a few big-city mayors, one member of Congress and deciding a first-in-the-nation ballot measure in an election dominated by local and state races.
Here is a rundown of the top races on Tuesday’s ballot:
TWO GOVERNORS
Voters in two states are choosing replacements for their term-limited governors — Democrat Terry McAuliffe in Virginia and Republican Chris Christie in New Jersey. In swing-state Virginia, most polls show a close race between Republican Ed Gillespie and Democratic Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam. In New Jersey, Democrat Phil Murphy holds a double-digit lead in the polls over Republican Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagni.
BIG-CITY MAYORS
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, a Democrat, is expected to easily defeat Republican challenger from Staten Island, Nicole Malliotakis, and the private detective and TV commentator Bo Dietl.
In Boston, Mayor Marty Walsh asks voters to give him a second four-year term. Challenger Tito Jackson, a member of the City Council, would be the city’s first black mayor.
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan is seeking a second four-year term against state Sen. Coleman Young II, whose father was the city’s first black mayor. Duggan was first elected after a state-appointed manager filed for Detroit’s historic bankruptcy.
Nearly a dozen candidates are competing to succeed term-limited Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed. If the top vote-getter doesn’t win more than 50 percent, the race would require a runoff on Dec. 5.
Two women — 54-year-old urban planner Cary Moon and 59-year-old former U.S. Attorney Jenny Durkan — are vying to lead Seattle, a city dealing with the benefits and problems of an economy booming for some more than others. Former Mayor Ed Murray dropped his re-election efforts and then resigned, amid accusations of sexual abuse by multiple men.
Charlotte, North Carolina, will be getting its sixth mayor since 2009. Mayor Pro Tem Vi Lyles, a Democrat, and Republican City Councilman Kenny Smith are running to replace Mayor Jennifer Roberts, who lost in the Democratic primary.
MEDICAID
Maine residents vote in the nation’s first statewide referendum on whether to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, a vote viewed as a referendum on “Obamacare.” Thirty-one other states have joined the expansion, but this is the first time it has been put before voters. The ballot measure comes after Maine’s Republican governor vetoed five attempts to expand the program.
CONTROL OF WASHINGTON
Voters in the Seattle suburbs will determine whether the Washington state Senate will remain the only Republican-led legislative chamber on the West Coast. If the seat flips to Democrats in a special election, Washington will join Oregon and California with total Democratic rule in both legislative chambers and the governor’s office.
In conclusion today’s election is important in many ways to determine the direction our local communities are going so GO OUT AND VOTE!
