Voting ends this Tuesday in several states and municipalities, and perhaps the most prominent race is the one that was called just a few months ago.
A special election in California allows the state’s voters to take part in what is now a national battle over redistricting between the two major parties, aimed at next year’s midterm elections.
Here are the details of that race and three others we’re watching on this voting day. (And, after the polls close, you’ll find the results of these important elections here.)
California Redistricting
Proposition 50 would replace California’s current electoral districts with a map that favors Democrats.
The maneuver is Governor Gavin Newsom’s response to pressure from President Trump on Texas and other Republican-led states to redraw their electoral districts, giving Republicans a better chance to hold their slim majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.
If voters approve Proposition 50 — which seems likely — the new districts could help Democrats pick up as many as five additional seats in the House in the 2026, 2028, and 2030 elections. The proposal was drafted to expire after the 2030 election, returning the power to draw district boundaries to the current independent redistricting commission made up of citizens.
— Guy Marzorati, of KQED
New York Mayor
Zohran Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist and favorite in the race for mayor of the country’s largest city, defeated former Governor Andrew Cuomo and nine other Democrats in the primaries with a populist campaign that inspired younger voters through an unrelenting focus on making New York more affordable.
His primary victory energized part of the party’s base, while making him a target for Republicans nationwide.
Cuomo chose to stay in the mayoral race, running as an independent. He criticized Mamdani for being too inexperienced to deal with Trump. Cuomo also argued that the state legislator’s campaign platform, which includes free buses and universal childcare, is unfeasible.
If elected, Mamdani would be the city’s first Muslim mayor and, at 34 years old, the youngest in more than a century.
— Brigid Bergin, of WNYC
New Jersey Governor
The two main candidates for governor of New Jersey are in a tight race.
Trump has been phone-banking for Republican Jack Ciattarelli, a former small business owner who narrowly lost the gubernatorial election four years ago. Democratic Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill, a former Navy pilot, held a rally with former President Barack Obama on Saturday and holds a slight lead over Ciattarelli in recent polls.
Polls also show that issues like housing costs and high electricity bills are among voters’ top concerns, but the race has been dominated in recent weeks by personal attacks from both sides.
If Sherrill wins, it would be the first time since the 1960s that New Jersey voters elect a governor from the same party for three consecutive terms.
— Mike Hayes, of WNYC
Virginia Governor
Democrats hope history is on their side, as the party in power in the White House typically loses the Virginia gubernatorial election.
In her campaign, Democrat Abigail Spanberger, a former Congresswoman, has emphasized the rising cost of living and voters’ anxiety over Trump administration cuts to the federal workforce. The Republican, Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears, has campaigned on fighting crime, cutting taxes, and proposals to ban transgender students from participating in girls’ sports and using girls’ bathrooms in public schools.
Whichever candidate wins will make history as Virginia’s first female governor. Earle-Sears would be the first Black woman elected governor in the U.S.
— Margaret Barthel, of WAMU
Source: npr.org, by NPR Staff