Whereas Donald Trump comfortably cruised to victory over Kamala Harris, , voters in a handful of crimson states forged their ballots for insurance policies favored by centrists and progressives – akin to minimal wage protections.
In the meantime voters in some deep-blue states favored measures which can be conventionally related to conservatism, akin to tough-on-crime initiatives.
These outcomes to some extent additionally undermine the notions of monolithic “crimson states” and “blue states”. Voters in 2024 repeatedly cited financial woes and abortion as amongst their high points, and authorised of sure progressive or conservative insurance policies even after they didn’t like candidates related to them.
Missouri is among the many most hanging examples. Trump received this midwestern state’s 10 electoral votes after receiving 1,739,020 ballots, in contrast with Harris’s 1,190,806 – a landslide 58.5%.
However Missouri additionally additionally inexperienced lit a union-backed poll initiative to extend the state’s minimal wage to $15 an hour by January 2026. This initiative additionally supplies paid sick depart to staff of enormous employers.
And voters overturned the state’s near-total abortion ban, establishing a constitutional proper to abortion till fetal viability.
Alaska, which at press time is prone to award its three electoral votes to Trump, authorised a poll measure to lift the state minimal wage to an hourly $15 by 2027.
Voters in Arizona, which at press time is poised handy its 11 electoral votes to Trump, OK’d a poll measure to create a basic proper to abortion. The measure prohibits the state from limiting or banning it earlier than 24 weeks.
Outcomes have been equally hanging in Montana, which noticed Trump finest Harris 59.1% to 37.9% at press time. Virtually the identical quantity – 57.1% voting sure and 42.9% no, in response to NBC Information – elected to amend the state structure to obviously embrace “a proper to make and perform selections about one’s personal being pregnant”. This consists of abortion entry till fetal viability, which is mostly round 24 weeks.
In a number of closely Democratic states, voters indicated that they weren’t all-in for progressivism. In California, residents voted in favor of Proposition 36.
This poll initiative enacts harsher punishments for retail theft, drug offenses and property crimes. The proposition revamps parts of a watershed 2014 regulation that downgraded a number of non-violent felony expenses to misdemeanor expenses.
That earlier initiative was meant to cut back the variety of incarcerated individuals in California’s prisons and shift cash to drug remedy and sources for crime victims. Supporters noticed it as a significant win for legal justice reform, however others stated it led to elevated property and drug crimes, in addition to homelessness.
Proposition 36 loved help from quite a few regulation enforcement and enterprise organizations, in addition to conservatives and a few Democratic mayors, akin to San Francisco’s London Breed. It aimed toward tackling homelessness and fentanyl abuse, with longer jail sentences for sellers and court-mandated drug remedy.
As of press time, Massachusetts voters have struck down a proposal to extend tipped workers’ wages. The measure would have incrementally elevated tipped staff’ wages till reaching the state minimal wage in 2029, whereas nonetheless permitting tipping, NBC Information stated.
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