On the Ballot

On this episode: The black box of money in politics. They discuss how OpenSecrets got its start as a 1,500-page book in the post-Watergate era, how two 2010 court decisions gave rise to super PACs and dark money, what’s driving the rising cost of elections, the growing role of mega donors and industries like crypto and AI, why spending on state and local races and ballot measures deserves more att...

On this episode: A look at the state of the states. They discuss the national mood shaping thousands of state legislative races, which chambers and trifectas could change hands, what State Navigate’s polling in states like Georgia and Vermont is showing, why shifts in who turns out can make comparisons to past elections tricky, the rise of fake polls and what it means for trust in polling, and an...

On this episode: How the Fed weighs the timing of its moves, how past chairs from William McChesney Martin to Alan Greenspan navigated their relationships with presidents and Congress, what happened when the Fed raised rates ahead of the 1978 and 2022 midterms, what Fed independence looks like in practice, and the long-term challenge of bringing inflation back to the Fed’s 2% target. On the Ballot...

On this episode: Ballotpedia’s Lara Bonatesta from our events team and Victoria Rose from our ballot measures team join Host Norm Leahy to cover what’s further down the ballot this November. They break down the trends behind this year’s 164 statewide ballot measures, from voter ID and the initiative process to California’s proposed ‘billionaires tax,’ why so many seats are open this year, the secr...

On this episode: Ballotpedia Managing Editor Doug Kronaizl joins Host Norm Leahy to go behind the scenes of Ballotpedia’s local election coverage, which spans about 55,000 elections and 116,000 candidates in 2026, a record for Ballotpedia. They discuss how the team tracks down candidate lists county by county, why some elections are run by law firms or neighbors with a landline, the unusual office...

On this episode: Exploring the part of the ballot where many voters run out of information: the school boards, judges, county offices and special districts that make up more than 500,000 elected offices nationwide. They discuss why so many voters leave the booth unsure about their down-ballot choices, Ballotpedia’s plan to cover every contest on every ballot by 2028, how candidate surveys and loca...

On this episode: Jessica Taylor, Senate and Governors Editor at The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter, joins Host Norm Leahy to break down the Senate map less than three weeks before Election Day. They discuss how Cook rates races, why states like Kansas, Nebraska and South Carolina are suddenly on the radar, each party’s path to a Senate majority, the governors’ races to watch, how money and...

On this episode: Jayme Lozano, who covers the South Plains and Panhandle for The Texas Tribune, joins Host Norm Leahy to talk about what’s on Texas voters’ minds heading into November, from affordability and property taxes to the data center boom reaching rural communities. They also discuss why the open race for agriculture commissioner matters more than many voters realize, how rural Texans coul...

On this episode: How gas prices, populist sentiments, and presidential approval are shaping the midterms, competitive Senate contests in Texas, Ohio, Iowa, and Kansas, and how much redistricting matters for the House. Kyle also shares the Virginia and Kentucky races worth watching early on election night. On the Ballot’s Midterm Mania is here to help you know your ballot up and down before you vot...

On this episode: With under four weeks to go until Election Day, Ballotpedia CEO and founder Leslie Graves joins host Norm Leahy for a big-picture look at the 2026 midterms. They dig into "repudiation elections" and why the economy so often decides them. Leslie explains why state legislative races matter far more than most voters realize, how both parties target low-propensity voters, wh...

On this episode: Axios co-founder Mike Allen joins Host Norm Leahy to talk about his new book, Simplify: Do 50% More with 50% Less , and why cutting through complexity matters more than ever in the age of AI. They also discuss data centers as a growing local political issue in Virginia and across the country, the three big shifts reshaping American technology, politics, and media, and why the days...

On this episode: A city council member in Independence, Missouri became the first elected official recalled over a data center deal. But the real story isn't just Missouri—it's the 41 other recall efforts underway nationwide. Leslie Graves and Norman Leahy dig into why recalls matter as a civic tool despite small numbers, what the data actually shows versus what headlines claim, and what N...

On this episode : AI infrastructure has become a political issue at the local level, with recalls, ballot measures, and state preemption emerging as tools communities use to weigh in on whether or not Data Centers should come to town. As the 2026 midterms approach in November, Leslie Graves, CEO of Ballotpedia, and host Norman Leahy explore why data center decisions fall primarily to city councils...

On this episode: Norman Leahy sits down with Ballotpedia CEO and Founder Leslie Graves to explore how foundational literary works—like Don Quixote and The Seven Brothers —shape national character and culture. They examine why America, despite being born from enlightenment philosophy, has never produced a true, definitive national novel, and what that absence might say about how Americans understan...

On this episode: Ballotpedia founder and CEO Leslie Graves joins host Norman Leahy to look back at how the country has celebrated — and processed — its milestone birthdays. From the muted 50th anniversary in 1826, when both John Adams and Thomas Jefferson died on the same July 4th, to Philadelphia's sprawling 1876 centennial (where the refrigerator debuted and the Statue of Liberty's torch...

On this episode: The U.S. Constitution has been amended just 27 times in over 230 years. State constitutions, collectively, have been amended more than 7,000 times — and rewritten from scratch over 140 times. Ballotpedia founder and CEO Leslie Graves joins host Norman Leahy to explore why that gap exists, what gets embedded in state constitutions and why, and how states have effectively become the...

On this episode: Running an election is harder than it looks — and it's always been that way. Ballotpedia founder and CEO Leslie Graves joins host Norman Leahy to walk through how elections actually get administered, from the surprisingly murky process of figuring out which district you live in to the chaotic, largely improvised vote that determined whether Kansas would enter the Union as a fr...

On this episode: Redistricting happens every decade — but lately it's been making news on a much shorter cycle. Ballotpedia's redistricting expert Nathan Maxwell joins host Norman Leahy to walk through how the process actually works, from reapportionment basics to the three main methods states use to draw their maps. Then they get into why redistricting keeps landing in court, what recent...

On this episode: Leslie Graves attended her first village board meeting in Spring Green, Wisconsin — and came away surprised by what she found. Norman and Leslie talk through what local government actually looks like up close, from the AI note-taker logging minutes for the local weekly paper to the five residents watching on Zoom from home. They also get into voter turnout — using Virginia's r...

On this episode: Ballotpedia CEO and Founder Leslie Graves joins host Norm Leahy to dig into a concept that doesn't get nearly enough attention: self-governance at the local level. Leslie wonders whether one of the biggest threats to American democracy isn't what dominates national headlines, but rather decades of declining civic participation in school boards, city councils, and town meet...

On this episode: Ballotpedia CEO and co-founder Leslie Graves joins host Norm Leahy to talk redistricting — what's driving the wave of mid-decade map changes ahead of the 2026 midterms, and why the same line-drawing logic that shapes congressional races also determines which school your kids attend. They also get into the history of the gerrymander, the debate over independent redistricting co...

On this episode: Primary season is officially underway in America, and Ballotpedia founder and CEO Leslie Graves joins host Norman Leahy to break down what the early 2026 results actually tell us. They dig into how primaries vary widely from state to state — open, closed, jungle, caucus, convention — and why that complexity can leave voters confused when they cross state lines. They also explore h...

On this episode: As the nation approaches its 250th anniversary, Leslie Graves announces Ballotpedia’s new American 250 initiative and Substack, Civic Blueprints , a year-long project focused on the often-overlooked mechanics — the “plumbing” — that make American democracy function. https://news.ballotpedia.org/2026/02/20/introducing-a-new-ballotpedia-project-for-americas-250th-anniversary-the-blu...

On this episode: Supreme Court scholar Adam Feldman joins the show to preview the current Supreme Court term and break down the major cases still to be argued, along with decisions expected in the months ahead. Feldman discusses cases touching on voting rights, executive authority, redistricting, and civil liberties, as well as how presidential power is shaping the court’s docket. Plus – internal...

On this episode: Google Jigsaw CEO Yasmin Green and pollster Scott Rasmussen join the show to discuss their ‘We the People’ project, an effort to gather public input for the United States’ 250th anniversary – which is this year! Yasmin and Scott set out to hear from every single congressional district in the country, exploring how Americans really feel about core democratic values and how the coun...