Delaware held a special State Senate election, 10th district, on Saturday, February 25. The results: Democrat Stephanie Hansen 7,314 (58.13%); Republican John Marino 5,127 (40.75%); Libertarian Joseph D. Lanzendorfer 139 (1.12%).

When this seat had been up last time, in November 2014, the results had been: Democrat Bethany Hall-Long 6,230 (51.1%); Republican John Marino 5,963 (48.9%).

This month’s special election was key to determining which party would have a majority in the State Senate, so spending was the greatest ever in the history of Delaware State Senate elections. It is extremely rare to have a special legislative election (on an off-day in the normal election season) and have more votes cast in the special election, than had been cast in the last regularly-scheduled election, but that happened in this instance. The November 2014 total vote had been 12,293; this special election total vote is 12,580.

This Courthouse News Service article about the hearing in Libertarian Party of Illinois v Scholz seems to suggest that the Libertarian Party will prevail, based on the comments and questions the judges expressed during the oral argument.

On February 16, the Arizona House passed HB 2302 by a vote of 34-24. It says that any presidential elector who fails to vote for the presidential candidate who received the most votes in November is deemed to have resigned. It says the chair of that elector’s political party has the ability to replace that elector. The bill makes no provision for the possibility that an independent presidential candidate might conceivably carry Arizona. If the bill passes, one wonders if the state chair of the major political party that carries Arizona will be expected to sit in when the state’s electors vote, so that he or she would be available to choose another elector.