Good morning, it’s Wednesday, December 10, 2025. In today’s edition, Illinois blocks immigration enforcement at courthouses; Missouri Dems seek to block GOP redistricting plan; Dems hope 2026 is their 2010:
Top Stories
IMMIGRATION: Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) on Tuesday signed legislation barring immigration enforcement operations in or around courthouses and hospitals. The law bars colleges and day care centers from sharing the immigration status of students or parents unless required by law, and it allows residents to bring civil legal action against law enforcement officers who violate constitutional rights. (Pluribus News)
California, New York and several other states already block immigration enforcement around courthouses, laws federal judges have upheld in recent decisions against the Trump administration.
REDISTRICTING: Opponents of Missouri’s new congressional district maps said they turned in more than 300,000 signatures to force a statewide referendum on the ballot, well more than the 110,000 they need to qualify. Once the signatures are validated, the state will revert to old maps until voters get to weigh in. The General Assembly could decide to hold a vote before November’s elections, but if they don’t act, the new GOP-friendly maps will be shelved until November. (Associated Press)
MORE: Illinois Gov. Pritzker said state Democrats are “ready to stand up” and redraw his state’s maps if neighboring Indiana goes ahead with a redistricting plan currently before the state Senate. Illinois lawmakers aren’t scheduled to return to Springfield until mid-January, when next year’s session begins. (Chicago Sun-Times)
EVEN MORE: Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) has called a special session to allow the legislature to elect a new House speaker. But Moore did not include redistricting on the list of items lawmakers could bring up, a possible sign that Senate President Bill Ferguson (D) still has the votes to block a remap plan. (Baltimore Sun)
EDUCATION: The Pennsylvania Senate Education Committee has approved bipartisan legislation to ban the use of cell phones in schools during class hours. The bill would take effect in the 2027-2028 school year. (State Affairs) The Indiana Senate is considering a similar measure, which got an hour-long hearing Tuesday in the Senate Education Committee. (Indiana Capital Chronicle)
ECONOMY: West Virginia House Speaker Roger Hanshaw (R) rolled out his chamber’s list of priorities for next year’s legislative session he dubbed “Jobs First — Opportunity Everywhere.” The package includes teacher pay raises, expanded co-op programs for late teens, economic incentives to lure new businesses, and a housing reform plan to bolster construction. (WV News)
VETERANS: Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) has signed legislation creating a new child care assistance program operated by the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs. The program would assist members of the National Guard with covering the costs of child care while they are deployed or training. (State Affairs)
MARIJUANA: The Ohio Senate has given final approval to a measure overhauling recreational marijuana laws and regulating intoxicating hemp products. The bill eliminates a voter-approved Cannabis Social Equity and Jobs Fund, allocates tax money to local communities and bars packaging that targets children. The bill limits homegrown plants to 12 per household. (State Affairs)
In Politics & Business
DEMOCRATS: The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee is targeting 650 state legislative seats in 42 states in next year’s midterm elections, according to a strategy memo sent out to allies. The DLCC hopes to raise $50 million next year, a goal it has never before achieved. DLCC president Heather Williams said her party has a chance to benefit from tailwinds akin to 2010, when Republicans made huge gains in state legislatures. (New York Times)
FLORIDA: Former Miami-Dade Commissioner Eileen Higgins (D) became the first Democrat in 32 years to win Miami’s mayoral election, beating out Trump-backed Emilio Gonzalez (R) with nearly 60% of the vote. Higgins will be the first female mayor in Miami’s history. (Miami Herald)
GEORGIA: Unofficial returns show Democrat Eric Gisler winning a special election in a Georgia House district by about 200 votes out of more than 11,000 cast. The district, based in Athens northeast of Atlanta, favored President Trump by a 13-point margin in 2024. (The Downballot)
MORE: Senate President Pro Tem John Kennedy (R) will resign from office to concentrate on his campaign for lieutenant governor. He faces Majority Leader Steve Gooch (R), Sens. Greg Dolezal (R) and Blake Tillery (R) and Rep. David Clark (R) in the GOP primary. Sitting lawmakers are barred from raising campaign funds during the legislative session. (Associated Press)
By The Numbers
780: The number of cadets who have graduated from California Highway Patrol training this year, a record number in a year. Applications are up 52% from 2022, when CHP faced daunting vacancy rates. (CalMatters)
23: The number of children and adults who have fallen ill after being poisoned by foraged wild mushrooms. Mushroom poisoning outbreaks have occurred in Monterey and San Francisco in recent weeks, state health officials said, after people mistook poisonous death cap mushrooms for more familiar edible varieties. (Sacramento Bee)
Off The Wall
The city council in Flint, Mich., just can’t agree on a new leader. Council members have voted 27 times in the last four weeks on a new council president, with no one reaching the five votes necessary to win. But that’s nothing — earlier this year, the council took ten months and 735 rounds of voting to elect Councilwoman Ladel Lewis. (MLive)
Making the U.S. House of Representatives look seamlessly efficient.
The Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles has released its list of the 891 vanity plates it rejected this year. Among those that didn’t make the cut: “FELONZ,” “FKMCHGN,” “IMDRUNK,” “SLO MOFO” and “POOPSAC.” See the full list published by the Columbus Dispatch.
Quote of the Day
“The tent keeps getting smaller and smaller. And that’s bad for Indiana.”
— Indiana state Rep. Ed Clere (R), on conservative attempts to oust moderate Republicans in his state. (New York Times)