It’s almost Election Day, and what you’ll vote on … depends a lot on where you live.
America’s system of federalism means that no two state governments look exactly alike.
In Arizona, citizens elect the state’s mine inspector.i In Texas, voters are asked to choose members of the state Railroad Commissionii — a body that has nothing to do with railroads.iii (The commission actually regulates the Lone Star State’s oil and gas industry.)
In North Dakota, voters are asked to select candidates for 12 statewide offices.iv In 6 other states, the governor is the only statewide official voters are allowed to choose.
Not all governors are created equal either.
While the other 48 states all give their governors four-year terms, New Hampshire and Vermont still require theirs to run for reelection every two years.v And in Virginia governors are not allowed to serve two terms in a row.
There are also big differences in state legislatures.
New Hampshire’s legislature is the nation's largest, with a whopping 424 members.vi The smallest legislature is in Nebraska, with only 49 members. And there’s a good reason for that.vii Nebraska only has one chamber: a state senate, but no state house.viii
There are also big differences in how much state legislators get paid.
In California, annual legislative salaries are nearly $115,000 — the highest in the nation.ix The lowest salaries are in New Mexico, where lawmakers make … nothing. (The state’s constitution prohibits legislative salaries.)x
Speaking of state constitutions, Vermont has the shortest, at just under 8,300 words.xi The longest belongs to Alabama, which, at 388,882 words, is longer than the New Testament and more than 50 times larger than the U.S. Constitution.xii
Most state constitutions protect similar rights as the federal one, with a few peculiar exceptions.
Georgia’s constitution contains a provision meant to ensure that bingo games can be held legally.xiii And Oregon is the only state whose constitution addresses the right to sell liquor by the glass.
We’ll have what Oregon’s having.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:
- New Hampshire and Vermont are the only states that don’t elect governors to four-year terms.
- California has the highest-paid legislators, while lawmakers in New Mexico don’t receive a salary.
- Nebraska is the only state with a unicameral legislature.
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