Changing sexual violence laws and more news from the states

It’s Friday! And we’re wrapping up the week with a look at a hotly contested constitutional amendment on redistricting.

On the first day of early voting in Maryland, Democratic elected officials gathered to argue in favor of Question 3, the proposed constitutional amendment that would loosen rules on how lawmakers draw congressional districts. With few major contests on the ballot this fall, it is expected to grab most of the attention in the state over the next few weeks.  

During a rally in Sioux City, Iowa, President Donald Trump spent a portion of his speech defending Ohio Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and called for  Minnesota Democratic U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar to resign.

And before you go, watch our video that shows how anyone can take steps to protect voting rights on a local level, with some specific tips for our readers in Arizona, where today is the final day to request a mail ballot. This video was produced in partnership with Evident Media and with support from the Pulitzer Center.

In the final weeks of this election season, we’ll be sharing more videos to connect crucial election information with audiences at both a local and national level. Follow States Newsroom on Instagram for more.

National: Fewer than 5% of U.S. House races are seen by a top political analysis as truly competitive this year, giving relatively few voters the ability to determine which party controls the chamber for the next two years. That lack of competition, once a primary election is won, heavily influences which priorities lawmakers pursue in office.

Alabama: The state’s Justice Information Commission voted to impose sanctions on four law enforcement agencies who did not appear at a meeting to explain the reasons for not reporting their crime numbers to the commission. The agencies will have 15 days to report their statistics or risk losing access to state criminal justice databases.

New Jersey: An Assembly panel approved legislation that would bar federal law enforcement and uniformed military service members from standing within 100 feet of polling places and ballot drop boxes, but a scrubbed vote on the Senate floor could prevent the law from being signed in time for this year’s elections.

New Hampshire: High school and college students will be barred from using their school identification cards to vote Nov. 3, after the U.S. Supreme Court overruled a federal judge in the state.

Florida: The state education department failed to prove its allegations that a Clay County public school instructor violated state laws and rules when she posted about conservative activist Charlie Kirk after he was killed, an administrative judge has ruled.

Arkansas: Voters in November will consider a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow the creation of local economic development districts, a move supporters say will make the state competitive, but opponents have derided as unnecessarily growing government.

See the rest of the news of the day from all 50 states, plus our D.C. Bureau and Stateline, on News From The States.

After a high-profile rape case at Cornell University highlighted what she considers a loophole that fails victims, a West Virginia legislator is joining lawmakers in 15 other states to change laws regarding sexual violence, West Virginia Watch reports. 

Delegate Kayla Young, a Democrat, says she’ll introduce a bill during the 2027 legislative session that would amend the definition of “mentally incapacitated,” which is one element of a lack of consent in state code concerning sexual offenses. The new definition would include being incapable of consenting because of voluntarily being under the influence.

Currently, the definition requires that the person is incapacitated because a substance was given or administered to them without their consent. 

Young is one of 21 women lawmakers across the country who are pushing to amend sexual consent laws after a woman at Cornell University alleged in a lawsuit she had been gang raped by seven men after being pressured into snorting ketamine, smoking marijuana and drinking alcohol at a fraternity house in 2024. 

At the time, a local prosecutor declined to bring criminal charges against the men. New York is one of 19 states with rape laws that have “loopholes” for voluntary intoxication. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, appointed state Attorney General Letitia James as a special prosecutor in the case earlier this month.

Reporters roundtable: Gubernatorial and legislative races to watch

In November’s midterm elections, Democrats could win a majority of governor’s offices for the first time in 16 years.

President Donald Trump’s influence towers over some tight races. In Wisconsin, the GOP nominee, U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, tried to overturn the 2020 presidential election. In Georgia, Rick Jackson has said he wanted to be “Trump’s favorite governor.” Both Tiffany and Jackson have since tried to distance themselves from the president.

In Episode 51 of the Stories From The States podcast, States Newsroom reporters from Georgia, Michigan and Wisconsin will break down what is happening in their gubernatorial elections and whether the political makeup of their statehouses might flip.

Two people who spoke to law enforcement after a suspected train shooting near Glasgow, Montana, were, in fact, using a spotlight to find “varmints” and shoot them, Daily Montanan reports.

No shots were directed at the train, the Valley County Sheriff’s Department said in a press release.

Valley County sent out a news release after BNSF Railway employees reported a gunshot on Tuesday evening. Investigators at the scene recovered a shell casing, and the Valley County Sheriff’s Office issued a description of a four-door pickup truck with overhead lighting that had illuminated the train with a spotlight.

The train was stopped and crew members saw a muzzle flash and smoke, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

Following the incident, two people voluntarily spoke with law enforcement and cleared up the misunderstanding. BNSF Railway Police and Valley County both consider the matter closed.