December 2017 campaign finance data is here

Today's Brew brings you fundraising data from Alabama's gubernatorial race, a update on North Carolina's congressional maps, and the latest from [View this email in your browser]( [Ballotpedia](   [Facebook](   [Twitter](   [The Daily Brew]( Pivoting to another Alabama election With campaign finance data for December 2017 rolling in, we have a quick update for you from Alabama. According to the reports, sitting Alabama Governor Kay Ivey (R) is leading her three declared challengers in fundraising ahead of the June 5 Republican primary. Ivey raised just over $230,000 and spent $100,000 in the final month of 2017. She was followed by state Sen. Bill Hightower (R), who raised $48,000 and spent $13,000. Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle (R) reported raising $30,000 and spending $51,000. Finally, preacher Scott Dawson (R) reported raising $7,200 and spending $20,000. Ivey is also the fundraising leader overall, having raised a total of $2.3 million since the beginning of the race. She is followed by Tommy Battle ($1.5 million), Bill Hightower ($660,000), and Scott Dawson ($560,000).   Additional candidates have until February 9 to file for participation in this race. The primary election will be held on June 5. If no candidate receives a majority of the vote, the top two vote getters will advance to a July 17 runoff election. [Find out who other potential candidates are]( [Sign up now to learn more about campaign fundraising and the 2018 elections]( → Judge orders North Carolina's congressional maps be redrawn before 2018 elections Yesterday, the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina ruled that North Carolina’s congressional maps demonstrated gerrymandering. "We find that the General Assembly drew and enacted the 2016 plan with intent to subordinate the interests of non-Republican voters and entrench Republican control of North Carolina's congressional delegation," wrote United States Circuit Court Judge James Wynn in the majority opinion. The ruling states that district lines will need to be redrawn before the 2018 midterm elections. The decision is the first of its kind; no federal court has previously required a congressional map to be redrawn, although a federal court in Wisconsin struck down a state legislative district map in 2016. Lawmakers have until January 24 to present new district lines for the court’s review. A spokesman for Sen. Ralph Hise (R), the chairman of the North Carolina Senate Redistricting Committee, said the assembly plans to appeal. The filing deadline in North Carolina is February 28, 2018. [Overview of the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina]( → Criminal charges against Bundy dismissed On Monday, federal Judge Gloria Navarro dismissed a criminal case against rancher Cliven Bundy and three other men accused of leading an armed standoff with federal agents in 2014. Navarro dismissed the case with prejudice, meaning that the government cannot pursue a new trial on the same charges. In her ruling, Navarro wrote: "The government's conduct in this case was indeed outrageous. There has been flagrant misconduct, substantial prejudice and no lesser remedy is sufficient." On December 20, 2017, Judge Navarro declared a mistrial in the case because she believed that federal prosecutors withheld potentially exculpatory evidence from the defense. The case began in February 2016, when FBI agents arrested Cliven Bundy in Oregon for his participation in a 2014 armed standoff with federal agents. Bundy's sons Ammon and Ryan, as well as militia member Ryan Payne, were also arrested and charged for their participation in the standoff. At the time, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) said that Bundy owed the federal government over $1 million in penalties and fees for grazing his cattle on federal land for more than 20 years without a permit. [More on this case and Judge Navarro]( → Ballotpedia depends on the support of our readers. The Lucy Burns Institute, publisher of Ballotpedia, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. All donations are tax deductible to the extent of the law. Donations to the Lucy Burns Institute or Ballotpedia do not support any candidates or campaigns. [Donate Securely Online]( Decide which emails you want from Ballotpedia. [Unsubscribe]( or [adjust your preferences]( →   [Facebook](   [Twitter](