This month, candidates who support health care access and oppose work requirements in Medicaid programs were victorious in three southern states. 

• In Kentucky, voters elected Andy Beshear, who ran on a platform of defending health care access and Medicaid coverage. Beshear defeated incumbent Republican Governor Matt Bevin, who had filed a waiver to impose work requirements on Medicaid enrollees.
• Virginia voters flipped both the state House and Senate to a Democratic-majority, electing leaders dedicated to protecting health care access and the Medicaid program.

For an analysis of the significance of these two elections, see “What the Kentucky & Virginia Election Results Could Mean for Medicaid” from Community Catalyst.

This past week in Louisiana, Governor John Bel Edwards was re-elected in a hotly contested race. Although socially conservative in other respects, he signed the Medicaid expansion into law at the beginning of his first term. His opponent vowed that if elected he would “freeze” enrollment for Medicaid expansion.