Three things for March 4
1. Chattanooga mayoral election to be decided in April runoff
On Tuesday, March 2, Chattanooga residents headed to the polls to vote for their next mayor and city council members. Tim Kelly and Kim White are the front-runners in the mayoral race.
According to the Chattanooga Times Free Press, the vote was split so no candidate won according to the city charter, which requires a candidate to earn over 50% of the total vote.
Front-runners Kelly and White face six more weeks of campaigning, with 30.1% and 29.2% respectively in unofficial final results.
25% of registered voters showed up to the polls to cast their ballot in the 2021 mayoral race, reports WRCB. Dr. Chris Acuff, a political science expert at UTC who has followed Chattanooga city elections for years, says it is higher than the past three elections, which have been around 20%.
2. Kings of Leon to be the first band to release an album as an NFT
On Friday, March 5, American rock band Kings of Leon will become the first-ever band to release a new album, “When You See Yourself,” in the form of a non-fungible token.
According to Rolling Stone, NFTs are a type of cryptocurrency. Instead of holding money, they hold assets like art, tickets and music.
Kings of Leon offers its album package with a vinyl and digital download for a token priced at $50, reports CNBC. It will be released Friday on YellowHeart, a ticketing and music NFT platform, and open for two weeks starting at noon ET. After those two weeks, production will cease.
The band is dropping three types of tokens. One is a special album package, while a second type offers live show perks like front-row seats for life, and a third type is just for exclusive audiovisual art. All three types of tokens offer art designed by the band’s longtime creative partner Night After Night, according to Rolling Stone.
3. Texas and Mississippi to lift mask mandates
On Tuesday, March 2, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced he is lifting the state’s mask mandate and increasing the capacity of all businesses and facilities in the state to 100%.
His new executive order goes into effect on Wednesday, March 10, and it rescinds most of the governor’s earlier executive orders related to the coronavirus, reports NPR.
“With the medical advancements of vaccines and antibody therapeutic drugs, Texas now has the tools to protect Texans from the virus,” Abbott said in an address to the Lubbock Chamber of Commerce.
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves made a similar announcement with a shorter timeline.
“Starting tomorrow, we are lifting all of our county mask mandates, and businesses will be able to operate at full capacity without any state-imposed rules. Our hospitalizations and case numbers have plummeted, and the vaccine is being rapidly distributed. It is time!” Reeves tweeted on March 2.
