All posts by Rick Hasen

“US Senate confirms Trump loyalist to lead Justice Department civil rights unit”

April 3, 2025, 6:55 pmDepartment of Justice, election law bizRick Hasen

Reuters: The Republican-controlled U.S. Senate on Thursday confirmed conservative lawyer Harmeet Dhillon, President Donald Trump’s choice to lead the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, in a 52-45 vote. One Republican, Senator Lisa Murkowski from Alaska, voted no along with Democrats.… Continue reading

“Now Musk Is Boosting Claims Wisconsin Supreme Court Election Was ‘Stolen’

April 3, 2025, 6:46 pmfraudulent fraud squadRick Hasen

Daily Beast: Here we go again. After initially trying to downplay his candidate’s loss in the Wisconsin state Supreme Court race, Elon Musk has now boosted a post on his social media platform X claiming there was “overwhelming” evidence the… Continue reading

“Democratic attorneys general sue Trump over elections executive order”

April 3, 2025, 6:34 pmelection administration, Election Assistance Commission, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

Votebeat: Democratic attorneys general in 19 states are together suing Trump over his sweeping executive order on elections, saying that it is an illegal attempt to usurp state control of electionsthat “would cause imminent and irreparable harm” if the… Continue reading

My New One at Slate: “What Elon Musk Won in Wisconsin”

April 3, 2025, 1:12 pmcampaign finance, judicial elections, Plutocrats United, redistrictingRick Hasen

I have written this piece for Slate. It begins: Democrats and progressives rightly celebrated the victory of liberal Susan Crawford over Trump-endorsed Brad Schimel for a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court. But the left is prematurely gloating over how… Continue reading

“New York Mayor Eric Adams to run for reelection as independent”

April 3, 2025, 7:46 amalternative voting systems, chicaneryRick Hasen

WaPo: New York Mayor Eric Adams said Thursday that he would run for reelection as an independent, opting not to participate in the Democratic primary. In a campaign video shared on social media, Adams said that although he remains… Continue reading

“Musk to keep spending on politics despite Wisconsin loss, GOP doubts”

April 3, 2025, 7:43 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

WaPo: A loss in a high-stakes Wisconsin judicial contest has left some Republicans questioning the heavy involvement of billionaire Elon Musk, whom Democrats view as the perfect villain to galvanize their voters in races to come. But Musk and his… Continue reading

“Bice: Elon Musk group removes video from $1M winner after she says she got money to ‘vote'”

April 2, 2025, 5:26 pmvote buyingRick Hasen

Daniel Bice for the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Just how nervous is billionaire Elon Musk about allegations that he may be violating the state’s bribery statute by paying people to vote? On Tuesday, Musk’s super PAC, America PAC, pulled a video from X featuring $1… Continue reading

“Senate Republicans set to bypass parliamentarian on Trump tax cuts”

April 2, 2025, 7:54 amlegislation and legislaturesRick Hasen

Alexander Bolton for The Hill: Republicans are set to make the audacious play of bypassing the Senate parliamentarian and moving forward with a budget resolution based on a scoring baseline set by Budget Committee Chair Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) that would… Continue reading

“Judge Ends Eric Adams Case, but Says U.S. Cannot Use Charges as Leverage”

April 2, 2025, 7:18 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

NYT: A judge on Wednesday dismissed federal corruption charges against Eric Adams, ending the first criminal case against a New York City mayor in modern history and underscoring how prosecutorial power is being used to advance President Trump’s agenda. In… Continue reading

“Trump Attorney Studied Options for Third Presidential Term”

April 2, 2025, 7:10 amauthoritarian threats in USRick Hasen

WSJ: Donald Trump’s attorney Boris Epshteyn made a bold assertion during a meeting in late 2023: Trump wouldn’t necessarily be limited to two terms in office. Speaking to an associate in October 2023 in downtown Washington, Epshteyn pushed back on the… Continue reading

“Liberal Wins Wisconsin Court Race, Despite Musk’s Millions”

April 2, 2025, 7:03 amjudicial elections, Plutocrats United, redistrictingRick Hasen

NYT: A liberal candidate for a pivotal seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court overcame $25 million in spending from Elon Musk and defeated her conservative opponent on Tuesday, The Associated Press reported, in a contest that became a kind of… Continue reading

“Ballot shortages reported in Milwaukee, but officials say no voters will be turned away

April 1, 2025, 5:52 pmelection administrationRick Hasen

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Milwaukee election officials are reporting ballot shortages at voting sites due to what they say is “unprecedented high turnout” in Tuesday’s spring election. Seven polling sites were totally out of ballots and election officials were working to replenish… Continue reading

Watched Archived Video of SDP Webinar, Combatting False Election Information: Lessons from 2024 and a Look to the Future

April 1, 2025, 12:37 pmcheap speechRick Hasen

Fascinating discussion with Alice Marwick, Kate Starbird, and Josh Tucker. Watch:

“Judge dismisses election security case but voices ‘concerns’ about Georgia’s voting computers”

April 1, 2025, 12:34 pmvoting technologyRick Hasen

AJC: A federal judge has dismissed an epic court case challenging Georgia’s touchscreen voting system, ending the seven-year lawsuit that uncovered election security vulnerabilities and a breach in Coffee County. U.S. District Judge Amy Totenberg closed the case Monday… Continue reading