All posts by Rick Hasen

“Voting Wars Open a New Front: Which Mail Ballots Should Count?”

October 9, 2024, 7:20 amabsentee ballots, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

Michael Wines for the NYT: As Pennsylvania voters begin casting perhaps two million-plus mail ballots, Democrats and Republicans are in furious legal combat over a once-overlooked aspect of voting remotely: which ballots are counted, which are rejected as defective and… Continue reading

“FBI arrests Afghan man who officials say planned Election Day attack in the US”

October 9, 2024, 7:19 amchicaneryRick Hasen

AP: The FBI has arrested an Afghan man who officials say was inspired by the Islamic State militant organization and was plotting an Election Day attack targeting large crowds in the U.S., the Justice Department said Tuesday. Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi,… Continue reading

“Sixth Circuit Allows Enforcement of Ohio Law Barring Foreign Expenditures on Ballot Initiatives”

October 8, 2024, 4:50 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

Jonathan Adler at Volokh: Today a divided panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit granted the state of Ohio’s application of an emergency stay of a district court injunction barring enforcement of an Ohio law prohibiting… Continue reading

“Not everything will run perfectly on Election Day. Still, US elections are remarkably reliable”

October 8, 2024, 1:58 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

AP: On Election Day, some voting lines will likely be long and some precincts may run out of ballots. An election office website could go down temporarily and ballot-counting machines will jam. Or people who help run elections might… Continue reading

“Courts could see a wave of election lawsuits, but experts say the bar to change the outcome is high”

October 8, 2024, 1:57 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

AP reports.

“Election officials who back Trump’s ‘Big Lie’ stir concern in swing states”

October 8, 2024, 10:23 amelection administration, election subversion riskRick Hasen

Reuters: In Michigan’s Macomb County, the Republican head of the board that will certify November’s election results called on former U.S. President Donald Trump to fight to stay in power after his election loss in 2020. In North Carolina’s… Continue reading

“Civil Rights Groups: Extend Voter Registration Deadline as State Recovers from Hurricane Helene”

October 8, 2024, 10:10 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Release: The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, the American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Georgia, NAACP Legal Defense Fund, and the law firm Cooley LLP filed a lawsuit seeking a court order to extend the voter registration deadline,… Continue reading

Crazy Resolution Introduced in West Virginia House for State Legislature to Reject Democratic Victory for President

October 8, 2024, 7:40 amelection subversion riskRick Hasen

I’ve never seen anything as crazy as this introduced in a legislative body (via Philip Germain):

“Colorado judge who sentenced election denier Tina Peters to prison receives threats”

October 8, 2024, 7:33 amchicaneryRick Hasen

AP: A rural Colorado county courthouse beefed up security Friday after threats were made against staff and a judge who sentenced former county clerk Tina Peters to nearly nine years behind bars and admonished her for her role in a… Continue reading

“Elon Musk’s PAC offers $47 payouts to refer swing state voters to sign petition”

October 8, 2024, 7:27 amcampaign finance, vote buyingRick Hasen

NBC News: Elon Musk’s pro-Trump America PAC is offering people $47 if they successfully get one registered swing-state voter to sign a petition supporting the First and Second Amendments of the Constitution. “Easy money,” Musk said in a post… Continue reading

“For US adversaries, Election Day won’t mean the end to efforts to influence Americans”

October 8, 2024, 7:24 amcheap speech, chicaneryRick Hasen

AP: Soon, the ballots will be cast, the polls will close and a campaign marked by assassination attempts, animosity and anxiety will come to an end. But for U.S. adversaries, the work to meddle with American democracy may be entering… Continue reading

“Is Democracy Doomed by Dark Money?”

October 8, 2024, 7:15 amcampaign financeRick Hasen

Ciara Torres-Spelliscy on New Books Network podcast.

“Measuring Lost Votes by Mail”

October 7, 2024, 11:58 amabsentee ballots, election administrationRick Hasen

Michael Morse (Penn Law), Marc Meredith (Penn), Amaya Madarang (Penn), and Katie Steele (Penn) have posted this draft on SSRN. Here is the abstract: The rise of mail balloting has led to concerns that procedural requirements can lead to “lost… Continue reading

October 15 Safeguarding Democracy Project Event: “Are We Ready for a Fair and Legitimate Election?” (Larry Diamond, Ben Ginsberg, Rachel Kleinfeld, Franita Tolson)

October 7, 2024, 11:11 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

I’m very much looking forward to moderating this event: Tuesday, October 15 Are We Ready for a Fair and Legitimate Election? Tuesday, October 15, 7:30pm PT at the UCLA Hammer Museum, (Recording to Follow)Co-presented with the Hammer ForumAre election administrators… Continue reading

Election Law Blog

The law of politics and the politics of law