All posts by Rick Hasen

“Secretary of State Frank LaRose says abortion opponents helped craft ballot language to aid defeat of Issue 1”

November 30, 2023, 6:04 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

Another exhibit in the decline of SOS LaRose: Secretary of State Frank LaRose offered an unusually blunt assessment while defending the ballot language he helped write for state Issue 1, the abortion-rights ballot measure that voters approved earlier this month,… Continue reading

Watch Video of Panelists Discussing Ann Southworth’s Terrific New Book, “Big Money Unleashed”

November 30, 2023, 4:42 pmcampaign financeRick Hasen

This was a great discussion of Ann Southworth’s must-read new book, Big Money Unleashed. I was honored to be part of the discussion. Watch:

“Wisconsin Judge Dismisses Felony Charge in ‘Ballot Selfie’ Case”

November 29, 2023, 7:47 amelection administration, First Amendment theoryRick Hasen

NYT: A Wisconsin judge on Monday dismissed a felony charge against a school board candidate who had posted a photograph on Facebook of a ballot with his name filled in. In his ruling, the judge, Paul V. Malloy of Ozaukee… Continue reading

Walter Horn Reviews My Upcoming Book, “A Real Right to Vote”

November 29, 2023, 7:45 amReal Right to VoteRick Hasen

Horn writes: As Hasen patiently explains, the case law on these matters has swerved hard right since the halcyon Warren Court days, perhaps because Republican appointees to the Supreme Court have at least acted as if they have been fueled… Continue reading

5th Circuit Will Hear Galveston Redistricting Lawsuit En Banc, Offering Another Chance to Weaken the Voting Rights Act

November 28, 2023, 9:12 amVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

Here’s the order. Here’s my earlier coverage: Breaking: Fifth Circuit Panel, While Affirming that Galveston, Texas Violated the Voting Rights Act, Calls for En Banc Rehearing So They Can Rule Against Galveston Well this is an interesting (and disturbing) … Continue reading

Speaking at Baker Institute (Rice) This Friday at Conference Previewing 2024 Elections

November 27, 2023, 10:16 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

I’ll be on a panel with Joshua Sellers on legal issues and the 2024 election. You can register for a free livestream. Conference schedule: Agenda Please scroll for descriptions of the conference panels. 8:55 amWelcome Remarks9:00 amPanel I — A Presidential… Continue reading

“Battle over ‘legal ballot harvesting’ being waged in New York”

November 26, 2023, 10:07 amabsentee ballotsRick Hasen

Times-Union: U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik is waging a court challenge against New York’s new vote-by-mail law in court while also promoting “legal ballot harvesting” on the campaign trail as the fierce and costly battle for control of Congress in next… Continue reading

“How election officials are planning to avoid a repeat of 2020’s slow vote count”

November 26, 2023, 9:44 amelection administration, election subversion riskRick Hasen

Zach Montellaro for Politico: Election officials are preparing to count votes a lot faster in 2024, desperate to avoid a repeat of the long ballot count that left the winner of the presidential race uncertain for days in 2020. Several… Continue reading

E.J. Dionne WaPo Column Discusses the Threats to Voting Rights, and the Need for a Constitutional Amendment Protecting the Right to Vote (Citing My Upcoming Book, “A Real Right to Vote”)

November 26, 2023, 9:37 amReal Right to Vote, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

E.J. Dionne WaPo column: In his decision in Shelby, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. claimed that even without a strong Section 4, the Voting Rights Act bans discrimination under Section 2, which “is permanent, applies nationwide, and is not… Continue reading

“Here’s how a major ruling on the Voting Rights Act could affect Louisiana”

November 26, 2023, 9:34 amVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

Nola.com: A ruling this week that private individuals and groups can’t demand enforcement of the Voting Rights Act could have major impact in Louisiana, as the state uses that decision to try to quash a legal challenge to its Republican-drawn… Continue reading

“Voting machine trouble in Pennsylvania county triggers alarm ahead of 2024”

November 25, 2023, 4:42 pmvoting technologyRick Hasen

Politico: Voters in the swing county of Northampton, Pennsylvania, mostly moved on after their new touchscreen voting machines glitched during a down-ballot judge’s race in 2019. But when a similar issue cropped up earlier this month, it triggered a backlash… Continue reading

“Why are U.S. courts afraid of the 14th Amendment? Because it’s radical.”

November 25, 2023, 10:34 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Sherrilyn Ifill for WaPo oped: The 14th Amendment is treated as a suggestion but rarely imposed in full measure when the status quo will be upended. This was perhaps most famously on display in 1955, in the case of Brown II,… Continue reading

Eleventh Circuit Reverses District Court Holding that Georgia’s At-Large Elections to State Public Service Commission Violates the Voting Rights Act; Ruling If Upheld Would Make It Very Difficult to Challenge Statewide At-Large Systems

November 24, 2023, 2:35 pmVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

Another conservative court reading section 2 of the Voting Rights Act in ever narrower ways. The ruling is here: The Georgia General Assembly determined that the State’s PSC—a constitutionally created state commission with statewide authority and statewide responsibilities—should be… Continue reading

“Your Local Newspaper Might Not Have a Single Reporter; Rise of ‘ghost newsrooms’ spawns effort by local news startups to fill the void”

November 24, 2023, 7:43 amcheap speechRick Hasen

WSJ: The Gleaner, the local newspaper in Henderson, Ky., has sections focused on features, sports, news and opinion. What it doesn’t have: a single reporter on staff. The publication is one of the “ghost newsrooms” that increasingly dot the… Continue reading