The WSJ has this story. … Continue reading
Dan Tokaji
State Senator Marvin Malave Dilan opines here. … Continue reading
The White House has withdrawn its nomination of John J. Sullivan to the Federal Election Commission. Update: The Center for Competitive Politics is not pleased. … Continue reading
President Lyndon Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act of 1965 forty-five years ago today. There will be a ceremony at the Edmund Pettus Bridge this evening to commemorate the occasion. … Continue reading
There’s been a tenfold surge in voter registration applications from Ohio public assistance agencies, according to this report. Project Vote attributes this increase to the November 2009 settlement in a lawsuit regarding the state’s alleged noncompliance with the National Voter … Continue reading
According to this report, as many as 3000 Shelby County voters may have been wrongly turned away or required to cast a provisional ballot on Thursday. Despite the photo accompanying the story, the problem appears to be with the voting … Continue reading
The Hill reports here on the possibility that the Republican Party will control the post-2010 redistricting process in Texas, Florida, Ohio, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. … Continue reading
The Denver Post has this story on ads from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other groups. … Continue reading
The WaPo reports here that some RNC members have doubts about a proposal “designed to make it difficult for a candidate to rack up an insurmountable number of delegates early in the process.” Among the reported concerns are that the … Continue reading
Listserv member Steve Mulroy of the University of Memphis has been re-elected to the Shelby County Commission. … Continue reading
Lisa Gilbert of US Pirg has this op-ed in the Huffington Post, supporting the DISCLOSE and Shareholder Protection Acts. … Continue reading
FairVote offers this analysis, of the 2010 open primary initative, recommending that the state permit write-in votes, shorten the time between the primary election and general election, allow “Partial Party Ballot Endorsement,” and provide fairer means to achieve and maintain … Continue reading
The L.A. Times reports here on alleged actions by city officials that could violate California absentee voting laws. … Continue reading
The State of Georgia has filed this complaint against AG Eric Holder. The complaint seeks judicial preclearance of its voter verification process under Section 5 and, in the alternative, asserts that Section 5 is unconstitutional. DOJ had denied preclearance of … Continue reading
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has issued this opinion in Unity08 v. FEC, concluding that a group seeking to put a bipartisan ticket on the presidential ballot “is not subject to regulation as a political committee … Continue reading
The Virginian-Pilot reports here that the bill to create a bipartisan advisory commission was approved 40-0 in the state senate, but killed in a house subcommittee this morning, “leaving little chance of any change in the current process before district … Continue reading
The NYT, WaPo, LA Times, and SCOTUSblog report on yesterday’s argument in Skilling v. United States, which includes a claim that the “honest services” fraud statute is unconstitutionally vague. … Continue reading
A letter to the U.S. Department of Justice from the President of the Georgia NAACP accuses the majority-black board of a “racially discriminatory purpose” in adopting a precinct consolidation plan, according to this report. … Continue reading
According to this report, the bill (which passed 64-6) would require photo ID but allow those without it to sign an affidavit affirming their identity. … Continue reading
According tothis release, the U.S. Election Assistance has issued informational materials for state and local election officials on five topics: “canvassing and certifying an election, conducting a recount, administering provisional ballots, building community partnerships, and communicating with the public.” … Continue reading
Plaintiffs have filed this notice, dismissing lead plaintiff ACORN from a federal lawsuit challenging Indiana’s alleged failure to comply with the National Voter Registration Act’s requirement that registration be made available at public assistance agencies. From the notice: “As a … Continue reading
The U.S. Department of Justice will exercise its authority under the VRA to monitor Tuesday’s primary elections in five Texas counties, according to this press release and this AP report. … Continue reading
The three-judge federal district court in South Carolina has issued this order in Gray v. South Carolina State Election Commission, granting plaintiffs’ request for an injunction against a procedural change affecting fusion candidates. As described by the court, the commission … Continue reading
MSNBC.com reports here that the VP technically has the power to override the Senate’s parliamentarian on what qualifies under reconciliation, but here that “the chance of that happening is virtually none.” … Continue reading
The Dallas Morning News reports here on where the Texas gubernatorial candidates stand on requiring voter identification. … Continue reading
Oregon’s Secretary of State Kate Brown has this column on her state becoming the fourth to allow voters to register online. To do so, voters must have a “valid Oregon driver’s license, driver’s permit or ID card.” … Continue reading
The U.S. Supreme Court hears argument today in Skilling v. United States. Former Enron executive Jeff Skilling challenges his conviction under 18 USC 1346, which criminalizes “a scheme or artifice to deprive another of the intangible right of honest services.” … Continue reading
Alexander Keyssar, Debo Adegbile, and Tova Wang will appear on a panel entitled “Voting Rights Since 2000: Have We Made Progress?” this Thursday in NYC. Professor Keyssar will discuss the new edition of his outstanding book, The Right to Vote: … Continue reading
USA Today this report and CNN this one, along with this fact check on the frequency with with reconciliation has been used. … Continue reading
This Thursday, March 4, the Indiana Supreme Court will hear oral argument in League of Women Voters v. Rokita, the state constitutional challenge to Indiana’s photo ID law. Meanwhile, Defendants have moved for summary judgment in Stewart v. State of … Continue reading
Chris Elmendorf and David Schleicher have this op-ed on the proposal that San Francisco move to at-large elections for the board of supervisors. They conclude: “San Francisco’s problems will not be solved by flip-flopping between district and at-large elections. What … Continue reading
Ben Smith has this piece at Politico.com, on the promotion of Julianna Smoot to White House Social Secretary. He notes that Smoot, who was finance director for Obama’s campaign, “will now be the key gatekeeper to the kind of social … Continue reading
Brad Smith makes it here in the WSJ. … Continue reading
The NY Times reports here that: “Experts say the ruling [in CU], along with a pair of earlier Supreme Court cases [MCFL & WRTL], makes it possible for corporations and unions to donate anonymously to nonprofit civic leagues and trade … Continue reading
Linda Greenhouse offers these thoughts on the fallout from Citizens United, comparing (and contrasting) it to that which followed Kelo v. New London, the 2005 eminent domain decision: A major difference between the Kelo decision and Citizens United, of course, … Continue reading
BNA has this report ($). … Continue reading
NBA fans will enjoy this piece from the Onion on how “[t]he 7-foot-2 senator … broke the record previously held by Sen. Shawn Bradley (D-NJ), Rep. Arvydas Sabonis (D-OR), and current Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), … sometimes swatting … Continue reading
From Virginia comes this story, highlighting the tension between voters’ interests in privacy and candidates’ interest in reaching voters. A state legislative subcommittee has voted to close off all access to voter history lists. Those lists — indicating the elections … Continue reading
FairVote’s monthly newsletter includes news on instant runoff voting from the U.S. and beyond. In related news, Howard Dean makes this plug to keep IRV in Burlington, VT. … Continue reading
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit yesterday issued this interesting opinion in Young v. Hosemann, rejecting a constitutional challenge to Mississippi’s disenfranchisement of felons. Although it’s an equal protection case, the outcome turns primarily on the meaning … Continue reading
Former Senate majority leader Bill Frist has this WSJ op-ed, arguing that using reconciliation to pass health care reform “would be an unprecedented, dangerous and historic mistake.” … Continue reading
Project Vote has this report on problems it sees in implementing HAVA’s provisions requiring that voter registration information be “matched” against other government databases. … Continue reading
CNN has this story on what else Gerry did in his life. … Continue reading
Ciala Torres-Spelliscy’s testimony before the Maryland Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee may be found here. … Continue reading
The NY Times has this report on a finding by the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct that Rep. Charlie Rangel violated House gift rules by accepting payment or reimbursement for a Caribbean trip. A statement from the Chair … Continue reading
Covington & Burling offers this analysis of Monday’s decision from the Colorado Supreme Court in Dallman v. Ritter, striking down Amendment 54 to the Colorado Constitution under the First Amendment. … Continue reading
Electionline.org has this report on state lawmakers’ and election administrators’ efforts to comply with the the federal Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE) Act, including its requirement that they provide for electronic transmission of registration and ballot requests. … Continue reading
Over at SCOTUS blog, Kareem Clayton has this essay on Powell v. McCormack, arguing that the 1969 case — including what was left out of the Court’s opinion — offers enduring “lessons about elections, race and politics in the modern … Continue reading
BNA has this report ($) on yesterday’s ACS panel. Update: The Center for Competitive Politics blog comments here and here on the panel. … Continue reading
The NY Times has this story on the previously obscure rule of congressional procedure that is now at the center of the health care debate. Politico reports here that most voters oppose its use to push health care through, though … Continue reading