Category Archives: Uncategorized

“Bucks County board chair says comment about violating election law has been misinterpreted”

November 19, 2024, 4:47 amabsentee ballots, recounts, UncategorizedIndependent State Legislature Doctrine, state courtsTabatha Abu El-Haj

Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Diane Ellis-Marseglia, the Bucks County Commissioner, has apologized for the “upset and confusion” caused by her defiant comments last week in which she said: “People violate laws any time they want,” she added. “So, for me,… Continue reading

Bob Bauer: “Did the Legal Process Over the Last Four Years ‘Fail’?”

November 18, 2024, 3:50 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

Thoughtful Bob Bauer post at Lawfare.

“Pa. Supreme Court again rules that Philly and other counties cannot count undated mail ballots; The ruling comes after several Philly-area counties defied the court’s previous guidance; The issue has come under close scrutiny as the race between Bob Casey and Dave McCormick undergoes a recount”

November 18, 2024, 3:23 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

See this report from the Philadelphia Inquirer. Via How Appealing, which links to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania’s per curiam order, two concurring statements (here and here), and a dissenting statement. From the per curiam… Continue reading

Tabatha Abu El-Haj Blogging This Week and Next; Justin Levitt Blogging Week of December 2

November 18, 2024, 7:26 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Please direct your comments and tips to Tabatha and Justin and thanks to them both!

Pennsylvania: “Dave McCormick once fought to have undated mail ballots counted. Now, in tight race with Bob Casey, he’s suing to block them.”

November 14, 2024, 1:51 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

Philly Inquirer: As vote counting continues this week in Pennsylvania’s tight Senate race, attention is once again shifting toward the largest and most hotly contested tranche of remaining votes that could help incumbent Democrat Bob Casey make up his… Continue reading

New “Law & Democracy” podcast

November 14, 2024, 6:18 amUncategorizedNed Foley

YouTube and Apple.

Read PA State Court Opinion Concluding Elon Musk Did Not Engage in an Illegal Lottery with His $1 Million Giveaway to a Registered Voter (Opinion Does Not Discuss Legality Under Federal Anti-Vote Buying Law)

November 13, 2024, 11:08 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

You can read it at this link.

“As Trump Refers to Third Term, Democrat Wants to Leave No Constitutional Loophole”

November 13, 2024, 11:03 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

NYT: When President-elect Donald J. Trump met with House Republicans on Wednesday morning, he suggested he might need their help to try to circumvent the Constitution and run for a third term in the future — a comment that was… Continue reading

“Hovde tells talk radio host he lost, but stops short of conceding to Baldwin”

November 13, 2024, 8:48 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Wisconsin Examiner: Breaking a six-day silence after unofficial returns showed him losing to Sen. Tammy Baldwin, whom AP declared the winner of the Wisconsin U.S. Senate race by less than 1 percentage point, Republican Senate candidate Eric Hovde on Tuesday… Continue reading

Vladeck: “Nor, assuming he abides by the 22nd Amendment limiting a president to two terms, does Mr. Trump have to worry about running for re-election.”

November 12, 2024, 10:37 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Quite the aside from Steve Vladeck today in the NYT!

Republican Party Appeal of Lower Court Order Requiring the Counting of Misdated/Undated But Timely Absentee Ballots Reaches Pennsylvania Supreme Court

November 12, 2024, 10:22 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

You can read the petition in Baxter at this link. Republicans raise the independent state legislature theory at page 34 of the brief, potentially teeing up this issue for eventual review by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Bluesky, Smiling at Me: Why I Plan to Post Substantive Commentary at Blue Sky (rickhasen.bsky.social) Rather than Threads or X (Twitter) (Automated Postings Still Will Appear on Threads and X)

November 12, 2024, 9:15 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

I pulled back a few years ago from posting on X once the platform under Elon Musk became more toxic and as it turned from fighting the spread of election disinformation to becoming a main vector for it. I still… Continue reading

“Why Was There a Broad Drop-Off in Democratic Turnout in 2024?”

November 12, 2024, 7:44 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

NYT: Voters in liberal strongholds across the country, from city centers to suburban stretches, failed to show up to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris at the levels they had for Joseph R. Biden Jr. four years earlier, contributing significantly… Continue reading

“Schumer invites McCormick and Gallego to Senate orientation”

November 12, 2024, 7:36 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Politico: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has extended Senate orientation invitations to Pennsylvania Republican Dave McCormick and Arizona Democrat Ruben Gallego after previously withholding them while their respective races remained unsettled. Schumer previously insisted the Pennsylvania race had not yet … Continue reading