Category Archives: chicanery

Jim Greer Says Florida Republicans Discussed Suppression of African-American Votes

July 25, 2012, 3:16 pmchicanery, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

Tampa Bay Times: Greer’s animosity was evident on almost every page of the deposition as he described the inner workings of a party that has controlled Florida since 1998. On voter suppression, Greer said he had just completed a… Continue reading

Vote Buying in Eastern Kentucky

July 25, 2012, 2:27 pmcampaigns, chicanery, election administration, The Voting Wars, vote buying, voter idRick Hasen

Pretty brazen activities, and unusual from what I’ve seen in that the vote buyers were paying for in person, rather than absentee votes: “When it comes to vote buying, it’s an everyday thing. … It’s pretty much like jaywalking,” admits… Continue reading

“The Politics of Anything Goes”

July 23, 2012, 8:59 amcampaign finance, campaigns, chicaneryRick Hasen

Tom Edsall’s latest is worth reading.

“Mystery Super PAC and Nonprofit Network Spent Big In PA Senate Race”

July 18, 2012, 4:38 pmcampaign finance, chicaneryRick Hasen

Open Secrets Blog: “More than half the outside spending in Pennsylvania’s Senate GOP primary race was funneled through a chain of groups that haven’t disclosed the original source of the funds. The financial gymnastics appear designed to avoid revealing… Continue reading

“DA finds no crime in election; GAB responds to state Republicans calling recall ‘utter mockery'”

July 14, 2012, 2:23 pmchicanery, election administration, recall electionsRick Hasen

News from Wisconsin: ” County investigators have found no evidence of criminal activity after looking into claims of alleged voter fraud at Racine polling places during the June 5 recall election.” More from AP.

“Feds: Cudahy officials threw away ballots, manipulated two elections”

July 12, 2012, 7:50 pmchicaneryRick Hasen

LA Times reports on local election officials opening absentee ballots in advance to decide which ones to count, among other things.

Understanding Election Fraud Allegations in the Recent Mexican Election

July 11, 2012, 11:41 amchicanery, election administrationRick Hasen

This post at the Monkey Cage is well worth reading.

“House Ethics panel clears Rep. Buchanan”

July 10, 2012, 9:38 amchicanery, ethics investigationsRick Hasen

The Hill: “The House Ethics Committee on Tuesday cleared Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.) on charges that he violated House rules by intentionally misleading Congress about his finances.” But: “The Justice Department is reportedly investigating Buchanan separately on at least… Continue reading

“Shelley Berkley faces formal ethics investigation”

July 9, 2012, 3:50 pmchicanery, conflict of interest laws, ethics investigationsRick Hasen

WaPo: “The House Ethics Committee has voted unanimously to launch a formal investigation into allegations that Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.) used her position to benefit the financial interests of her husband — a blow to her candidacy in one… Continue reading

“Countrywide Loans Sought Favor With Fannie Mae, Report Says”

July 6, 2012, 8:37 amchicanery, ethics investigations, legislation and legislatures, lobbyingRick Hasen

Bloomberg: “Countrywide Financial Corp. gave discount loans to former and current members of the U.S. Congress and executives at Fannie Mae as it lobbied to scuttle legislation that would have diminished its sale of sub-prime mortgages, according to a… Continue reading

A New Resource to See and Rank FEC Fines

July 5, 2012, 9:02 amcampaign finance, chicanery, federal election commissionRick Hasen

Here, at Find the Data.

“Latino Groups Call for Probe of Rangel Race”

July 3, 2012, 12:16 pmchicanery, election administrationJustin Levitt

When the margin of victory is narrower than the margin of litigation.

Canadian Court Hearing Motions to Overturn Election Results Because of Robocalls

June 25, 2012, 8:19 amchicaneryDan Tokaji

According to this report: “The Federal Court is hearing preliminary motions today in the Council of Canadians’ bid to have the federal election results overturned” in seven ridings, on the ground that “misleading or harassing phone calls in those… Continue reading