Category Archives: election subversion risk

The “Portman problem” is now also the “Gonzalez problem”

September 16, 2021, 7:38 pmalternative voting systems, election subversion risk, primariesNed Foley

Earlier today, I did a post explaining why, if the goal is to reduce the risk of Republicans repudiating the result of a valid victory in the 2024 presidential election by the Democratic candidate, the highest electoral reform priority for… Continue reading

Democrats, democracy, and “the Portman problem”

September 16, 2021, 9:40 amalternative voting systems, election subversion risk, political parties, primaries, theoryNed Foley

Can one party save democracy by itself? I don’t think so, but that seems to be the view of some, as nicely captured by Ed Kilgore in responding to my blog post How Best to End “Electoral McCarthyism”? Kilgore acknowledges:… Continue reading

Watch Archived Video of Conversation with Jack Balkin, Michele Goodwin, and Michael Klarman (with Me Moderating): “Is the U.S. Constitution Up to the Task of Preserving American Democracy?”

September 15, 2021, 1:45 pmelection subversion riskRick Hasen

You can watch this lunch program from the UCI Law Fair Elections and Free Speech Center at this link:

“Media Advisory: UCI Law Fair Elections and Free Speech Center to Host Virtual Conference: ‘Election Subversion: Is American Democracy in Danger?’ Featuring Leading Election Officials, Scholars and Political Experts”

September 14, 2021, 12:15 pmelection subversion riskRick Hasen

Release: The University of California, Irvine School of Law (UCI Law) Fair Elections and Free Speech Center is delighted to announce the details of its September 24, 2021 conference, “Election Subversion: Is American Democracy in Danger?” This virtual event… Continue reading

“Revised Democratic voting bill drops controversial provisions, tweaks others as pressure for action mounts”

September 14, 2021, 7:50 amcampaign finance, election subversion risk, redistricting, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

WaPo: A group of Democratic senators — including key centrist Joe Manchin III of West Virginia — introduced a pared-down voting rights, campaign finance and government ethics bill Tuesday in hopes of building momentum for its passage through a closely… Continue reading

Freedom to Vote Act and Same-Day Registration?

September 14, 2021, 5:48 amelection subversion riskNed Foley

NPR is reporting this morning that the newly unveiled electoral reform bill put together by Senate Democrats, including Manchin and Klobuchar, would “ensure every state offers same-day voter registration.” I did not see that particular provision mentioned in this morning’s… Continue reading

How best to end “Electoral McCarthyism”?

September 13, 2021, 8:49 amelection subversion risk, political parties, political polarizationNed Foley

As regular ELB readers know, I’ve characterized the problem of Trump’s “Big Lie” about a “stolen” 2020 election as an electoral version of the kind of “paranoid” strain of American politics that Hofstadter classified the Red Scare version of McCarthyism… Continue reading

“A dangerous trend among GOP candidates shows the Trump threat is here to stay”

September 11, 2021, 8:42 pmelection subversion risk, fraudulent fraud squadRick Hasen

Greg Sargent WaPo column: A worse example comes from the leading GOP candidate for Senate in Nevada, Adam Laxalt. The former state attorney general’s effort to unseat Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto has Trump’s endorsement in what will be a… Continue reading

“George W. Bush compares ‘violent extremists at home’ to 9/11 terrorists in 20th anniversary speech”

September 11, 2021, 3:27 pmelection subversion riskRick Hasen

WaPo: On the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that changed his presidency, former president George W. Bush on Saturday warned there is growing evidence that domestic terrorism could pose as much of a threat to the United States as… Continue reading

“Hundreds of law enforcement officials were prepped early for potential Jan. 6 violence”

September 10, 2021, 6:52 amchicanery, election subversion riskRick Hasen

Politico: Just two days before armed rioters stormed and ransacked the Capitol, about 300 law enforcement officials got on a conference call to talk about the possibility that Donald Trump’s supporters would turn violent on Jan. 6. They specifically discussed… Continue reading

Bauer and Ginsberg: “Election officials need our legal help against repressive laws and personal threats”

September 8, 2021, 8:23 pmchicanery, election administration, election subversion riskRick Hasen

WaPo oped: Election officials are coming under unprecedented attack for doing their jobs. Some states are attempting to criminalize the exercise of these officials’ trained professional judgments; some officials have been the target of threats to themselves and their families.… Continue reading

“Special Report: Terrorized U.S. election workers get little help from law enforcement”

September 8, 2021, 8:21 pmelection administration, election subversion riskRick Hasen

Reuters: The case illustrates the glaring gaps in the protection that U.S. law enforcement provides the administrators of American democracy amid a sustained campaign of intimidation against election officials and staff. The unprecedented torrent of terroristic threats began in… Continue reading

“Donald Trump backs Michigan election critic for secretary of state”

September 8, 2021, 8:14 pmelection subversion risk, fraudulent fraud squadRick Hasen

Detroit News: Former President Donald Trump is supporting Republican Kristina Karamo, an outspoken critic of the 2020 election, to be Michigan’s next secretary of state, a development that will likely bolster her campaign.Trump announced his endorsement of Karamo to be… Continue reading

“‘Keep your head on a swivel’: FBI analyst circulated a prescient warning of Jan. 6 violence”

September 8, 2021, 8:12 pmchicanery, election subversion riskRick Hasen

Politico: An FBI intelligence analyst warned days after the 2020 election that Stop the Steal rallies — one of which metastasized into the ransacking of the Capitol — could turn violent.The emailed warning from an analyst at the FBI’s school… Continue reading

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The law of politics and the politics of law