Category Archives: federal election commission

CNN admits it’s using different debate criteria for Biden, Trump than Kennedy

June 4, 2024, 10:33 amfederal election commissionDerek Muller

Joe Biden and Donald Trump are two of the least popular presidential candidates of all time. It’s no surprise that an independent presidential candidate (with a famous last name) is getting outsized attention among prospective voters. But there appears… Continue reading

Truly Bizarre Story in Mediaite About Texas Voting Technology Making It Possible to Figure Out How People Voted, and FEC Commissioner Trey Trainor Taunting Republican Leader for Voting for DeSantis Rather than Trump

May 23, 2024, 6:44 amchicanery, federal election commission, voting technologyRick Hasen

Mediaite: The eyes of Texas were upon the ballots cast by several high-profile Texas politicians on Wednesday, after documents were leaked related to a stunning lawsuit accusing state election officials of failing to properly protect ballot secrecy. The leak included… Continue reading

FEC Commissioner Lindenbaum Issues Statement Urging Congress to Remove Requirement of Public Disclosure of Street Addresses of Campaign Contributors

May 16, 2024, 3:29 pmcampaign finance, federal election commissionRick Hasen

See this statement, issued partially in response to Commissioner Dickerson’s proposal on making it easier to get exceptions to disclosure for those facing a risk of harassment.

“Trump-nominated FEC leader: let political donors hide their identities”

May 2, 2024, 7:03 pmcampaign finance, federal election commissionRick Hasen

Raw Story: A Donald Trump-nominated Federal Election Commission leader wants to make it easier for political donors to hide their identities — a major impediment to post-Watergate interpretations of political transparency that allow anyone to see where politicians are getting… Continue reading

FEC Commissioner Trey Trainor Has a Ted Cruz Campaign Sign on His Front Lawn at His Texas Home

May 1, 2024, 7:16 amconflict of interest laws, ethics investigations, federal election commissionRick Hasen

This, as the FEC reviews a complaint against Cruz.

“Republicans Are Making ‘Dark Money’ Even Darker for 2024”

January 11, 2024, 6:45 amcampaign finance, federal election commissionRick Hasen

Roger Sollenberger for The Daily Beast: For years, dark money groups have enjoyed certain advantages that offer donors anonymity—putting the proverbial “dark” in “dark money.” But late last month, one small outside group quietly told election law regulators to shove… Continue reading

Republican FEC Commissioners Block Investigation into Trump Campaign for 59th Time (29th Rejecting Staff Recommendations)

December 6, 2023, 8:39 amfederal election commissionRick Hasen

From Commissioner Weintraub: Commissioners will continue to exercise prosecutorial discretion – the judicially unreviewable superpower granted to them by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals –unless and until the Court reconsiders its rulings in the Commission on Hope, Growth &… Continue reading

“The FEC, Still Failing to Enforce Campaign Laws, Heads to Capitol Hill”

September 17, 2023, 7:22 pmcampaign finance, federal election commissionRick Hasen

The latest from the Brennan Center: Ultimately, any system of rules is only as good as the body that enforces them. Most Americans want strong campaign finance rules, which require an FEC committed to enforcing duly enacted laws in a… Continue reading

“A Trump Appointee is Trying to Gut the FEC’s Ability to Investigate Campaign Finance Crimes”

September 12, 2023, 1:56 pmfederal election commissionRick Hasen

The Intercept: The government agency tasked with investigating campaign finance violations is on its way to intentionally making that very obligation more difficult to accomplish. The Federal Election Commission is a notoriously deadlocked agency that has nonetheless taken some significant… Continue reading

Republican Federal Election Commission Commissioner Wants to Hobble the FEC Even More Than It Already Is

August 25, 2023, 7:41 amcampaign finance, federal election commissionRick Hasen

Details. A Republican FEC commissioner has quietly formulated a rules change that would hamstring the Office of General Council (OGC) and slow investigations to a standstill. Here’s the breakdown:— Campaign for Accountability (@Accountable_Org) August 24, 2023

Federal Election Commissioner Trey Trainor Refused to Cooperate with Inspector General Investigating Allegations of Improper Conduct Where Trainor Appeared at Event Misidentified as Member of “Trump Elections Team”

August 8, 2023, 7:04 amfederal election commissionRick Hasen

Just wow. And because of the lack of cooperation the IG could not really tell if Trainor broke any rules.

The Federal Role in U.S. Elections, in One Picture

July 26, 2023, 4:19 amDepartment of Justice, election administration, Election Assistance Commission, federal election commissionDan Tokaji

Bipartisan Policy Center has this explainer, which “identifies the primary entities from each branch of the federal government with a role in elections and their overlap and inter-agency collaboration to equip election stakeholders to better use existing resources and… Continue reading

Federal Lawsuit against DeSantis and Florida Election Officials over Rollout of Felon Voting Rights Restoration

July 21, 2023, 4:12 amfederal election commission, felon voting, UncategorizedDan Tokaji

Tampa Bay Times reports: “Nearly five years after Floridians voted to allow people with felony convictions to restore their voting rights, the coalition that pushed for the change is suing the state, arguing Florida created a system that impedes… Continue reading

FEC Unanimously Voted (Back in July 2022, But Just Now Made Public) that Schwarzenegger and His USC Institute Did Not Violate Federal Campaign Finance Law in Giving Election Administration Grants During Covid

June 2, 2023, 2:36 pmcampaign finance, federal election commissionRick Hasen

Sensible result (vote totals). Not clear why this took so long to make public. The claim was that these grants were meant to help Biden win, but there was no evidence of that. (Similar claims have been made… Continue reading

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The law of politics and the politics of law