Category Archives: theory
“Is civic duty the solution to the paradox of voting?”
Abel François and Olivier Gergaud in Public Choice:
Although sense of civic duty is seen by many scholars as the most obvious solution to the paradox of voting, very few empirical studies provide clear evidence on that motive. We… Continue reading
Mark Rush Reviews Mulroy’s “Rethinking U.S. Election Law: Unskewing the System”
Here, at LPBR.
“Democracy, Federalism, and the Guarantee Clause”
Carolyn Shapiro has posted this draft on SSRN (forthcoming, Arizona Law Review. Here is the abstract:
The Guarantee Clause of the Constitution promises that “[t]he United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican form of… Continue reading
Today’s Must-Read: Jacob Levy at Niskanen on Republicans’ Fear of Democracy
Jacob Levy:
A favorite reply to the complaint about the Electoral College outcomes is to note that campaign strategies are endogenous to the electoral rules, and that it is impossible to infer what would have happened if both campaigns had… Continue reading
“Judicial Review in Troubled Times: Stabilizing Democracy in a Second Best World”
Sam Issacharoff has posted this draft on SSRN. Here is the abstract:
Debates over the role of judicial review in a constitutional democracy gravitate to one of two poles. Either the debates are framed in terms of the power of… Continue reading
QV Or Not QV? That Is The Question: Some Skepticism About Radical Egalitarian Voting Markets
I have posted this draft on SSRN (forthcoming, University of Chicago Law Review, Online). Here is the abstract:
This paper is part of a symposium on Eric A. Posner & E. Glen Weyl’s recent book, Radical Markets: Uprooting Capitalism and… Continue reading
“Voter Discrimination and Deliberative Democracy in the Technological Era”
Benjamin Wilson has posted this draft on SSRN. Here is the abstract:
In structuring its constitution, the United States (“US”) put tremendous weight into the idea of giving future generations a government whose form and function can meet societal challenges.… Continue reading
“Precedent, Three-Judge District Courts, and the Law of Democracy”
Josh Douglas and Michael Solimine have posted this important draft on SSRN. Here is the abstract:
As recent partisan gerrymandering cases have shown, three-judge district courts play a unique and important role in how the federal judiciary considers significant… Continue reading
“Democracy’s Deficits”
Sam Issacharoff has posted this draft on SSRN (forthcoming, U Chicago L Review). Here is the abstract:
Barely a quarter century after the collapse of the Soviet empire, it is democracy that has entered an intense period of public scrutiny.… Continue reading
“Study: US government its own worst enemy”
AP:
A new analysis by the Harvard Business School outlines why U.S. voters are so frustrated with their political leaders — there is a lack of genuine competition between Republicans and Democrats to deliver actual results on major policies such… Continue reading
Two from Ned Foley: One on Due Process and Elections, the Other on Partisan Gerrymandering
The U Chicago Law Review has posted Ned’s Due Process, Fair Play, and Excessive Partisanship: A New Principle for Judicial Review of Election Laws. This is one of Ned’s most significant pieces tying together historical research, jurisprudence, and judicial… Continue reading
“Optimal Entrenchment of Legal Rules”
Mike Gilbert has posted this draft on SSRN. Here is the abstract:
Should law respond readily to society’s evolving views, or should it remain fixed? This is the question of entrenchment, meaning the insulation of law from change through supermajority… Continue reading
“One Person, No Votes: Unopposed Candidate Statutes and the State of Election Law”
Noah Lindell has posted this draft on SSRN (forthcoming, Wisconsin Law Review). Here is the abstract:
In thirty-six states and the District of Columbia, state laws allow candidates running unopposed for certain offices to be “declared elected” without appearing on… Continue reading