Category Archives: campaigns

“A Test of American Democracy; In attempts to undermine democracy, state lawmakers have set their sights on the courts.”

May 19, 2017, 3:26 pmcampaigns, judicial elections, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

Alicia Bannon and Nathaniel Sobel at TAP.

“Nearly Half of Recent Campaign Money From Undisclosed Sources”

May 17, 2017, 6:47 pmcampaign finance, campaigns, tax law and election lawRick Hasen

Bloomberg BNA: Undisclosed donors provided nearly half of the more than $20 million in outside campaign spending in three closely watched, current congressional election races, a Bloomberg BNA review of Federal Election Commission reports found. Bloomberg BNA looked at FEC… Continue reading

Tobacco Companies, Other Corporations Pouring Money Supporting Republicans in Montana and Georgia Special Elections

May 15, 2017, 7:50 pmcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

Bloomberg BNA: A Republican super political action committee that is pouring money into congressional races in Montana and Georgia is being funded by tobacco companies, video game manufacturers, other corporations and wealthy donors, according to recently filed Federal Election Commission… Continue reading

“Follow the data: does a legal document link Brexit campaigns to US billionaire?”

May 14, 2017, 4:13 pmcampaignsRick Hasen

The Guardian: But this signed legal document – a document that was never meant to be made public and was leaked by a concerned source – connects both Vote Leave and Leave.EU’s data firms directly to Robert Mercer, the American … Continue reading

“GA SOS Web Site Linked to Kemp for Gov Facebook page”

May 11, 2017, 10:21 amcampaigns, election administrationRick Hasen

Odd and troubling.

“When CEOs Visit the White House, Their Companies Profit”

May 9, 2017, 6:52 amcampaignsRick Hasen

Politico: Precisely how do private companies benefit from access to federal officials? Surprisingly, beyond anecdotal stories, it has been difficult to know; there had been no irrefutable data on how firms’ access to the White House translates into private gains—until… Continue reading

“President Trump seizes on election rules to push his agenda in new ways”

May 8, 2017, 7:02 amcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

Fredreka Schouten for USA Today: President Trump has headlined four big rallies in the first months of his presidency to tout his agenda and savage his foes. A new $1.5 million television ad campaign promotes his accomplishments and attacks the… Continue reading

“Why did Trump win? More whites — and fewer blacks — actually voted.”

May 8, 2017, 6:48 amcampaigns, votingRick Hasen

Bernard L. Fraga, Sean McElwee, Jesse Rhodes and Brian Schaffner for the Monkey Cage: Using data from the voter file vendor Catalist and information from the U.S. Census Bureau, we examine the change in turnout rates for different racial/ethnic groups… Continue reading

“Heated MT Judicial Campaign Spawns Free-Speech Lawsuit”

May 7, 2017, 11:46 amcampaigns, judicial electionsRick Hasen

Courthouse News Service: A new federal lawsuit involving a contentious Montana judicial race last year claims an investigation into campaign statements is having a chilling effect on one of the candidate’s ability to defend himself in disciplinary proceedings. Robert Myers… Continue reading

“Georgia special election smashes all-time spending record”

May 6, 2017, 6:01 amcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

Politico: It’s official: Georgia’s special election will be the most expensive House race in U.S. history. Candidates and outside groups have aired or reserved more than $29.7 million worth of TV ads in the race to replace HHS Secretary Tom… Continue reading

“Hacked records show Bradley Foundation taking its conservative Wisconsin model national”

May 6, 2017, 5:58 amcampaigns, chicaneryRick Hasen

Daniel Bice for the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Long a player on the national stage, the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation in Milwaukee has been quietly using its vast resources to construct state-by-state networks of activist groups to win support for… Continue reading

“Pro-Trump super PACs have already spent $1 million on Election 2020”

May 5, 2017, 7:36 amcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

Dave Levinthal reports for CPI.

“The Ways That the 2016 Election Was Perfectly Normal”

May 1, 2017, 7:45 pmcampaignsRick Hasen

Lynn Vavreck for NYT’s The Upshot: Despite the robust record of these models, they didn’t get much attention leading up to 2016. Mr. Trump was such a nontraditional candidate — in his fund-raising; support for atypical G.O.P. positions on trade… Continue reading