Monthly Archives: February 2016

“Dear Bernie Sanders: Don’t follow in Obama’s footsteps on campaign finance reform”

February 11, 2016, 9:23 pmcampaign financeRick Hasen

Larry Lessig WaPo oped: But on the same day that Sanders declared that campaign finance reform must come first, his campaign released a statement completely negating the significance of that promise. Responding to a crowdsourced question on change.org’s new politics… Continue reading

“From Selma to Ferguson: The Voting Rights Act as a Blueprint for Police Reform”

February 11, 2016, 9:17 pmVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

Jason Mazzone and Stephen Rushin have posted this draft on SSRN. Here is the abstract: The Voting Rights Act of 1965 revolutionized access to the voting booth. Rather than responding to claims of voter suppression through litigation against individual states… Continue reading

Podcast on Plutocrats United, with Commentary by Erwin Chemerinsky

February 11, 2016, 9:14 pmcampaign finance, Plutocrats UnitedRick Hasen

They’ve turned my recent @UCILaw talk on my book, with commentary by Dean Chemerinsky, into a podcast you can listen to here.

“Groundbreaking Maryland Legislation Seeks to End Congressional Gerrymandering with Fair Representation”

February 11, 2016, 9:06 pmredistrictingRick Hasen

FairVote: Sen. Raskin, a Democrat in a Democratically-controlled legislature, has long suggested the best way to hold congressional elections is with fair representation voting. His new legislation presents a creative way to end the national standoff. He has proposed… Continue reading

“FEC OKs DePauw stipend for Clinton intern”

February 11, 2016, 9:00 pmcampaign finance, federal election commissionRick Hasen

IndyStar: An Indiana college student convinced an often-deadlocked Federal Election Commission on Thursday that allowing DePauw University to pay her a stipend for interning on Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign is not an illegal campaign contribution. One Democrat joined the… Continue reading

“NC DMV says it messed up by rejecting 86-year-old woman seeking voter ID”

February 11, 2016, 2:56 pmelection administration, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

Great, but let’s not pretend they will do this for others who face similar hurdles but less publicity.

Top Recent Downloads in Election Law on SSRN

February 11, 2016, 2:46 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

Here: RECENT TOP PAPERS for all papers first announced in the last 60 days 13 Dec 2015 through 11 Feb 2016 Rank Downloads Paper Title 1 1,100 The Original Meaning of ‘Natural Born’ Michael D. Ramsey University of… Continue reading

Steve Simpson and I Talked Campaign Finance, Plutocrats United at Southwestern Law Event

February 11, 2016, 2:26 pmcampaign finance, Plutocrats United, Supreme CourtRick Hasen

Steve was one of the main litigators in the Speechnow and Arizona public financing cases. You can watch the video here.

“How Companies Can Avoid Campaign Finance and Pay-to-Play Pitfalls”

February 11, 2016, 2:17 pmcampaign financeRick Hasen

Jason Abel writes for Corporate Counsel.

“Common Cause, Georgia NAACP File Suit Challenging Voter Purges”

February 11, 2016, 2:09 pmelection administration, NVRA (motor voter)Rick Hasen

See this press release.

“Karl Rove’s Crossroads GPS manages to make it even harder to find the dark money in U.S. politics”

February 11, 2016, 11:57 amcampaign finance, tax law and election lawRick Hasen

I have written this oped for the LA Times. It begins: If you know nothing else about a candidate except that he or she is backed by the Koch brothers or George Soros, it’s often enough to help you make… Continue reading

35 Groups Write Letter to EAC Director Newby to Withdraw Recent Letters Making It Harder to Register to Vote

February 11, 2016, 10:18 amelection administration, Election Assistance Commission, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

Here’s the letter: The undersigned are a collection of good-government, disability rights, civil rights, and voting rights groups that work to protect the right of every eligible American to vote. We write now urging you to immediately withdraw your letters… Continue reading

“The new frontier of voter tracking”

February 11, 2016, 9:45 amcampaignsRick Hasen

Marketplace: The New Hampshire presidential primary may be over, but there are many primaries coming up in other states around the country and voters will likely turn out in droves to cast their ballots. One company is tracking voter… Continue reading

6th Circuit Rejects Challenge to Ohio Law Keeping Partisan Information of Judicial Candidates Off Ballot

February 11, 2016, 9:06 amjudicial elections, political partiesRick Hasen

Opinion: Ohio elects its state judges through a hybrid process. Judicial candidates are first selected through partisan primary elections. On the general-election ballot, however, their names show no partisan affiliation, even though judicial candidates may affiliate with political parties… Continue reading