Monthly Archives: August 2018

Maryland: “Sens Seek Election Probe”

August 9, 2018, 8:04 amelection administrationRick Hasen

Baltimore Sun: Less than three months before early voting begins, Maryland’s U.S. senators have joined the chorus of elected officials warning that the November elections could be threatened by a Russian oligarch’s stake in a firm that manages some of… Continue reading

xkcd on Voting Software

August 9, 2018, 7:59 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

https://xkcd.com/

“Why are these elected officials so afraid of the voters?”

August 9, 2018, 7:57 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Josh Douglas for CNN Opinion.

North Carolina: “Roy Cooper sued election board. Instead of fighting, the board’s lawyer took his side.”

August 8, 2018, 8:37 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

News and Observer: Gov. Roy Cooper sued the state elections board and Republican legislative leaders over two constitutional amendments planned for the fall ballot. Rather than fighting Cooper, the state lawyer representing the elections board has jumped in on Cooper’s… Continue reading

“Foreign interests have spent over $530 million influencing US policy, public opinion since 2017”

August 8, 2018, 5:50 pmlobbyingRick Hasen

Open Secrets: Foreign lobbyists and agents acting on behalf of foreign interests have reported hundreds of millions of dollars in payments since January 2017, an analysis of OpenSecrets’ exclusive new Foreign Lobby Watch data reveals. Today we’re making available,… Continue reading

“PA James Announces Legislation to Close Loophole Allowing Foreign Contributions to NYC Political Campaigns”

August 8, 2018, 5:47 pmcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

Press release: Public Advocate Letitia James announced major new legislation designed to prevent foreign entities from circumventing New York City’s strict campaign finance laws through a loophole created by Citizens United. Introduced in the wake of substantial new evidence of… Continue reading

“US judge voids part of North Carolina election law”

August 8, 2018, 5:44 pmNVRA (motor voter)Rick Hasen

AP: A federal judge invalidated part of North Carolina elections law that allows one voter to challenge another’s residency, a provision that activist groups used to scrub thousands of names from rolls ahead of the 2016 elections. U.S. District Judge… Continue reading

“A Senator Claims That Russian Hackers Are In Florida’s Voter Systems. Local Officials Are Skeptical.”

August 8, 2018, 5:41 pmchicanery, election administrationRick Hasen

BuzzFeed: Florida Senator Bill Nelson claimed Wednesday that Russian hackers “right now” are “in (the) records” of county election offices, prompting confusion from Florida state and county officials who said they are unaware of such an attack. Speaking to the… Continue reading

“Georgia election officials knew system had ‘critical vulnerabilities’ before 2016 vote”

August 8, 2018, 5:21 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

McClatchy: Georgia election officials got a friendly warning in August 2016 that their electronic voting system could be easily breached. But less than a month before the November election, a state cybersecurity official fretted that “critical vulnerabilities” persisted, internal emails… Continue reading

“Pa.’s absentee-ballot problem: Votes come in late because of tight deadline”

August 8, 2018, 2:17 pmabsentee ballots, election administrationRick Hasen

Jonathan Lai in the Philly Inquirer: In 2010, election officials reported 2,162 absentee ballots were rejected for coming in too late; 2,030 were rejected in 2014. And given all the cuts endured by the postal service in recent years, election… Continue reading

“No law prevents Kris Kobach from overseeing the likely recount in his own race”

August 8, 2018, 9:22 amconflict of interest lawsRick Hasen

KC Star: No law requires Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach to recuse himself from a recount in the governor’s race, but legal and political experts say that he should to maintain trust in the election. Republican legislative leaders said… Continue reading

Unaffiliated Member of NC Elections Board Sides with Democrats in Establishing Student Voting Site at NCSU in Wake County

August 8, 2018, 9:19 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Republican members of the board opposed the student voting site.

“Judge hands NC legislators a temporary loss in lawsuit over political labels”

August 8, 2018, 9:15 amballot accessRick Hasen

News & Observer: The North Carolina Supreme Court candidate who is suing the state government and legislative leaders won a partial victory in court Monday. Chris Anglin is a registered Republican, and he is running against a Democrat and another… Continue reading

Pa: “GOP calls foul on Dems’ voter registration giveaway at fair”

August 8, 2018, 9:12 amchicanery, vote buyingRick Hasen

AP: The Pennsylvania Republican Party wants an investigation into a promotion by Fayette County Democrats at the recent county fair to get people to register as Democrats or change party affiliation. The GOP says the offer of Pittsburgh Steelers memorabilia… Continue reading