New Cert Petition Out of Disputed Connecticut Assembly Race Asks Supreme Court to Resolve an Apparent Circuit Split Over the Meaning of Bush v. Gore
The case is Feehan v. Marcone and the cert petition is here.
Monthly Archives: May 2019
“Georgia’s strictest possible reading of the law to stop felons from voting”
AP:
Brown and tens of thousands of other Georgia residents are cut off from voting due to a vaguely worded law that state election officials interpret in the strictest possible manner.Georgia strips voting rights from people convicted of all felonies,… Continue reading
Sen. Kamala Harris Proposes Voting Rights Act-Style Preclearance for State and Local Abortion Laws; I’m Skeptical It Could Pass and Be Upheld
LAT:
The policy is modeled on the 1965 Voting Rights Act, which said that jurisdictions with a history of discrimination must get preapproval from the attorney general to make any changes to voting laws that could affect minorities. That provision,… Continue reading
“McConnell confirms he would help Trump fill another Supreme Court vacancy in 2020”
WaPo:
When President Obama nominated Judge Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court in 2016, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) refused to consider him, blocking the nominee until after the year’s presidential election.He said then that “the American people… Continue reading
“Voting Reforms and Implementation: A New York Story”
Civics Center:
On the second day of a legislative session that introduced a squad of newcomers who had campaigned against disenfranchisement and corruption in Albany, the New York State legislature passed a sweeping raft of voter reforms that will establish… Continue reading
“Broad Georgia ethics investigation targets Abrams — and her supporters”
AJC:
The head of Georgia’s ethics commission has filed a spate of subpoenas targeting groups led by Stacey Abrams and the chairwoman of the state Democratic Party, prompting criticism that he’s trying to exact political revenge against Republican Gov.… Continue reading
“A resignation in Texas is a reminder of how Trump’s vote-fraud claims come up empty”
Philip Bump for WaPo.
“Trump campaign embraces groups trying to court minority voters – one with false pitches”
WaPo:
Nearly a year after a gay freelance hairstylist living in Harlem posted a Facebook video repudiating the Democratic Party, Brandon Straka found himself in Trump Tower on Thursday speaking with Lara Trump, the president’s daughter-in-law and a senior… Continue reading
Sign of Democratic Power in Texas: “David Whitley resigns as end-of-session deadline nears”
Austin-American Statesman:
Shortly before the Senate’s closing gavel ended his term as Texas secretary of state, David Whitley delivered his letter of resignation, “effective immediately,” to Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday afternoon.Whitley needed Senate confirmation by the end of… Continue reading
“Buckley 2.0: How Would The Buckley Court Decide Buckley Today?”
Miriam Galston has posted this draft on SSRN. Here is the abstract:
If you read Supreme Court campaign finance cases, you will be struck by the disconnect between the lofty rhetoric used to justify the constitutional protections afforded political speech… Continue reading
“Texas’ embattled elections chief on brink of losing job”
AP:
Texas’ embattled elections chief who wrongly questioned the U.S. citizenship of tens of thousands of voters was on the brink of losing his job Sunday, while Republican lawmakers prepared to head home hoping to save their own in… Continue reading
Wendy Tam Cho: “Technology-Enabled Coin Flips for Judging Partisan Gerrymandering”
The following is a guest post from Wendy Tam Cho:
The Court has issued a stay in the Ohio and Michigan partisan gerrymandering cases, and we await their rulings in North Carolina and Maryland. I was an expert witness… Continue reading
“In the Alabama Legislature, James Crow Esq. is hard at work”
Kyle Whitmire oped at Al.com:
We have a white people’s party, the GOP. And but for two lawmakers — Rep. Neil Rafferty and Sen. Billy Beasley — we have the black people’s party, the Democrats.
No matter the reasons, the… Continue reading
No Surprise: Supreme Court, Without Noted Dissent, Blocks Redraws of Ohio, Michigan Maps Found by Lower Courts to Be Partisan Gerrymanders
Today’s orders are no surprise. Indeed, the Court often fails to give preliminary relief in redistricting cases even when the plaintiffs eventually win on the merits. Indeed, if the Court did allow the remaps to take place while the… Continue reading