“The Desperate Scramble to Stop an Insider Election Threat”

November 15, 2021, 7:15 amelection administration, election subversion risk, political parties, political polarizationTabatha Abu El-Haj

The Atlantic Judge of elections and inspector of elections are elected positions in Pennsylvania. The question of the day is how many Trump loyalists were elected to those positions in the recent election. The fear is that Trump loyalists, primed… Continue reading

“Biden Approval Slumps to New Low as Republicans Gain Clear Advantage for Midterms”

November 15, 2021, 5:30 amUncategorizedTabatha Abu El-Haj

Slate “Even as Biden’s approval rating keeps slumping, Americans give high ratings to his key policy initiatives with 63 percent expressing support for the $1 trillion infrastructure bill passed by Congress. A clear majority—58 percent—also back the almost $2 trillion… Continue reading

“GOP roars back to life in Trump-resistant Pennsylvania suburbs”

November 14, 2021, 7:25 pmpolitical parties, votingTabatha Abu El-Haj

Politico I am skeptical that the wins in Bucks County amount to the GOP roaring back to life in the Pennsylvania suburbs. No one ever seriously discusses turnout. Compare Municipal 2021 with General 2020 and Midterm 2018. We would… Continue reading

“Can ‘community centers’ help GOP court voters of color?”

November 14, 2021, 6:09 pmpolitical parties, Uncategorized, voter initiativesTabatha Abu El-Haj

National Journal RNC, under Ronna McDaniel, is opening community centers around the county to court voters of color. For the moment, centers are focused on “firing up already-involved activists and local politicians,” more than “finding new votes,” and their hours… Continue reading

Watch Archived Video: Disinformation in American Elections: Pt. 3 (Social Scientists) with Joan Donovan, Renee DiResta, and Brendan Nyhan (Moderated by Pam Fessler)

November 14, 2021, 3:53 pmcheap speechRick Hasen

You can watch archived video of this event at UCI Law’s Fair Election and Free Speech Center at this link:

“Memo from Trump attorney outlined how Pence could overturn election, says new book” (It’s Jenna Ellis, Not Eastman, in This One)

November 14, 2021, 1:40 pmelection subversion riskRick Hasen

ABC News: In a memo not made public until now, then-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows emailed to Vice President Mike Pence’s top aide, on New Year’s Eve, a detailed plan for undoing President Joe Biden’s election… Continue reading

“‘Terrifying for American democracy’: is Trump planning for a 2024 coup?”

November 14, 2021, 1:31 pmelection subversion riskRick Hasen

Ed Pilkington deep dive for The Guardian.

“How two Ohio GOP lawmakers hijacked Ohio’s new redistricting process”

November 13, 2021, 12:49 pmredistrictingRick Hasen

Cleveland.com: Under the Ohio Constitution, all seven members of the Ohio Redistricting Commission are supposed to be on equal footing.But in reality, only two commissioners, who have a direct stake in what new state legislative maps look like, had… Continue reading

“Bannon Indicted on Contempt Charges Over House’s Capitol Riot Inquiry”

November 12, 2021, 3:34 pmelection subversion riskRick Hasen

NYT: Stephen K. Bannon, a onetime aide to former President Donald J. Trump, was indicted by a federal grand jury on Friday on two counts of contempt of Congress, the Justice Department said.Mr. Bannon, 67, had refused last month to… Continue reading

“Money, denials and stalling: How Trump, the Mercers and the GOP beat the FEC”

November 12, 2021, 3:33 pmfederal election commissionRick Hasen

CNBC: The Federal Election Commission in August started to move ahead with halting its investigation into the now defunct data harvesting company Cambridge Analytica, the firm that worked for Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign, Republican Sen. Ted Cruz’s campaign for… Continue reading

“No, Constitutional Scholars Are Not ’50/50′ in Agreement With Donald Trump About Jan. 6”

November 12, 2021, 2:06 pmelection subversion riskRick Hasen

Matt Seligman for Slate: This is, frankly, nuts. Eastman’s idea is that because a violent mob stormed the Capitol, physically preventing Congress from sticking to the law’s two-hour time limit in the most brutally literal way, Pence could ignore… Continue reading

“Menace, as a Political Tool, Enters the Republican Mainstream”

November 12, 2021, 12:31 pmelection subversion riskRick Hasen

NYT: At a conservative rally in western Idaho last month, a young man stepped up to a microphone to ask when he could start killing Democrats.“When do we get to use the guns?” he said as the audience… Continue reading

Supreme Court of Virginia Unanimously Tells Va Republicans to Pick Additional, More Neutral Redistricting Masters After State Commission Failed to Reach Agreement to Draw Maps

November 12, 2021, 9:54 amredistrictingRick Hasen

Democrats had proposed Cain, Grofman, or Persily and Republicans had proposed three Republican political operatives. The justices are supposed to pick one from each list for two masters to draw districts together. The state supreme court told Va. Republicans to … Continue reading

Trump, in Audio Interview, Defends His Supporters’ Chants of “Hang Mike Pence” By Pointing to His Warped View of Independent State Legislature Doctrine

November 12, 2021, 7:05 amelection subversion riskRick Hasen

Axios with audio from upcoming Jon Karl book: Jonathan Karl: “Were you worried about him during that siege? Were you worried about his safety?” Trump: “No, I thought he was well-protected, and I had heard that he was in… Continue reading