“Big Cities – Tiny Votes? America’s Urban Voter Turnout”

December 7, 2024, 8:58 pmvoting2024 Election Turnout, local electionsJustin Levitt

More from the Yankelovich Center, this time on urban turnout, comparing presidential turnout (promising!) to mayoral turnout (sad trombone), and also noting the skew that comes with a different electorate.

“Revealed: the tech bosses who poured $394.1m into US election – and how they compared to Elon Musk”

December 7, 2024, 8:57 pmcampaign financeJustin Levitt

The Guardian parses the FEC tech-sector filings beyond Musk. Your reminder that FEC filings facilitate the drunkard’s search under the streetlight: they show what they show, but only where the light is good enough to see.

“Local elected officials in US faced uptick in hostility in lead-up to 2024 election”

December 7, 2024, 8:56 pmelection administration, election subversion risk, The Voting WarsJustin Levitt

The Guardian reports on this Bridging Divides Initiative/Civic Pulse survey of local elected officials and school board members, between July and October 2024. I’ll be interested to see what the stretch covering the general election reveals.

“Democrats say they’ll avoid election challenges on Jan. 6”

December 7, 2024, 8:53 pmelection subversion riskJanuary 6Justin Levitt

From the piece in The Hill: Democrats have protested election results in every cycle when a Republican won the White House for at least two decades, so the lack of protests will be a real change. These past objections… Continue reading

“‘It’s a very dangerous strategy’: The controversial tactic super PACs used to boost Democrats this year”

December 7, 2024, 8:51 pmcampaign finance, political parties, third partiesJustin Levitt

This Politico story highlights money spent on third-party candidates thought to boost Democratic chances of victory. But I’m genuinely pretty confused by the reporting: there’s a claim that the tactic “was used significantly more this year than in other recent… Continue reading

Limits on coordinated spending between candidates and parties back at SCOTUS

December 7, 2024, 8:50 pmcampaign financeJustin Levitt

Rick said back in September he’d been waiting for this one, and now there’s a petition for cert. Don’t know whether that counts as an early holiday present.

“How Much Did Trump, Biden and Harris Raise? A Stunning $4.7 Billion.”

December 6, 2024, 11:56 pmcampaign financeJustin Levitt

It’s FEC report season, with takes for everyone. Here’s the NYT on (some of) the bottom line.

“Elon Musk Backed Trump With Over $250 Million, Fueling the Unusual ‘RBG PAC’”

December 6, 2024, 11:55 pmcampaign financeJustin Levitt

And I think that doesn’t include the value of the X-posure. Lots of these today. Here’s the NYT take, and WaPo’s version.

“Despite campaign rhetoric critical of “the swamp,” Donald Trump raised $10 million in 2024 from lobbyists for foreign governments”

December 6, 2024, 11:54 pmcampaign finance, lobbyingJustin Levitt

Issue One gathers receipts.

“With the Voting Rights Act facing more threats, advocates renew a push for state laws”

December 6, 2024, 11:53 pmpolitical equality, Voting Rights ActJustin Levitt

NPR on the push for state voting rights acts.

“As Jan. 6 Criminal Cases Against Trump Fizzle, Civil Cases Plod Ahead”

December 6, 2024, 11:52 pmelection subversion riskJanuary 6Justin Levitt

NYT on the civil litigation.

The Parallels in the TikTok Ban Case and Regulation of Campaign Spending by Foreign Nationals

December 6, 2024, 1:23 pmcampaign finance, First Amendment theoryRick Hasen

The DC Circuit has held that the U.S. government can force the sale or shutting down of TikTok because of concerns about the influence of the Chinese government over the actions of the platform’s parent company. Among other things, the… Continue reading

Dec. 12 ALI-CLE Webinar: Legal Insights and Takeaways from the 2024 Election

December 6, 2024, 12:07 pmpedagogyRick Hasen

This ALI-CLE program may be of interest to ELB readers: December 12 | 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. ET Applying the coupon code ART12COLL in your cart will bring the price from $199 to $79. In this webcast, two election law… Continue reading