“DeSantis Super PAC’s Urgent Plea to Donors: ‘We Need 50 Million Bucks'”

August 31, 2023, 7:27 pmcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

NYT: Hours before the Republican Party’s first presidential debate, the chief strategist for the super PAC that has effectively taken over Ron DeSantis’s presidential campaign met with donors in Milwaukee. “Now let me tell you a secret — don’t leak… Continue reading

“What Happens if Mitch McConnell Retires Before His Senate Term Ends?”

August 31, 2023, 7:24 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

NYT: For decades in Kentucky, the power to fill a vacancy in the U.S. Senate was reserved exclusively for the governor, regardless of whether an incumbent stepped down, died in office or was expelled from Congress. But with Gov. Andy… Continue reading

“Alabama state lawmaker agrees to plead guilty to voter fraud”

August 31, 2023, 7:16 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

NBC News: An Alabama legislator has agreed to plead guilty to a felony voter fraud charge that he used a fraudulent address to run for office in a district where he did not live, according to an agreement filed Thursday.… Continue reading

The current waves of Section 3 claims against Donald Trump are likely doomed to fail before they even touch the merits

August 31, 2023, 9:58 amelectoral college, legislation and legislaturesDerek Muller

Ned and Rick H. have done an impressive job collecting some of the commentary over the last couple of weeks of challenges being filed, or anticipated to be filed, about Donald Trump and his eligibility under Section 3 of the… Continue reading

“Trump Could Clinch the Nomination Before the G.O.P. Knows if He’s a Felon”

August 31, 2023, 7:06 amelection subversion risk, political partiesRick Hasen

NYT: By the time Donald J. Trump is sitting at his federal trial on charges of criminally conspiring to overturn the 2020 election, he may have already secured enough delegates to effectively clinch the Republican Party’s 2024 presidential nomination. The… Continue reading

“Judge rules for Fulton election workers in Giuliani defamation lawsuit”

August 31, 2023, 7:00 amfraudulent fraud squadRick Hasen

AJC: A federal judge on Wednesday ruled that Rudy Giuliani is liable in a defamation lawsuit brought by two former Fulton County election workers. In her 57-page order, U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell issued a default judgment against the former… Continue reading

Parsons, Penrose, and Carroll: “Pico & Proportional Ranked Choice Voting”

August 31, 2023, 6:56 amalternative voting systems, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

The following is a guest post from G. Michael Parsons (Senior Legal Fellow, FairVote), Drew Penrose (Policy Consultant, FairVote), and Terrance Carroll (Senior Fellow for Voting and Democracy, FairVote): The California Supreme Court’s decision in Pico Neighborhood Association v. City … Continue reading

“An Iowa County Just Stopped An Election Denier from Overseeing 2024 Election”

August 31, 2023, 6:54 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Bolts reports.

Must-Read NYT Piece on How Changes to Campaign Finance Contribute to Extremism

August 30, 2023, 12:35 pmUncategorizedRichard Pildes

Tom Edsall in the NYT does a masterful job synthesizing the state-of-the-art empirical knowledge on how changes in recent years to the way elections are financed have contributed to polarization and extremism. Relying on this data, the piece makes two… Continue reading

“Court Skirmishes Show Divergent Strategies by Prosecutors in Trump Cases”

August 30, 2023, 7:25 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

NYT: While a federal judge was fast-tracking the start of former President Donald J. Trump’s election interference trial in Washington on Monday, the sprawling prosecution of Mr. Trump and 18 co-defendants by the district attorney in Fulton County, Ga., on… Continue reading

“No Labels preps playbook to select presidential candidates, broaden support”

August 30, 2023, 7:23 amballot access, third partiesRick Hasen

WaPo reports. Politico: A 6-figure Donald Trump donor is now a No Labels adviser

“Secretaries of state get ready for possible challenges to Trump’s ballot access”

August 30, 2023, 7:14 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

NBC News: Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes said Tuesday that his office is figuring out how to handle potential complaints over whether former President Donald Trump should be disqualified from appearing on the 2024 ballot. The issue centers on… Continue reading

“In court, Trump supporter faces election official he violently threatened”

August 30, 2023, 7:11 amelection subversion riskRick Hasen

WaPo: The election officials piled into the front row of a federal courtroom — a show of support for a local public official who has endured more than two years of attacks for his role in helping to certify Donald… Continue reading

Wisconsin: “Speaker Robin Vos keeps open option of impeaching newly elected Justice Janet Protasiewicz”

August 30, 2023, 6:51 amconflict of interest laws, judicial electionsRick Hasen

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Assembly Speaker Robin Vos continues to leave the door open to launching impeachment proceedings against state Supreme Court Justice Janet Protasiewicz if she does not recuse herself from lawsuits challenging the state’s electoral maps. The Rochester Republican raised … Continue reading