“Public opinion alone won’t save democracy”

October 18, 2024, 9:00 amelection subversion riskRick Hasen

Brendan Nyhan and Rocio Titiunik in Science: The articles by Chu et al., Voelkel et al., and Tessler et al. show that online surveys, experiments, and AI-assisted deliberation can help to improve democratic attitudes and build consensus among the… Continue reading

Election Betting Markets as a New Source for Disinformation? “A Mystery $30 Million Wave of Pro-Trump Bets Has Moved a Popular Prediction Market”

October 18, 2024, 8:21 amcheap speech, chicaneryRick Hasen

WSJ: Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are neck and neck in the polls. But in one popular betting market, the odds have skewed heavily in Trump’s favor, raising questions about a recent flurry of wagers and… Continue reading

“JD Vance Campaign Event With Christian Right Leaders May Have Violated Tax and Election Laws, Experts Say”

October 18, 2024, 6:29 amtax law and election lawRick Hasen

ProPublica: Republican vice-presidential nominee JD Vance’s appearance at a far-right Christian revival tour last month may have broken tax and election laws, experts say. On Sept. 28, Vance held an official campaign event in Monroeville, Pennsylvania, in partnership with the … Continue reading

“Musk pushes debunked Dominion voting conspiracy theory at first Pennsylvania appearance”

October 18, 2024, 6:27 amfraudulent fraud squadRick Hasen

NBC News: Billionaire Elon Musk promoted debunked conspiracy theories about election fraud Thursday at the first of a series of planned campaign events across Pennsylvania meant to rally support for former President Donald Trump’s campaign. At a town hall hosted… Continue reading

No private right of action to enforce list maintenance, voter registration provisions of HAVA, federal court holds

October 18, 2024, 6:10 amcourt decisions, election law and constitutional lawDerek Muller

Continuing a recent tranche of lower court debates over whether certain election-related provisions permit a private right of action, including Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act and Election Day date provisions of federal law, a federal judge in North… Continue reading

Federal District Court in Trump Subversion Case Says Keeping Appendix of Government Materials Secret Until After the Election Would Be the Real “Election Interference”

October 17, 2024, 5:01 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

From the court’s order: Defendant claims that the “asymmetric release of charged allegations and related documents during early voting creates a concerning appearance of election interference.” Motion at 5. There is undoubtedly a public interest in courts not inserting themselves… Continue reading

“Trump drops the pretense, labels Jan. 6 insurrectionists ‘we'”

October 17, 2024, 4:26 pmelection subversion riskRick Hasen

Aaron Blake for WaPo: Shortly after the dust settled on Jan. 6, 2021, Donald Trump’s allies went to great and strained lengths to distance the then-president from the insurrectionists who had stormed the U.S. Capitol. They falsely linked the… Continue reading

Federal District Court Issues TRO Barring the State of Florida from Threatening TV Stations That Air Advertising Supporting Abortion Rights Amendment

October 17, 2024, 4:16 pmdirect democracy, First Amendment theoryRick Hasen

Order: By threatening criminal proceedings for broadcasting a “political advertisement claiming that current Florida law does not allow physicians to perform abortions necessary to preserve the lives and health of pregnant women,” ECF No. 1-1 at 2, Defendant has engaged… Continue reading

Cornel West is Going to the Third Circuit to Try to Get on the Pennsylvania Ballot (Updated Headline)

October 17, 2024, 4:10 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

See this filing, which is a precursor to asking the Third Circuit for a stay. Given the extremely late timing, I don’t give this much chance of success. (Update: I’ve since learned that West has already filed his appeal… Continue reading

“Trump’s Big Lie Attorneys Are Back”

October 17, 2024, 4:08 pmelection subversion risk, fraudulent fraud squadRick Hasen

The Intercept: Across battleground states, attorneys who helped former President Donald Trump undermine confidence in the 2020 election results are back at it, filing lawsuits that seed doubt in advance about this year’s outcome. Some of Trump’s attorneys from the… Continue reading

Watch Archived Video of Fantastic Discussion with Ben Ginsberg, Larry Diamond, Franita Tolson, and Rachel Kleinfeld: “From November 5 to January 6: Are We Ready for a Fair and Legitimate Election?”

October 17, 2024, 8:59 amelection subversion riskRick Hasen

Watch this excellent discussion at the UCLA Hammer Museum, the last in our three-part series between the Hammer and the Safeguarding Democracy Project.

“Don’t say ‘vote’: How Instagram hides your political posts”

October 17, 2024, 7:54 amcheap speechRick Hasen

Geoffrey Fowler column for WaPo: On Instagram, creator Mrs. Frazzled can get more than a million viewers for her goofy videos “parenting” misbehaving adults. One recent hit showed bartenders how to talk to drunk customers like they’re in kindergarten. But… Continue reading

“Massive influx of shadowy get-out-the-vote spending floods swing states”

October 17, 2024, 7:50 amcampaignsRick Hasen

WaPo: The world’s richest man, Elon Musk, has offered Americans $47 for each swing state voter they recruit to his effort to elect Donald Trump. Democratic groups have started paying at least $160 to more than 75,000 voters who agree… Continue reading

“At least 30 election deniers and 2020 fake electors serving as Trump electors this year”

October 17, 2024, 7:46 amchicanery, election subversion riskRick Hasen

CNN: More than a dozen Republicans who were “fake electors” in 2020, including several facing criminal charges, are serving as former President Donald Trump’s official electors in battleground states this year, according to a CNN survey. Another 16 GOP electors… Continue reading

Election Law Blog

The law of politics and the politics of law