Coordinating Publicly to Get Around Campaign Finance Laws–2022 cycle

May 16, 2022, 5:44 amcampaign finance2022 Election CycleTabatha Abu El-Haj

Shane Goldmacher at N.Y. Times reports on the “Little Red Boxes” appearing on many Democratic primary candidates’ websites to direct their Super PACs’ messaging strategies. The basic principle is not new, but the details are interesting. Republicans this… Continue reading

“Primaries spotlight coming battles over state supreme courts”

May 16, 2022, 5:13 amcampaign finance, judicial electionsTabatha Abu El-Haj

AP News “[A]cross the country this year, . . . state judicial races become increasingly politicized over issues such as partisan gerrymandering, abortion and gun rights. Voters in 32 states this year will cast ballots on state supreme court seats,… Continue reading

Polarization and State Legislative Elections

May 15, 2022, 6:20 amUncategorizedRichard Pildes

New study from Sandy Handan-Nader, Andrew Myers, Andrew B. Hall. Abstract: U.S. state legislatures are critical policymaking bodies and the major pipeline of candidates to national office. Polarization in state legislatures has increased substantially in recent… Continue reading

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Comes out in Favor of RCV or Runoff Elections for Primaries

May 15, 2022, 6:06 amUncategorizedRichard Pildes

Editorial: According to current polling, the winner of the Republican primary for Pennsylvania Governor will receive less than a third of the vote. And on the U.S. Senate side, no major poll has a single candidate winning more than a… Continue reading

“The Twitter account defending Australian democracy”

May 15, 2022, 4:53 amcheap speech, comparative election law, election administrationRichard Pildes

A must-read story from the Wa. Post on how Australia combats election disinformation: In a Canberra office covered in computer screens, the alerts began pouring in. “This needs a #FactCheck,” one person tweeted. “Is this not illegal?” another asked. Tagged… Continue reading

“Gearing Up for G.O.P. Gains, White House Braces for Barrage of Inquiries”

May 14, 2022, 1:51 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

NYT: President Biden’s legal team is laying the groundwork to defend against an expected onslaught of oversight investigations by congressional Republicans, should they take one or both chambers in the midterm elections — including preparing for the possibility of… Continue reading

“Missouri legislature passes new congressional map, ending monthslong redistricting stalemate”

May 14, 2022, 1:46 pmredistrictingRick Hasen

Springfield News-Leader: The Missouri Senate approved a new congressional map for the state on Thursday evening, pushing a last-minute proposal through the chamber despite continued opposition from some Republicans.Passage of the map comes after nearly five months of infighting and… Continue reading

“DeSantis taps self-described ‘Florida gun lawyer’ to oversee elections”

May 13, 2022, 4:37 pmelection administrationRick Hasen

CNN: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has put in charge of the state’s election systems a deeply conservative state lawmaker who has championed legislation to ban so-called sanctuary cities and calls himself the “Florida gun lawyer.”DeSantis announced on Friday… Continue reading

“Minnesota marijuana party grapples with spoiler label in swing races”

May 13, 2022, 12:23 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

Star Tribune: Several members of Minnesota’s Grassroots Legalize Cannabis Party are pushing to change its name to the Constitutional Liberty Party, a direct response to allegations that conservatives recruited marijuana candidates to act as spoilers to Democrats in… Continue reading

Tabatha Abu-El Haj Primary ELB Blogger Next Week; Rotating ELB Bloggers Coming This Summer

May 13, 2022, 9:56 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Just a reminder if you have a pitch or comment on a week when someone else is the primary ELB blogger, please send your messages directly to them rather than me. You can find people’s pages with their email addresses… Continue reading

“Wisconsin: Michael Gableman backs away from talk of election decertification, Republican leaders say”

May 13, 2022, 8:00 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Former state Supreme Court Justice Michael Gableman urged Wisconsin lawmakers in March to strongly consider rescinding the state’s electoral votes for President Joe Biden — an idea that scholars call legally preposterous.On Tuesday, he presented a different… Continue reading

“Georgia county under scrutiny after claim of post-election breach”

May 13, 2022, 7:10 amchicanery, election subversion risk, voting technologyRick Hasen

WaPo: A former elections supervisor in rural Coffee County, Ga., has told The Washington Post that she opened her offices to a businessman active in the election-denier movement to help investigate results she did not trust in the… Continue reading

“Pence to headline Georgia rally for Kemp, defying Trump ahead of primary”

May 13, 2022, 7:07 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Politico reports.

Wisconsin: “Republican governor candidate Tim Michels calls for mass firings at state elections commission, repeal of election guidance to clerks”

May 13, 2022, 7:04 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Wisconsin’s election system would be dismantled under dramatic plans that Republican candidates for governor are crafting to appeal to the party’s base, much of which believes former President Donald Trump’s false claims of fraud in the last… Continue reading