“Pro-RFK Jr. Super PAC Has Deep Ties to Marjorie Taylor Greene, George Santos”

June 23, 2023, 11:39 amcampaign financeRick Hasen

Rolling Stone: There’s nothing abnormal about a candidate getting a super PAC, even a candidate making a longshot bid like Kennedy’s. What is abnormal, however, is that Kennedy is running as a Democrat in the Democratic primary, while the creators… Continue reading

“Exclusive: Special counsel trades immunity for fake elector testimony as Jan 6 probe heats up”

June 23, 2023, 9:40 amchicanery, election subversion riskRick Hasen

CNN: Special counsel Jack Smith has compelled at least two Republican fake electors to testify to a federal grand jury in Washington in recent weeks by giving them limited immunity, part of a current push by federal prosecutors to swiftly… Continue reading

Atlanta Journal-Constitution & AP on Georgia voting machine debate

June 23, 2023, 9:38 amUncategorizedNed Foley

In light of the POLITICO story posted earlier today, a reader points to two recent stories in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on the same topic, one behind a paywall and the other not: “Georgia officials lay out obstacles to updating … Continue reading

“Billionaire-funded group driving effort to erode democracy in key US states”

June 23, 2023, 9:13 amdirect democracyRick Hasen

The Guardian: A Florida group primarily funded by an Illinois billionaire is driving the recent attacks on direct democracy in states such as Ohio, Missouri, South Dakota and Arkansas. The Foundation for Government Accountability, a Florida-based group affiliated with… Continue reading

“Wisconsin’s top elections official for 2024 uncertain as incumbent’s term nears end”

June 23, 2023, 9:09 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

AP: Who will oversee the 2024 presidential election in the critical battleground state of Wisconsin remains clouded with uncertainty just weeks before the state’s nonpartisan top elections official reaches the end of her term. Republicans who control the state Legislature… Continue reading

“A Delaware city is set to give corporations the right to vote in elections”

June 23, 2023, 9:07 amvotingRick Hasen

CBS News: The state of Delaware is famously business-friendly. With more than 1.8 million entities registered in the First State, companies outnumber its human residents by nearly two-to-one. One city is now moving to raise businesses’ influence in the state… Continue reading

No Response to John Eastman Cert. Petition Seeking to Wipe Out District Court Finding that Eastman More Likely Than Not Engaged with Trump in Crime Related to 2020 Election

June 23, 2023, 7:33 amchicanery, Supreme CourtRick Hasen

I blogged earlier about John Eastman arguing for the decision against him to be vacated on grounds it is moot. I wondered if a response would be filed by the Jan. 6 committee, which I think no longer exists. There… Continue reading

“Far Right Pushes a Through-the-Looking-Glass Narrative on Jan. 6”

June 23, 2023, 7:26 amUncategorizedNed Foley

Robert Draper in the N.Y. Times: “Last week, dozens showed up at an unofficial House hearing convened by a handful of Republican lawmakers to challenge “the fake narrative that an insurrection had occurred on Jan. 6,” as set forth by… Continue reading

“New video undercuts claim Twitter censored pro-Trump views before Jan. 6”

June 23, 2023, 6:58 amUncategorizedNed Foley

Washington Post: “the video and other newly obtained internal Twitter records show that, far from working to censor pro-Trump sentiment in the days before the Capitol riot, the company’s leaders were intent on leaving it up — despite internal warnings… Continue reading

“From election hero to zero: Georgia official’s dismissal of security audit could mean trouble in 2024”

June 23, 2023, 6:04 amUncategorizedNed Foley

POLITICO: “Raffensperger’s dismissive reaction to the unsparing audit conducted by security expert Alex Halderman has turned him into an object of intense criticism from cybersecurity specialists, who say he is painting legitimate research with the brush of far-right conspiracy… Continue reading

“No Labels declines to reveal just who is funding its third party bid”

June 23, 2023, 5:18 amUncategorizedNed Foley

POLITICO: “The centrist group consists of a constellation of entities, some of which disclose donor names. But the main one is a nonprofit which, unlike political parties, does not have to reveal the names of its funders. And in… Continue reading

The Nomination and Election of Statewide Candidates

June 22, 2023, 5:02 pmUncategorizedNed Foley

I’ve posted on SSRN the working draft of a paper that will be published in the University of Illinois Law Review and was part of a symposium hosted by the review in March. Here’s the abstract: The standard system of… Continue reading

Top Recent Downloads in Election Law on SSRN

June 22, 2023, 4:30 pmpedagogyRick Hasen

Here: RankPaperDownloads1.Beyond the Spoiler Effect: Can Ranked Choice Voting Solve the Problem of Political Polarization?Nathan Atkinson, Edward B. Foley and Scott GanzUniversity of Wisconsin – Madison, Ohio State University (OSU) – Michael E. Moritz College… Continue reading

“Maricopa County recorder Stephen Richer sues Kari Lake for defamation”

June 22, 2023, 4:23 pmUncategorizedNed Foley

The news story is here. And this is his op-ed explaining the lawsuit. Given the Dominion suit against Fox, one wonders whether this new suit in the same vein will confirm that defamation is a successful way to counteract intentionally… Continue reading