An Adverse Ruling Against Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act in the Callais Case Could Also Doom State Voting Rights Acts

October 12, 2025, 10:43 amSupreme Court, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

I have written about the dangers of the Court killing off or significantly weakening Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, via the surprise reargument in the Louisiana v. Callais case. If the Court rules Section 2 unconstitutional because it… Continue reading

“California voters could see faster election results under new state law”

October 12, 2025, 10:24 amelection administrationRick Hasen

Cal Matters: California’s famously slow vote-counting process could see slight improvements next year after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill that gives counties an earlier deadline to tally voters’ ballots. The law, Assembly Bill 5, requires county election offices… Continue reading

“Who Are the Louisiana Voters Behind a Major Supreme Court Challenge?”

October 12, 2025, 10:15 amSupreme Court, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

Abbie Van Sickle for the NYT: One woman made national news when she protested the Covid-19 vaccine at her local City Council. Another is a member of the Trumpettes, a group of women united in their ardent support for the… Continue reading

Maybe Justice Barrett Should Be Calling for Having Conversations with Those One Disagrees with through a Network in Addition to FOX News or Other Friendly Outlets and Journalists

October 12, 2025, 10:11 amSupreme CourtRick Hasen

From Politico’s roundup of this morning’s Sunday talk shows: Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett on having conversations amid a wave of political violence, on “Fox News Sunday”: “I feel like when I talk to people, people are not happy with… Continue reading

“Constitutional common sense absent in 6th Circuit’s HB 1 ruling: Mark Brown”

October 12, 2025, 10:05 amcampaign finance, direct democracyRick Hasen

Mark Brown oped in Cleveland Plain Dealer: Democracy in Ohio suffered a setback when the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati last month refused to block Ohio’s House Bill 1 ban on “foreign nationals” “[m]ak[ing] a contribution …… Continue reading

“Federal Judges, Warning of ‘Judicial Crisis,’ Fault Supreme Court’s Emergency Orders”

October 11, 2025, 9:00 amSupreme CourtRick Hasen

NYT: More than three dozen federal judges have told The New York Times that the Supreme Court’s flurry of brief, opaque emergency orders in cases related to the Trump administration have left them confused about how to proceed in those… Continue reading

“Missouri Democrats have an opportunity to block a new congressional map. They say they’re largely on their own.”

October 11, 2025, 8:53 amredistrictingRick Hasen

Politico: Democrats are pushing ahead with last-ditch efforts to stymie Republican mid-decade redistricting in Missouri and Ohio, although they face unclear paths to blocking the potential gerrymanders amid the nationwide brawl ahead of 2026. Party leaders in the two Midwestern… Continue reading

“Playbook: Inside JD Vance’s redistricting rescue mission”

October 11, 2025, 8:51 amredistrictingRick Hasen

Politico: VP JD Vance once again descended on barn-red Indiana yesterday to make the case for mid-cycle redistricting to reluctant Hoosier lawmakers, his second trip to the state and third meeting with them in three months. In a trip that was neither… Continue reading

“How Right-Wing Influencers Are Shaping the Guard Fight in Portland”

October 10, 2025, 7:46 amauthoritarian threats in US, cheap speech, chicaneryRick Hasen

NYT: In the fight over deploying National Guard troops to Portland, Ore., Democratic leaders in the city and state have pleaded with President Trump and the courts to trust law enforcement records, both local and federal, that describe the… Continue reading

Spencer Overton Blogging Weeks of October 13 and 20

October 10, 2025, 7:27 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Please send your tips and queries to Spencer.

“Grand jury indicts N.Y. Attorney General Letitia James, a Trump opponent, on bank fraud charge”

October 9, 2025, 1:57 pmauthoritarian threats in US, Department of JusticeRick Hasen

NBC News: New York Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat who has clashed with President Donald Trump, was indicted Thursday by a federal grand jury in Virginia, three sources familiar with the matter confirmed to NBC News. James was… Continue reading

“Dominion, Company at Center of False 2020 Voting Conspiracies, Is Sold; The election machine manufacturer was bought by a little-known company whose founder is a former Republican election official.”

October 9, 2025, 1:03 pmvoting technologyRick Hasen

NYT: Election machines that were at the center of multiple false accusations and conspiracy theories after the 2020 election, has been sold to Liberty Vote, a new group run by a former local election director. Liberty Vote announced the… Continue reading

“Advancement Project, Georgia NAACP File Lawsuit Challenging Racial Vote Dilution in Georgia”

October 9, 2025, 1:02 pmVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

Release: Today, a federal voting rights lawsuit challenging the redistricting of Meriwether County, Georgia, was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of the Georgia NAACP and… Continue reading

California Will No Longer Allow Payments to Induce People to Vote to Boost Turnout (Sometimes Selectively) in State Elections

October 9, 2025, 9:19 amvote buyingRick Hasen

Back in my 2000 California Law Review article, Vote Buying, I wrote about how some jurisdictions, such as California permitted payments for people to register or to vote (so long as those payments were not made to induce people to… Continue reading

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The law of politics and the politics of law