Must-read NYT: “Wisconsin Election Fight Heralds a National Battle Over Virus-Era Voting”

April 6, 2020, 9:54 pmThe Voting WarsRick Hasen

NYT: Wisconsin voters will face a choice between protecting their health and exercising their civic duty on Tuesday after state Republican leaders, backed up by a conservative majority on the state’s Supreme Court, rebuffed the Democratic governor’s attempt to… Continue reading

Wisconsin Supreme Court Issues Opinions to Accompany Its Earlier Orders Reversing Governor’s Postponement of Election

April 6, 2020, 9:50 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

Majority and dissenting opinions.

Morley: “Election Emergencies at the Supreme Court”

April 6, 2020, 9:47 pmSupreme CourtRick Hasen

Michael Morley has written this extensive analysis of today’s developments, which begins: This post offers a new perspective on the Supreme Court’s emergency order in Republican National Committee v. Democratic National Committee, No. 19A1016 (U.S. Apr. 6, 2020). It… Continue reading

Marty Lederman: “Where the Supreme Court went wrong in today’s Wisconsin election decision (I think)”

April 6, 2020, 9:44 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

Balkinization analysis: If I’m not mistaken, the Supreme Court just stayed a provision of a district court preliminary injunction that does not exist, and in so doing imposed a restraint on the franchise of Wisconsin voters that Wisconsin law… Continue reading

Guy Charles on Today’s Wisconsin SCOTUS Ruling

April 6, 2020, 9:41 pmSupreme CourtRick Hasen

Interesting thread starts here: I want to make one point about the Supreme Court's decision in the Wisconsin case that I'm surprised has not been made. The Supreme Court & the federal courts more broadly have actually not done… Continue reading

Breaking: Supreme Court on 5-4 Vote Reverses District Court on Late-Arriving Absentee Ballots in Wisconsin Race. This is a Bad Sign for November in a Number of Ways.

April 6, 2020, 4:16 pmSupreme CourtRick Hasen

You can read the opinion and dissent here. In some ways, it is unsurprising that the Court divided 5-4 (conservative/Republican Justices against liberal/Democratic Justices) on a question whether the emergency created by COVID-19 and the dangers of in-person voting… Continue reading

Wisconsin Supreme Court Orders Voting Back On for Tuesday. What’s Next?

April 6, 2020, 3:24 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

The state Supreme Court split along ideological (essentially party) lines 4-2 (with one Justice on the ballot recused) in rejecting Gov. Evers’ order suspending the election. The court kept only that part of the order calling a special legislative session… Continue reading

Wisconsin Update: What to Expect Today and Tomorrow. NOW UPDATED with Governor Evers Cancelling in Person Voting, Another Special Legislative Session, and Likely Litigation

April 6, 2020, 9:08 amelection administrationRick Hasen

The Wisconsin legislature ended the special session without taking action to postpone tomorrow’s primary. There will be in-person voting tomorrow, but it is not clear how badly turnout will be down. Last I heard, all but 5 of 180 polling… Continue reading

“Georgia elections chief launches effort against mail-in voting fraud”

April 6, 2020, 8:55 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

AJC: Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger launched an effort Monday to investigate voting fraud that could arise from widespread use of mailed-in ballots in Georgia’s primary.Raffensperger, who mailed absentee ballot request forms to Georgia’s 6.9 million active voters, said… Continue reading

“Texas’s election law could disenfranchise millions during a pandemic; Texas’s absentee ballot law is utterly unfit for a state holding an election during a public health crisis.”

April 6, 2020, 8:46 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Ian Millhiser for Vox.

“Biden seeks to revive fundraising momentum as coronavirus — and Trump — grab attention”

April 6, 2020, 8:44 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

WaPo reports.

Charlie Sykes on Wisconsin’s Election, and What It Means for November

April 6, 2020, 8:34 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

I’ve been waiting for this: And in case it’s not yet obvious, what’s happening in Wisconsin is a dry run for what’s coming for the rest of the country in November: Elections roiled in partisan rancor, dysfunction, voter suppression, and… Continue reading

“Who Has Emergency Authority Over Elections? Nobody’s Quite Sure.”

April 6, 2020, 8:31 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Jessica Huseman for ProPublica: There are only six states where election officials have the authority both to delay an election and shift polling places, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. In six others, they can only reschedule an… Continue reading