“NEWS: DNC cuts ties with Dem super lawyer Elias”

April 12, 2023, 7:29 amelection law bizRick Hasen

Punchbowl: The Democratic National Committee is parting ways with Democratic super lawyer Marc Elias, multiple sources told us Tuesday. The DNC and Elias had a number of strategic disagreements, according to sources familiar with the internal deliberations. Elias has represented the DNC since 2009.… Continue reading

AALS Conference on Defending Democracy

April 11, 2023, 1:55 pmelection subversion risk, pedagogy, votingJustin Levitt

The Association of American Law Schools has announced a virtual Conference on Defending Democracy, May 4 from 11am-4pm ET: The Conference will consist of three panels focusing on the following topics: 1) the State of the Union three years… Continue reading

Ninth Circuit rejects preliminary injunction request for San Francisco’s “secondary-contributory” disclaimers for political groups

March 8, 2023, 9:29 amcampaign financeDerek Muller

Judge Graber, joined by Judges Gould and Watford, in No on E, San Franciscans Opposing the Affordable Housing Production Act v. Chiu, in a Ninth Circuit opinion released today (highlights with some revisions below–there’s lots more in the opinion but… Continue reading

Did Rupert Murdoch Make an Illegal In-Kind Campaign Contribution to the Trump Campaign by Sharing Biden’s Campaign Ads in Advance?

February 28, 2023, 7:46 amcampaign financeRick Hasen

The latest filing in the Dominion lawsuit against Fox News alleges that “During Trump’s campaign, Rupert provided Trump’s son-in-law and senior advisor, Jared Kushner, with Fox confidential information about Biden’s ads, along with debate strategy. [Citation]; Ex. 603 (providing Kushner… Continue reading

#ELB20th: 20 Years of the Election Law Blog, and 20 Years of American Democracy’s Slow (and Faster) Deterioration: A Call for Vigilance and Resilience

February 15, 2023, 6:47 am#ELB20th, Supreme Court, theoryRick Hasen

Twenty years ago this month, I began the Election Law Blog. It was a continuation of sorts of news and commentary that I had been sharing with election law professors, first via a listserv Dan Lowenstein and I created that… Continue reading

Eighth Circuit refuses to bar Minnesota Attorney General’s subpoenas against WinRed

February 7, 2023, 8:42 amcampaign finance, campaignsDerek Muller

An opinion in WinRed Inc. v. Ellison written by Judge Benton, joined by Chief Judge Smith (with some excerpts, below, lightly edited). (Judge Shepherd, “writing separately,” argues the case is not ripe for review and the court lacks jurisdiction.)

“Santos’ unusual $199.99 campaign expenses are putting scrutiny on his longtime treasurer”

February 7, 2023, 8:37 amcampaign finance, chicaneryRick Hasen

CNN: In the fall of 2020, then-New York Rep. Lee Zeldin’s campaign submitted a report to federal regulators with a series of unusual expenses: 21 payments on a single day of exactly $199.99 each. The outlays – each just one… Continue reading

“FEC announces 2023-2024 campaign cycle contribution limits”

February 2, 2023, 2:32 pmcampaign financeRick Hasen

Release: The Federal Election Commission announced updated contribution limits that have been indexed for inflation and are effective for federal elections in 2023 and 2024. The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (BCRA) included provisions that indexed some contribution limits… Continue reading

“Justice Department asks FEC to stand down as prosecutors probe Santos”

January 27, 2023, 3:33 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

WaPo: The Justice Department has asked the Federal Election Commission to hold off on any enforcement action against George Santos, the Republican congressman from New York who lied about key aspects of his biography, as prosecutors conduct a… Continue reading

“The improbability of George Santos’ $199 expenses”

January 25, 2023, 7:43 amcampaign finance, chicaneryRick Hasen

Politico: Rep. George Santos’ congressional campaign reported dozens of transactions just cents below the threshold that would have triggered a requirement to preserve spending records — an unusual spending pattern that is now part of broader complaints about alleged financial improprieties.… Continue reading

“Special elections for two Pa. state House vacancies will be held Feb. 7, court rules”

January 18, 2023, 7:40 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Philly Inquirer: The special elections to fill two vacant seats in the Pennsylvania state House — the subject of a contentious fight between Democrats and Republicans — will be held Feb. 7, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court ruled Friday. That’s a… Continue reading

“Google Didn’t Show Bias in Filtering Campaign-Ad Pitches, FEC Says”

January 17, 2023, 10:24 amcheap speech, federal election commissionRick Hasen

WSJ: The Federal Election Commission has dismissed a complaint from Republicans that Google’s Gmail app aided Democratic candidates by sending GOP fundraising emails to spam at a far higher rate than Democratic solicitations. The Republican National Committee and others contended… Continue reading

“Billions at stake as online fundraising practices turn off voters”

January 17, 2023, 6:38 amcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

Politico: That advice reflects a recognition among digital campaign staffers that text and email programs have gone from innovative to out of hand, to the point that it’s harming the campaign ecosystem. The rate of return on individual appeals is… Continue reading

“Mark Rozzi, a Democrat-turned-independent, is now speaker of the Pa. House after a surprise vote”

January 4, 2023, 7:36 amlegislation and legislaturesRick Hasen

Philly Inquirer: Democrats and more than a dozen Republicans threw their support behind a consensus candidate for speaker of the Pennsylvania House on Tuesday, a surprise move some lawmakers said would help bring unity to the state capital. House lawmakers… Continue reading