“Revealed: the tech bosses who poured $394.1m into US election – and how they compared to Elon Musk”

December 7, 2024, 8:57 pmcampaign financeJustin Levitt

The Guardian parses the FEC tech-sector filings beyond Musk. Your reminder that FEC filings facilitate the drunkard’s search under the streetlight: they show what they show, but only where the light is good enough to see.

New Article: “A Path to Multiparty Democracy”

November 29, 2024, 7:36 amballot accessTabatha Abu El-Haj

Nate Ela (Temple Beasley School of Law) has posted a new article in relation to the state constitutional challenges to anti-fusion laws that are currently underway. Building on the work of Jessica Bulman-Pozen and Miriam Seifter, Ela argues that many… Continue reading

“Donald Trump’s return sends shivers through the anti-misinformation world”

November 26, 2024, 11:01 amcheap speechRick Hasen

Financial Times: The incoming Trump administration’s vow to dismantle the leftwing “censorship cartel” has thrown a shadow over the cottage industry of academics, non-profits and researchers that sprang up to combat a tide of digital misinformation — and threatens… Continue reading

“Will Trump’s high-turnout win make Republicans rethink opposition to voting access?”

November 24, 2024, 9:55 ampolitical parties, political polarizationRick Hasen

Miles Park for NPR: When John Merrill was secretary of state of Alabama, he felt like it was his job as the state’s top voting official to encourage voter registration. “One of the things I was known for as a… Continue reading

New Article: “The Brave New World of Judicial Elections: What We Know and What We Don’t”

November 23, 2024, 12:07 pmjudicial electionsNew ScholarshipTabatha Abu El-Haj

Charles Gardner Geyh (Indiana University Maurer School of Law) has posted this new article on judicial elections on SSRN: In this essay, I begin with a discussion of established legal theory, which elucidates the difficulties created by calling upon judges… Continue reading

Very Disturbing WaPo Story: “Trump plans to fire Jack Smith’s team, use DOJ to probe 2020 election”

November 22, 2024, 5:17 pmchicanery, Department of Justice, fraudulent fraud squadRick Hasen

This does not bode well at all for the rule of law: President-elect Donald Trump plans to fire the entire team that worked with special counsel Jack Smith to pursue two federal prosecutions against the former president, including career attorneys… Continue reading

“As Trump Refers to Third Term, Democrat Wants to Leave No Constitutional Loophole”

November 13, 2024, 11:03 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

NYT: When President-elect Donald J. Trump met with House Republicans on Wednesday morning, he suggested he might need their help to try to circumvent the Constitution and run for a third term in the future — a comment that was… Continue reading

“The Internal Law of Democracy”

November 13, 2024, 6:55 amelection administrationRick Hasen

Kevin Stack has posted this draft on SSRN (forthcoming, Vanderbilt Law Review). Here is the abstract: The conventional focus of election law is the constitutional, statutory, and judicial constraints on election officials. But the operation of elections also depends on… Continue reading

“California Counts Methodically as House Control Hangs in the Balance; Ten of the 18 races that will determine which party controls the House of Representatives are in California. No state takes longer to tally votes.”

November 11, 2024, 1:00 pmelection administrationRick Hasen

Good NYT overview.

Open Secrets Lays Off Researchers, in Blow to All of Us Who Work with Their Excellent Data

November 8, 2024, 9:06 amelection law bizRick Hasen

Very sad to see this. Their work is indispensable. There needs to be adequate funding for nonpartisan entities like this doing such important work. They are providing a key public good. And of course on a personal level I… Continue reading

Lara Trump Wants “maybe…a blanket federal election process that every state abides by”

November 7, 2024, 11:02 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Newsweek: Lara Trump, co-chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC) and wife of Donald Trump‘s son Eric, has said that, after her father-in-law’s inauguration, the Republican-controlled government should look into changing the U.S. election process. Talking to Fox … Continue reading

Weissman: “Judge’s Error Casts Shadow Over Trump’s Felony Convictions”

November 7, 2024, 10:47 amcampaign finance, UncategorizedRick Hasen

The following is a guest post from Stephen R. Weissman: President-elect Donald Trump is scheduled to be sentenced on November 26th for 34 New York State felonies. Even if his lawyers are able to secure an indefinite postponement of that… Continue reading

“Republican election denial claims take a hiatus with Trump’s victory”

November 7, 2024, 7:34 amelection subversion risk, fraudulent fraud squadRick Hasen

WaPo: A remarkable thing happened Tuesday night on an “election integrity” discussion page on the social media platform X, as it became clear that former president Donald Trump was headed to a decisive victory against Vice President Kamala Harris.… Continue reading

“Harris Asked Voters to Protect Democracy. Here’s Why It Didn’t Land.”

November 7, 2024, 7:26 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

NYT: Her campaign pitch was moving, even high-minded. If Vice President Kamala Harris were elected to the White House, she would safeguard the ideals of a good nation. Voters had a choice, she said: democracy, constitutional rights and bedrock freedoms… Continue reading