“Trump declines to rule out abusing power to seek retribution if he returns to the White House”

December 6, 2023, 8:11 amauthoritarian threats in USRick Hasen

AP: Former President Donald Trump declined to rule out abusing power if he returns to the White House after Fox News Channel host Sean Hannity asked him Tuesday to respond to growing Democratic criticism of his rhetoric. The GOP… Continue reading

“Why big-money super PACs keep blowing it for their candidates”

December 6, 2023, 8:11 amcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

Dave Weigel: It wasn’t surprising that some candidates jumped at the chance to effectively outsource their campaign to a handful of big donors, once that became a clear possibility, rather than relying on fickle small donors and exhausting grip-and-grins with… Continue reading

“‘Test case’ for America: Colorado’s top court poised to weigh Trump’s eligibility to run again”

December 6, 2023, 8:11 amballot access, election subversion riskRick Hasen

Politico: So far, no court has declared Trump ineligible, and few of the cases have advanced beyond initial stages. In Minnesota, the state supreme court dismissed a challenge seeking to bar Trump from that state’s Republican primary ballot, but… Continue reading

Richmond, Virginia’s Odd System for Choosing a Mayor Has Roots in Settling a Voting Rights Act Objection

December 6, 2023, 8:10 amalternative voting systemsRick Hasen

File this in the Department of Things I Did No Know: All the contenders will face off one nonpartisan ballot this fall, and a candidate needs to win a plurality of the vote in at least five of the nine … Continue reading

What Can the U.S. Learn from New Zealand About Proportional Representation?

December 6, 2023, 8:10 amalternative voting systems, comparative election lawRick Hasen

Two in The Fulcrum: Winning Proportional Representation: Lessons from New Zealand Winning Proportional Representation: How the U.S. Can Follow New Zealand’s Lead

Derek Muller Blogging Week of December 11; Spencer Overton Blogging Weeks of Dec. 18 & 25

December 6, 2023, 8:09 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Please direct your tips and questions to Derek during the week of December 11 and Spencer during the weeks of December 18 and 25. I’m going to be offline until the end of the year, and then back with a… Continue reading

“Prosecutors Intend to Show Long Pattern of Threats and Baseless Claims by Trump”

December 5, 2023, 4:37 pmelection subversion riskRick Hasen

NYT: When former President Donald J. Trump goes on trial on charges of plotting to overturn the 2020 election, federal prosecutors intend to tell a sweeping story, informing the jury about everything from his support for the far-right Proud Boys… Continue reading

Janai Nelson: “Victims and advocates deserve a right to fight through the Voting Rights Act”

December 5, 2023, 3:06 pmVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

It’s a shame Janai had to even write this oped, but that’s where some courts are today: hutting voters out of the process of vindicating their rights has incalculable implications that could quickly compound. Over the last year alone,… Continue reading

“Voting experts warn of ‘serious threats’ for 2024 from election equipment software breaches”

December 5, 2023, 3:03 pmelection subversion risk, voting technologyRick Hasen

AP: An effort to access voting system software in several states and provide it to allies of former President Donald Trump as they sought to overturn the results of the 2020 election has raised “serious threats” ahead of next year’s… Continue reading

“Special counsel alleges Trump ‘sent’ supporters on path to Jan. 6 violence”

December 5, 2023, 11:07 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

WaPo: Federal prosecutors on Tuesday accused former president Donald Trump of a long pattern of lying about elections and encouraging violence, saying he “sent” supporters on Jan. 6, 2021 to criminally block the election results. In a new court filing… Continue reading

Top Recent Downloads in Election Law on SSRN

December 5, 2023, 9:12 ampedagogyRick Hasen

Here: RankPaperDownloads1.Moore and Partisan Gerrymandering Manoj MateDePaul University – College of LawDate Posted: 27 Oct 2023Last Revised: 27 Oct 20231122.Abuse of Discretion: The U.S. Supreme Court’s Indefensible Use of Evidence in Election Law Cases Richard L. … Continue reading

Arkansas Secretary of State blocks would-be presidential candidate Cenk Uygur from the ballot

December 5, 2023, 8:53 amUncategorizedDerek Muller

I chronicled earlier how Nevada blocked would-be Democratic presidential Cenk Uygur from the ballot. Uygur was born in Turkey. He tried to alter the paperwork in Nevada that required him to assert, under penalty of perjury, that he was… Continue reading

Greg Sargent: “Enough with all the fatalism about a Trump dictatorship”

December 5, 2023, 7:41 amauthoritarian threats in USRick Hasen

WaPo column: “Authoritarians create a climate where they seem unstoppable,” Ben-Ghiat told me. “Creating an aura of destiny around the leader galvanizes his supporters by making his movement seem much stronger than it actually is. The manipulation of perception is… Continue reading