Here is the petition. Justice Kavanaugh has set July 22 for a response from North Dakota.
Now Available: 2025 Supplement to Lowenstein, Hasen, Tokaji & Stephanopoulos, Election Law–Cases and Materials (7th Edition)
You can download the free Supplement here, current through the Supreme Court’s 2024-25 term. New to this Supplement is an overview of 2024 election litigation, including the lawsuits over the North Carolina Supreme Court election. The Supplement also includes the latest on the Purcell doctrine, edited versions of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decisions in Moore v. Harper (independent state legislature theory) and Trump v. Anderson (disqualification for engaging in insurrection), analysis of the Supreme Court’s decisions in the Allen v. Milligan and Alexander redistricting cases, and excerpts from the Supreme Court’s Trump v. United States opinion on presidential immunity.
This is a supplement to Lowenstein, Hasen, Tokaji, & Stephanopoulos, Election Law–Cases and Materials (7th edition, Carolina Academic Press, 2022).
Cuomo Continues Campaign for Mayor, Despite Primary Loss
WSJ:
Andrew Cuomo isn’t giving up yet on his political comeback.
The former governor plans to mount a competitive campaign in the general election for mayor of New York City after his surprise loss in the Democratic primary to Zohran Mamdani….
Cuomo’s name will appear on the general election ballot under the independent “Fight and Deliver” party he created as a backup plan in the event he lost the primary.
The general election will be a rematch between Cuomo and Mamdani and will also feature Mayor Eric Adams, who is running as an independent. Curtis Sliwa, the Republican nominee, and independent Jim Walden will also be on the ballot.
NYT reports that Cuomo has pledged to drop out if he’s not the highest-ranked challenger to Mamdani by mid-September, and will encourage Mamdani’s other challengers to do the same.
“Crypto industry amasses colossal war chest for elections”
Politico: “A super PAC group funded by cryptocurrency companies will enter the upcoming midterm elections with more than $140 million in the bank, according to new fundraising data shared first with POLITICO — a mammoth sum that now looms large over an effort to pass industry-friendly legislation in the House this week.”
“Maine Supreme Judicial Court upholds voter ID ballot question language”
Maine’s highest court has OK’d the language of a voter identification referendum question that highlights other substantial changes the reform would make to state voting laws….
The Dinner Table PAC launched the campaign in April 2024 as an effort to require voters to show photo identification at the polls. However, the official five-page petition submitted to the state in January seeks to change additional aspects of Maine election law, such as absentee voting.
Secretary of State Shenna Bellows called the petition “a wolf in sheep’s clothing” when it was first submitted to the state. When Bellows released the wording for the question that will appear on the November ballot, it encompassed the changes beyond photo ID requirements.
It will read: “Do you want to change Maine election laws to eliminate two days of absentee voting, prohibit requests for absentee ballots by phone or family members, end ongoing absentee voter status for seniors and people with disabilities, ban prepaid postage on absentee ballot return envelopes, limit the number of drop boxes, require voters to show certain photo ID before voting, and make other changes to our elections?”…
In its decision, issued Friday, the [Maine Supreme Judicial Court] noted that the language accurately reflected the proposed legislation and used terms that would be clear to an informed voter.
DC Council Funds Ranked-Choice Voting
WaPo: “By a vote of 8-4, the council agreed to fund ranked-choice voting in the budget, implementing one part of Initiative 83 that voters passed last year, though they declined to fund the other portion allowing independents to vote inparty primaries.”
Court Denies Motion to Reopen Testimony in Texas Redistricting Cases
Michael Li has today’s order from the three-judge federal district court here.
“Two-thirds of the DOJ unit defending Trump policies in court have quit”
Reuters: “Sixty-nine of the roughly 110 lawyers in the Federal Programs Branch have voluntarily left the unit since President Donald Trump’s election in November or have announced plans to leave, according to the list compiled by former Justice Department… Continue reading
“Pennsylvania redesigns envelopes for provisional ballots to cut down on rejections”
Votebeat: “The new design makes it clearer where voters and poll workers must sign the envelope. It more clearly delineates which section is to be filled out by the voter or poll workers, officials said, and it provides clearer… Continue reading
Douglas: “A Month After the Minnesota Shootings, We’re Normalizing Political Violence”
Josh Douglas has this commentary in Washington Monthly. A snippet:
Way too many Americans think that political violence is a necessity. A 2023 survey reported that almost a quarter of respondents agreed that “because things have gotten so far off… Continue reading
Note on Mid-Decade Redistricting and Climate Change
Here’s the abstract to “Disaster Districts: Mid-Decade Redistricting in the Face of Climate Change,” by J. Gray Whitsett, a recent graduate of William & Mary Law School:
This Note argues that judicial and legislative efforts to constrain redistricting… Continue reading
Free 2025 Supplement To Laycock & Hasen, Modern American Remedies (6th edition and Concise 6th Edition 2025) Now Available
Even though the 6th edition of Laycock & Hasen, Modern American Remedies (2025) just published last month, we have prepared a free 2025 supplement. The supplement includes an edited version of a new principal case, Trump v. CASA, Inc., on… Continue reading
“Jan. 6 Rioters Are the New Hot Event in Town for Republicans”
Where campaign finance meets election subversion. WSJ reports:
Former Jan. 6 defendants are the new draw at local Republican fundraisers, helping to fill seats at normally sleepy events while getting a platform to tell their version of the Capitol… Continue reading
“Clarence Thomas has long tried to undercut the Voting Rights Act. Now, he may finally have the numbers”
Joan Biskupic has this analysis at CNN.