“Justices Thomas and Alito Ignored Calls for Recusal in Jan. 6 Case”

June 28, 2024, 3:46 pmconflict of interest laws, Supreme CourtRick Hasen

NYT: Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel A. Alito Jr., rejecting calls for their disqualification, participated in the case, siding with a member of the mob that stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Experts in legal ethics have said that… Continue reading

Bottini: “Is there still a judge in Paris? French legislative elections proceed with minimal constitutional check”

June 28, 2024, 2:44 pmcomparative election law, election administrationRick Hasen

The following is a guest post from Eleonora Bottini, Professor of Public Law, University of Caen Normandy: On June 20th and 26th, 2024, the French Constitutional Council, unsurprisingly, authorized the legislative snap elections in France to proceed as… Continue reading

WRAL Capital Broadcasting Co. 3 Part Series on the New Role of Outside Money in North Carolina Elections

June 28, 2024, 2:29 pmcampaign financeRick Hasen

CBC EDITORIAL INVESTIGATES: Outside campaign money dominates N.C. elections (PART ONE; Monday, June 24, 2024) CBC EDITORIAL INVESTIGATES: Outside groups spending on N.C. campaigns. Who they are? What they want? (PART TWO: Tuesday, June 25, 2024) CBC EDITORIAL INVESTIGATES: Voters’ … Continue reading

Breaking: Plaintiffs, Likely Fearing the Supreme Court Will Make Things Worse, Decline to Seek Supreme Court Review of Eighth Circuit Case Holding There’s No Right For Private Parties to Sue Under Section 2 of Voting Rights Act

June 28, 2024, 1:17 pmVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

With today’s deadline, I have learned there will be no cert petition filed. This is a case from the Eighth Circuit that is wrong on the text of the Voting Rights Act, wrong on its history, and wrong on… Continue reading

My New One at Slate: “That Big Jan. 6 Supreme Court Decision Is Not the Win for Trump People Think It Is”

June 28, 2024, 10:25 amchicanery, election subversion risk, statutory interpretation, Supreme CourtRick Hasen

I have written this piece for Slate. It begins: In Fischer v. United States, a divided Supreme Court, in an opinion by Chief Justice John Roberts, handed Donald Trump a political victory by saying the government overreached in prosecuting some… Continue reading

Supreme Court Hands January 6 Rioters a Win in Fischer Case, But It Likely Won’t Help Trump Beat Similar Charges Against Him (Should He Ever Go To Trial on Election Interference)

June 28, 2024, 7:58 amelection subversion risk, Supreme CourtRick Hasen

The key holding in Fischer v. United States is to read the obstruction statute so that “the Government must establish that the defendant impaired the availability or integrity for use in an official proceeding of records, documents, objects, or as… Continue reading

What Replaces Chevron Deference in Administrative Law Statutory Interpretation Cases? Greater Judicial Power

June 28, 2024, 7:40 amlegislation and legislatures, Supreme CourtRick Hasen

Here, from the end of the Chief Justice’s opinion in Loper-Bright, is a brief paragraph on what replaces Chevron deference to administrative agency interpretation of ambiguous statutes: Chevron is overruled. Courts must exercise their independent judgment in deciding whether… Continue reading

More on the legal (and practical) issues around a presidential candidate’s withdrawal

June 28, 2024, 7:30 amprimariesDerek Muller

Rick H. gets the heart of the issues right in his early post. I want to highlight some more wrinkles (but I put the odds of Biden stepping down much lower than 50%). First, Rick is right that the… Continue reading

Don’t Let the Dismal Biden Debate Performance Overshadow Donald Trump’s Whitewashing of January 6 and His Refusal to Commit to Accepting the Results of the 2024 Election

June 28, 2024, 6:54 amelection subversion riskRick Hasen

All eyes of course are on Biden’s dismal performance in last night’s debate. (I wrote about the election law implications here.) But that should not overshadow the continued serious risk of election subversion coming from Donald Trump. Plans are… Continue reading

The Election Law Issues Surrounding a Potential Biden Withdrawal from the Presidential Race

June 28, 2024, 6:36 amCandidate replacement, political partiesRick Hasen

I think after last night’s dismal debate performance, the odds that Joe Biden will drop out of the presidential race are now greater than 50 percent. Just look at where the columnists in the New York Times are. How would… Continue reading

“Arizona RNC delegation chair: ‘I would lynch’ county election official”

June 27, 2024, 2:49 pmchicaneryRick Hasen

WaPo: Earlier this month, Shelby Busch — chair of Arizona’s delegation to the Republican convention — was in court trying to learn the identities of local elections workers. Under oath, she said she was unaware of any threats that had… Continue reading

“Third-party and independent candidates for president often fall short of early polling numbers”

June 27, 2024, 1:27 pmthird partiesRick Hasen

Super interesting analysis at Pew Research Center.

Election Law Academics Update

June 27, 2024, 7:55 amelection law bizRick Hasen

Here’s my yearly roundup of election law academic hires, promotions moves, visits, accolades: Ellen Aprill is Senior Scholar in Residence at the Lowell Milken Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofits at UCLA (and continues as the John E Anderson Professor in Tax… Continue reading

Election Law Blog

The law of politics and the politics of law