“The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Redistricting Commissions in the 2021 Cycle”

January 13, 2025, 6:43 amredistrictingRick Hasen

Sam Wang and Zacharia Sippy have posted this draft on SSRN (forthcoming, Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy). here is the abstract: In the last decade, redistricting commissions have proliferated across the United States as a means of… Continue reading

“Republicans Saved Democracy Once. Will They Do It Again?”

January 12, 2025, 12:19 pmauthoritarian threats in USRick Hasen

Andrea Kendall-Taylor, Joseph Wright and Erica Frantz in POLITICO Magazine: n the coming weeks and months, after Donald Trump takes the oath of office for the second time, Democrats are going to take every opportunity to mobilize voters and… Continue reading

“Despite Trump’s Attacks, Republicans Made Big Gains in Mail Voting”

January 12, 2025, 12:16 pmabsentee ballotsRick Hasen

NYT: Republicans made almost universal gains in mail voting during the 2024 election, eroding a key Democratic advantage in nearly every state that tracks party registration, according to a data analysis by The New York Times. The Republican rise in… Continue reading

“Jack Smith, Who Led Prosecutions of Trump, Resigns”

January 12, 2025, 7:53 amDepartment of Justice, election subversion riskRick Hasen

NYT: Jack Smith, the special counsel who brought two failed federal prosecutions against President-elect Donald J. Trump, resigned this week, according to a footnote buried in court papers — a remarkably muted conclusion to a fight that redefined the nation’s… Continue reading

“In North Carolina, Republicans Try to Reverse a Supreme Court Election Loss”

January 10, 2025, 3:29 pmchicanery, judicial electionsRick Hasen

NYT: Judge Griffin’s protest includes two arguments against counting a few thousand ballots cast by overseas voters that one Republican justice said this week may have merit. But its centerpiece is a claim that some 60,000 voters in the Supreme… Continue reading

Fourth Circuit Sets Expedited Briefing Schedule in North Carolina Supreme Court Election Dispute, But Does Not Issue Any Orders for Now

January 10, 2025, 2:36 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

Here is the order (via Democracy Docket). As things stand on the question of removing this case to federal court, the case for now remains before the North Carolina Supreme Court, which would be deciding an issue relating to the… Continue reading

“Trump Inauguration, Awash in Cash, Runs Out of Perks for Big Donors”

January 10, 2025, 2:22 pmcampaign finance, campaigns, conflict of interest lawsRick Hasen

NYT: President-elect Donald J. Trump’s inaugural committee is no longer selling tickets for major donors to attend his swearing-in and accompanying private events in Washington, according to five people briefed on the conversations. The committee has raised over $170 million,… Continue reading

“Rudy Giuliani held in contempt for second time this week”

January 10, 2025, 2:02 pmfraudulent fraud squadRick Hasen

Politico: A federal judge has held Rudy Giuliani in contempt for continuing to falsely accuse two Georgia women of election fraud in 2020, breaching a court order against further attacking them after the pair won a $148 million defamation suit… Continue reading

“Inside Mark Zuckerberg’s Sprint to Remake Meta for the Trump Era”

January 10, 2025, 1:59 pmcheap speechRick Hasen

NYT: Mark Zuckerberg kept the circle of people who knew his thinking small. Last month, Mr. Zuckerberg, the chief executive of Meta, tapped a handful of top policy and communications executives and others to discuss the company’s approach to online… Continue reading

“Fox Corp must face Smartmatic $2.7 billion defamation claim”

January 10, 2025, 9:16 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Reuters: Fox Corp (FOXA.O), opens new tab, the parent of Fox News Network, failed to convince a New York state appeals court to dismiss a defamation claim in electronic voting systems company Smartmatic’s $2.7 billion lawsuit over the network’s… Continue reading

“Trump sentenced to penalty-free ‘unconditional discharge’ in hush money case”

January 10, 2025, 7:30 amcampaign finance, chicaneryRick Hasen

NBC News: The New York judge who presided over Donald Trump’s hush money case on Friday sentenced the president-elect to an “unconditional discharge,” meaning he is now a convicted felon in the eyes of New York state law but will… Continue reading

“Appeals Court Declines to Block Release of Special Counsel Report on Trump Cases”

January 10, 2025, 7:27 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

NYT: A federal appeals court said on Thursday that it would not block the Justice Department from releasing a report by the special counsel Jack Smith about the two now-closed investigations he conducted into President-elect Donald J. Trump. In a … Continue reading

“How a Phone Call Drew Alito Into a Trump Loyalty Squabble”

January 10, 2025, 7:25 amconflict of interest laws, Supreme CourtRick Hasen

NYT: The circumstances were extraordinary for another reason: Justice Alito was being drawn into a highly personalized effort by some Trump aides to blackball Republicans deemed insufficiently loyal to Mr. Trump from entering the administration, according to six people with… Continue reading

“Watchdog group seeks investigation into RFK Jr. for voting from a ‘sham’ address”

January 10, 2025, 7:06 amchicanery, voter registrationRick Hasen

AP: New York election officials are being urged to investigate whether Robert F. Kennedy Jr. committed voter fraud by casting his November ballot from a discredited address, as the former independent presidential candidate seeks Senate confirmation for a top public… Continue reading