“Trial over referendum on Missouri’s gerrymandered congressional map delayed again”

redistricting, referendum

The Missouri Independent reports:

A new political action committee funded by the national Republican Party won a delay Thursday in a trial over the effort to force a statewide vote on Missouri’s gerrymandered congressional district map.

…

The case postponed on Thursday is one of six — five in state courts, one in federal court — focused on the September special session. One case, challenging the authority for the special session, has been decided at the trial court level and is under appeal.

Another, questioning whether lawmakers had the power to revise districts without new census data, was heard on Wednesday. A hearing in the federal case, which attempts to win a decision that congressional redistricting maps are protected from citizen referendum petitions by the federal Constitution, is scheduled for Nov. 25 in St. Louis.

In the case postponed Thursday, People Not Politicians is arguing that the right to seek a referendum on any law is triggered when lawmakers take a final vote on a bill. The committee is suing Secretary of State Denny Hoskins, who rejected petition forms because Gov. Mike Kehoe had not signed the redistricting legislation.

Kehoe called lawmakers into special session in September at the insistence of President Donald Trump in a bid to give Republicans seven instead of six of Missouri’s eight congressional seats.

Under the bill scheduled to take effect Dec. 12, Missourians would vote next year in revised districts. The new Missouri map targets the Kansas City-based 5th District, held by Democratic U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, to flip to the Republican Party.

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“Nevada Supreme Court sends ‘fake electors’ case back to Clark County”

election subversion risk

AP:

The yearslong case against six Nevada Republicans who were accused of submitting a bogus certificate that falsely declared President Donald Trump the winner of the state’s 2020 presidential election has been sent back to Clark County, where a jury is more likely to rule against them.

The opinion released Thursday from the Nevada Supreme Court reverses an earlier decision from a state judge who dismissed the case after ruling Clark County was the wrong venue for the case because the alleged crimes had occurred elsewhere in the state. Clark County is home to Las Vegas and leans Democratic.

The higher court’s decision to let the case move forward marks a rare win for swing-state efforts to prosecute so-called fake electors who tried to keep Trump in the White House after he lost to Joe Biden in 2020. In Michigan, a judge recently dismissed charges against 15 Republicans who had been charged by that state’s Democratic attorney general, Dana Nessel. The dismissal came after a judge in Arizona sent the fake electors case there back to the grand jury for fuller instructions about what federal law requires.

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“New prosecutor to take on Georgia election case against Trump and others”

election subversion risk

AP:

 A longtime prosecutor announced he will take over the Georgia election interference case against President Donald Trump and others, after Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis was removed from the case and no one else wanted the job.

The nonpartisan Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia was tasked with finding someone to lead the case after Willis was disqualified over an “appearance of impropriety” created by a romantic relationship with the special prosecutor she’d chosen to lead it. The organization’s executive director, Pete Skandalakis, said Friday that he would take the case on himself.

“Several prosecutors were contacted and, while all were respectful and professional, each declined the appointment,” Skandalakis said in an emailed statement.

While it is unlikely that any action against Trump could proceed while he is the sitting president, there are 14 other people still facing charges in the case, including former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and former New York mayor and Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani….

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“A New Litmus Test For Republicans Running for Senate: Ending The Filibuster”

legislation and legislatures

NOTUS:

Republicans running in Senate primaries have a new litmus test for who the Trumpiest candidate is: Do you support nuking the filibuster?

President Donald Trump has repeatedly called on Senate Republicans to abolish the filibuster — something that would require support from a majority of senators. Trump also made this push during his first term, but his efforts now have been significantly more intense.

Republican Senate leadership has been adamantly against using the so-called “nuclear option” to end the 60-vote threshold for most legislation, and much of the conference is as well. But the 42-day government shutdown made Trump more aggressive in telling Republicans to change the rules to allow for a simple majority vote.

There currently aren’t enough Republicans in the Senate who support the nuclear option, but that could change in 2026. A NOTUS survey of Republican Senate candidates across the country found that, in most cases, there is at least openness to abolishing the filibuster — if not outright support to do so….

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“Michigan Republicans ask Justice Department to monitor next year’s elections”

Department of Justice, election administration

Michigan Public:

A group of 22 Republican state lawmakers sent a letter Thursday asking the U.S. Department of Justice to supervise Michigan’s elections next year.

The letter escalates ongoing tension between legislative Republicans and Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson over the conduct of past and future elections in Michigan.

The letter addressed to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, an appointee of President Donald Trump, argues that Benson will be supervising one or more elections where she will also be a candidate as she seeks the Democratic nomination for governor.

“This creates an inherent and unavoidable conflict of interest, as Secretary Benson will be administering an election in which she has a direct personal stake in the outcome,” says the letter. “Such a situation risks compromising the impartiality required for fair election oversight and demands external federal scrutiny to maintain public trust.”

The letter also attacks Benson’s management of elections and maintaining voter rolls. She and her office have been the target of subpoenas from the GOP-led House Oversight Committee.

It is not unusual for Michigan secretaries of state to have a hand in elections where they appear on the ballot. Benson, for example, supervised the election where she won her second term.

Her Republican predecessor, Ruth Johnson, was in charge of elections when she won her second term as secretary of state and her first term in the Michigan Senate. Johnson (R-Groveland Township) is one the signers of the letter to the DOJ.

Benson’s communications director said Michigan elections are safeguarded by a system that relies heavily on 1,600 local clerks of both major political parties as well as thousands of observers, including federal monitors.

“Yet by pouring gasoline on our democracy and asking the DOJ to light a match, these lawmakers ignore these truths,” said Benson Chief Communications Officer Angela Benander in email to Michigan Public Radio…..

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“GardnerFest: A Festschrift in Honor of Jim Gardner”

election law biz, theory

A fitting event today for the great Jim Gardner, whose scholarship is exceeded only by his decency and generosity as a colleague. I’m sorry to miss this:

Jim Gardner is a distinguished scholar of constitutional law, election law, and comparative law whose work has shaped the field for more than three decades.  The author of six books and more than 60 articles, he is among the most prolific and influential voices in public law.  A gifted political theorist, an inspiring teacher, and a dedicated academic administrator, Jim has exemplified the life of an engaged scholar.

As he enters emeritus status after an extraordinary career, GardnerFest celebrates his contributions to election law.  We have gathered a distinguished group of academics to honor his work, reflect on his influence, and meditate on the insights that have defined his scholarship.   

Roundtable One: Illiberalism, Populism, Ethnonationalism, and Authoritarianism: Assessing the State of American Democracy

  • Discussion Leaders
    • Rebecca Green
    • Rick Pildes
    • Nick Stephanopoulos
  • Primary Texts:
    • The Illiberalism of American Election Law (RG)
    • Illiberalism and Authoritarianism in the American States (RP)
    • Democracy without A Net? (NS)

Roundtable Two: What Campaigns Are For in 21st-century American Democracy?

  • Discussion Leaders
    • Sam Issacharoff
    • Doug Spencer
    • Spencer Overton
  • Primary Text:
    • What Are Campaigns For? The Role of Persuasion in Electoral Law & Politics

Roundtable Three: Federalism, Parties, and Judicial Review: The Limits of Structural Restraints?

  • Discussion Leaders
    • Jacob Eisler
    • Gene Mazo
    • Michael Kang
  • Primary Texts
    • The Myth of State Autonomy (JE)
    • Federalism and the Limits of Subnational Political Heterogeneity (GM)
    • Can Party Politics be Virtuous? (MK)

Concluding Roundtable: Digital Communication and Democratic Backsliding: The Rise of Deilocracy

  • Presenter
    • Jim Gardner
  • Discussion Leaders
    • Guy Charles
    • Luis Fuentes-Rohwer
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