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From Poll Tests To The Purcell Doctrine: Merrill V. Milligan And The Precarious Preservation Of Voting Rights, Charis Franklin
From Poll Tests To The Purcell Doctrine: Merrill V. Milligan And The Precarious Preservation Of Voting Rights, Charis Franklin
Fordham Law Review
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (“the Voting Rights Act”) is one of the primary vehicles by which plaintiffs receive injunctive relief ahead of elections. More specifically, § 2 of the Voting Rights Act allows plaintiffs to challenge gerrymandered maps before they are used in contentious elections. However, Justice Kavanaugh’s reframing of the Purcell doctrine in Merrill v. Milligan weakened § 2’s ability to interrupt the use of these maps. This Note discusses how Justice Kavanaugh’s interpretation of the Purcell doctrine recenters the doctrine on bureaucratic inconvenience rather than voter enfranchisement, restricting voters’ access to relief prior to elections. Furthermore, …
Fraudulent Vote Dilution, Jason Marisam
Fraudulent Vote Dilution, Jason Marisam
Fordham Law Voting Rights and Democracy Forum
In recent years, the Republican Party and conservative groups have brought lawsuits that advance a novel type of voting claim, which this Article calls fraudulent vote dilution. This claim asserts that an election rule is unconstitutional because it makes it too easy to cast fraudulent ballots that, when tabulated, will dilute the strength of valid and honest ballots. With the 2024 election nearing, the Republican Party may again test fraudulent vote dilution claims in court, as it seeks injunctions to make liberal election rules stricter in ways that make it harder for Democratic voters to cast ballots. This Article advances …
Spies, Trolls, And Bots: Combating Foreign Election Interference In The Marketplace Of Ideas, Nahal Kazemi
Spies, Trolls, And Bots: Combating Foreign Election Interference In The Marketplace Of Ideas, Nahal Kazemi
Fordham Law Voting Rights and Democracy Forum
Foreign disinformation operations on social media pose a significant and rapidly evolving risk, particularly when aimed at American elections. We must urgently and effectively address this form of election interference. This Article examines potential responses to those risks, through a review of the unique characteristics, both practical and legal, of political advertising on social media platforms. This Article analyzes proposed legislative responses to foreign disinformation, noting that no single proposed law to date adequately addresses the threats and challenges posed by foreign disinformation. This Article considers the election law landscape in which the proposed laws would operate. It evaluates the …
Petition For Redress Or Telephonic Harassment? When Calling The Government Is A Crime, Daniel Caballero
Petition For Redress Or Telephonic Harassment? When Calling The Government Is A Crime, Daniel Caballero
Fordham Law Voting Rights and Democracy Forum
The telephone has enabled significant enhancements in communication. However, it has also brought with it abuses. One of these is telephonic harassment. The states and the federal government have passed laws that criminalize this inappropriate and psychologically harmful use of telephones. This Article assumes that these laws are constitutional when the caller harasses an ordinary citizen. But the First Amendment protects the right to petition the government for redress of grievances. So, what happens when the caller is both petitioning the government and intending to harass a government official? Does the First Amendment protect telephonic harassment of a public official? …
Aligning The Stars: Institutional Convergence As Social Change, Raymond H. Brescia
Aligning The Stars: Institutional Convergence As Social Change, Raymond H. Brescia
Fordham Law Review
In a democracy, in which the legal and constitutional systems should reflect popular will and individual and collective self-determination are the engines through which those systems are realized, what are the means by which individuals, organizations, and social movements might bring about meaningful and sustainable social change that makes that society more just, more inclusive, and more equitable? A common understanding of how social change happens, and who can bring about that change, is represented in an oft-quoted phrase, attributed to Margaret Mead: “Never doubt that a small group of committed people can change the world: Indeed, it is the …