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Full-Text Articles in Election Law
Third-Party And Independent Presidential Candidates: The Need For A Runoff Mechanism, Edward B. Foley
Third-Party And Independent Presidential Candidates: The Need For A Runoff Mechanism, Edward B. Foley
Fordham Law Review
Consider what 2016 might have looked like if this better electoral system had been in place. Bloomberg then could have entered the race without risking being a spoiler. In a three-way race—Bloomberg, Clinton, and Trump—Bloomberg might have fizzled out, leaving a two-way race between Clinton and Trump. Since that is essentially how the election ended up anyway, the country would have been no worse off for having had a chance to consider Bloomberg as an alternative. But suppose, however, with Trump’s candidacy spinning out of control in a series of unacceptable comments (as it appeared to do in early August),11 …
Election Law And The Presidency: An Introduction And Overview, Jerry H. Goldfeder
Election Law And The Presidency: An Introduction And Overview, Jerry H. Goldfeder
Fordham Law Review
Americans now fully appreciate that presidential candidates are vying for a majority of the Electoral College votes, rather than the individual votes of constituents. Modern campaigns are organized around this goal, and commentators are focused on this reality. As a result, there has been an increased cry to reform the electoral process. After all, if every other public official in the land is elected by receiving more votes than their competitors, why should the President of the United States be elected in this apparently undemocratic fashion? The process appears even more unusual in that electors are chosen pursuant to state …
Ramshackle Federalism: America’S Archaic And Dysfunctional Presidential Election System, Anthony J. Gaughan
Ramshackle Federalism: America’S Archaic And Dysfunctional Presidential Election System, Anthony J. Gaughan
Fordham Law Review
Accordingly, this Article proposes five sensible and achievable reforms to modernize the presidential election system. Each requires Congress and the federal government to play a much more proactive role in the presidential election system. The Constitution may be founded on federalist principles, but excessive decentralization is not serving us well in presidential election administration. In an age of tumultuous and accelerating change, the presidential election system must be modernized to meet the needs of twenty-first century America.
Rethinking Presidential Eligibility, Eugene D. Mazo
Rethinking Presidential Eligibility, Eugene D. Mazo
Fordham Law Review
Many aspiring American Presidents have had their candidacies challenged for failing to meet the Constitution’s eligibility requirements. Although none of these challenges have ever been successful, they have sapped campaigns of valuable resources and posed a threat to several ambitious men. This Article examines several notable presidential eligibility challenges and explains why they have often been unsuccessful. The literature on presidential eligibility traditionally has focused on the Eligibility Clause, which enumerates the age, residency, and citizenship requirements that a President must satisfy before taking office. By contrast, very little of it examines how a challenge to one’s candidacy impacts a …
Reforming The Contested Convention: Rethinking The Presidential Nomination Process, Michael T. Morley
Reforming The Contested Convention: Rethinking The Presidential Nomination Process, Michael T. Morley
Fordham Law Review
The presidential nomination process could be substantially improved through a few minor tweaks that would reduce unnecessary uncertainty, bolster its democratic underpinnings, and improve the connections among its various components. First, certain fundamental rules governing national conventions should be determined well in advance of the presidential nominating process, before any primaries or caucuses are held or delegates selected, and not be subject to change or suspension at the convention itself. Second, parties should enhance the democratic moorings of their national conventions by requiring presidential candidates to win a greater number of presidential preference votes to be placed into nomination. Third, …
“Natural Born” Disputes In The 2016 Presidential Election, Derek T. Muller
“Natural Born” Disputes In The 2016 Presidential Election, Derek T. Muller
Fordham Law Review
The 2016 presidential election brought forth new disputes concerning the definition of “natural born Citizen.” The most significant challenges surrounded the eligibility of Senator Ted Cruz, born in Canada to a Cuban father and an American mother. Unlike challenges to President Barack Obama’s eligibility, which largely turned on conspiratorial facts, challenges to Cruz’s eligibility turned principally on the law and garnered more serious attention concerning a somewhat cryptic constitutional clause. Understandably, much attention focused on the definition of “natural born citizen” and whether candidates like Cruz qualified. Administrative challenges and litigation in court revealed deficiencies in the procedures for handling …
Does The Constitution Provide More Ballot Access Protection For Presidential Elections Than For U.S. House Elections?, Richard Winger
Does The Constitution Provide More Ballot Access Protection For Presidential Elections Than For U.S. House Elections?, Richard Winger
Fordham Law Review
Both the U.S. Constitution and The Federalist Papers suggest that voters ought to have more freedom to vote for the candidate of their choice for the U.S. House of Representatives than they do for the President or the U.S. Senate. Yet, strangely, for the last thirty-three years, the U.S. Supreme Court and lower courts have ruled that the Constitution gives voters more freedom to vote for the candidate of their choice in presidential elections than in congressional elections. Also, state legislatures, which have been writing ballot access laws since 1888, have passed laws that make it easier for minor-party and …
Time To End Presidential Caucuses, Sean J. Wright
Time To End Presidential Caucuses, Sean J. Wright
Fordham Law Review
Following the 2016 election cycle, there will be a great opportunity to implement reform. A major change should be to move away from presidential caucuses. They persist with, in the words of John Oliver, “complex, opaque rules.” These complex rules, which include participating in person for over an hour, negatively impacts participation in the electoral process. For example, in 2012, “participation rates in the Republican Party’s caucuses averaged 3 percent.” 3 percent. Compellingly, PolitiFact has observed that “[c]aucuses and delegate math can be incredibly confusing, and the arcane party structures don’t reflect how most people assume presidential selection works.” Yet, …
Beyond Citizens United, Nicholas Almendares, Catherine Hafer
Beyond Citizens United, Nicholas Almendares, Catherine Hafer
Fordham Law Review
The doctrine announced in Citizens United rendered most efforts to regulate campaign financing unconstitutional. We argue, however, that the doctrine allows for a novel approach to the concerns inherent in campaign financing that does not directly infringe on political speech, because it operates later in the process, after the election. This approach allows us to address a broad range of these issues and to do so with legal tools that are readily available. We describe two applications of our approach in this Article. First, we argue that courts should use a modified rational basis review when a law implicates the …
The Hatch Act Modernization Act: Putting The Government Back In Politics, Shannon D. Azzaro
The Hatch Act Modernization Act: Putting The Government Back In Politics, Shannon D. Azzaro
Fordham Urban Law Journal
No abstract provided.
A National Model Faces New Challenges: The New York City Campaign Finance System And The 2013 Elections, Janos Marton
A National Model Faces New Challenges: The New York City Campaign Finance System And The 2013 Elections, Janos Marton
Fordham Urban Law Journal
No abstract provided.
Empowering Small Donors: New York City’S Multiple Match Public Financing As A Model For A Post-Citizens United World, Amy Loprest, Bethany Perskie
Empowering Small Donors: New York City’S Multiple Match Public Financing As A Model For A Post-Citizens United World, Amy Loprest, Bethany Perskie
Fordham Urban Law Journal
No abstract provided.
Dark Money Rises: Federal And State Attempts To Rein In Undisclosed Campaign-Related Spending, Kristy Eagan
Dark Money Rises: Federal And State Attempts To Rein In Undisclosed Campaign-Related Spending, Kristy Eagan
Fordham Urban Law Journal
No abstract provided.
Campaign Finance Advisory Opinions At The State Level, Allen Dickerson, Zac Morgan
Campaign Finance Advisory Opinions At The State Level, Allen Dickerson, Zac Morgan
Fordham Urban Law Journal
No abstract provided.
Introduction, Martin E. Connor
The Public’S Right To Know Versus Compelled Speech: What Does Social Science Research Tell Us About The Benefits And Costs Of Campaign Finance Disclosure In Non-Candidate Elections?, Dick Carpenter, Jeffrey Milyo
The Public’S Right To Know Versus Compelled Speech: What Does Social Science Research Tell Us About The Benefits And Costs Of Campaign Finance Disclosure In Non-Candidate Elections?, Dick Carpenter, Jeffrey Milyo
Fordham Urban Law Journal
No abstract provided.
Saving Democracy: A Blueprint For Reform In The Post-Citizens United Era, Jocelyn Benson
Saving Democracy: A Blueprint For Reform In The Post-Citizens United Era, Jocelyn Benson
Fordham Urban Law Journal
Since the founding of our democracy, attempts to curb the influence of money in the political process consistently fall short of their goal. In fact, a growing number of cynics see campaign finance reform—or any effort to reduce the impact of money in the political process—as inherently doomed to fail. With the recent dearth of meaningful campaign finance reform on the federal level in the post-Citizens United era, reform advocates must look to the states to explore and enact changes to the law that will promote a healthier role for money in politics. This Article reviews efforts to reform government …
When “Testing The Waters” Tests The Limits Of Coordination Restrictions: Revising Fec Regulations To Limit Pre-Candidacy Coordination, Marc E. Klepner
When “Testing The Waters” Tests The Limits Of Coordination Restrictions: Revising Fec Regulations To Limit Pre-Candidacy Coordination, Marc E. Klepner
Fordham Law Review
During the preliminary stages of the 2016 presidential election, many prospective candidates took an active role in the Super PACs that would eventually support them after they became candidates. The regulatory system in place provides clear restrictions on Super PACs’ abilities to coordinate with candidates; however, what is less clear is whether such regulations restrict the behavior of individuals during pre-candidacy, known under Federal Election Commission (FEC) regulations as the “testing-the-waters” phase. This Note gives an overview of the laws and regulations governing Super PACs, as well as the regulations and FEC guidance concerning when an individual becomes a candidate. …