Election Law Commons^™

Russia Today, Cyberterrorists Tomorrow: U.S. Failure To Prepare Democracy For Cyberspace, Jonathan F. Lancelot

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

This paper is designed to expose vulnerabilities within the US electoral system, the use of cyberspace to exploit weaknesses within the information assurance strategies of the democratic and republican party organizations, and deficiencies within the social media communications and voting machine exploits. A brief history of discriminatory practices in voting rights and voting access will be set as the foundation for the argument that the system is vulnerable in the cyber age, and the need for reform at the local, state and national levels will be emphasized. The possibility of a foreign nation-state influencing the outcome of an election by …

Fundamental, Unequivocal, Yet Unreliable: The Interplay Of Voting, Electronic Voting Systems, And Trade Secrets In Today's Interconnected World, Burns Marlow

Journal of Intellectual Property Law

No abstract provided.

A New Voting Rights Act For A New Century: How Liberalizing The Voting Rights Act’S Bailout Provisions Can Help Pass The Voting Rights Advancement Act Of 2017, Mario Q. Fitzgerald

Brooklyn Law Review

The U.S. Supreme Court struck down the coverage formula of the Voting Rights Act (VRA) in Shelby County. v. Holder in 2013. Members of Congress have attempted to renew the VRA with an updated coverage formula through the Voting Rights Advancement Acts of 2015 and of 2017. Unfortunately, Congressional Republicans have not supported either bill. Even if passed in its current form, the Supreme Court is likely to strike down the Voting Rights Advancement Act of 2017 (VRAA) for violating the principle of “equal sovereignty between the States” as set forth by the Court in Shelby County. Therefore, this note …

State Court Litigation: The New Front In The War Against Partisan Gerrymandering, Charlie Stewart

Michigan Law Review Online

Partisan gerrymandering is the process of drafting state and congressional districts in a manner that gives one political party an advantage over another. The end goal is simple: help your party win more seats or protect existing ones. The tactic is as old as the United States. In 1788, Patrick Henry convinced the Virginia state legislature to draw the 5th Congressional District to pit his rival James Madison against James Monroe. The term “gerrymander” itself is a hybrid: in 1810, democratic Governor Gerry signed a partisan redistricting plan into law—one that contained a district that infamously looked like a salamander. …

The 2016 Voting Wars: From Bad To Worse, Richard L. Hasen

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Election Emergencies: Voting In The Wake Of Natural Disasters And Terrorist Attacks, Michael T. Morley

Scholarly Publications

Our electoral system is vulnerable to terrorist attacks, natural disasters, and other calamities that can render polling places inaccessible, trigger mass evacuations, or disrupt governmental operations to the point that conducting an election becomes impracticable. Many states lack “election emergency” laws that empower officials to adequately respond to these crises. As a result, courts are frequently called upon to adjudicate the consequences of election emergencies as a matter of constitutional law, often applying vague, subjective, ad hoc standards in rushed, politically charged proceedings. This Article examines the legal steps various government actors took in response to terrorist attacks and natural …

The Constitution Comes To The County Unit: Georgia’S State Level Electoral College, David Crockett

Center for the Advancement of Public Integrity (Inactive)

As Prof. Akhil Amar outlines in his work, America’s Constitution: A Biography, the Philadelphia Plan and its outline of a stronger executive power inspired replication on the state level. States from Massachusetts to Georgia strengthened the power of their governors, with many granting them independent elections and a veto pen. Over time, most states replicated the Federal terms of office, and currently all but two states hold quadrennial gubernatorial elections balanced with biennial or other staggered legislative terms. Yet, even as many states replicated features of Article II, from the veto to the establishment of “supreme executive power,” nearly …

Mexico's 2018 Election, Irving W. Levinson

History Faculty Publications

On July 1, 2018, Mexico held elections for the presidency, for all seats in the federal Chamber of Deputies, and for one third of the seats in the federal Senate.

(At Least) Thirteen Ways Of Looking At Election Lies, Helen Norton

Publications

Lies take many forms. Because lies vary so greatly in their motivations and consequences (among many other qualities), philosophers have long sought to catalog them to help make sense of their diversity and complexity. Legal scholars too have classified lies in various ways to explain why we punish some and protect others. This symposium essay offers yet another taxonomy of lies, focusing specifically on election lies — that is, lies told during or about elections. We can divide and describe election lies in a wide variety of ways: by speaker, by motive, by subject matter, by audience, by means of …

Gerrymandering And The Constitutional Norm Against Government Partisanship, Michael S. Kang

Michigan Law Review

This Article challenges the basic premise in the law of gerrymandering that partisanship is a constitutional government purpose at all. The central problem, Justice Scalia once explained in Vieth v. Jubilerer, is that partisan gerrymandering becomes unconstitutional only when it “has gone too far,” giving rise to the intractable inquiry into “how much is too much.” But the premise that partisanship is an ordinary and lawful purpose, articulated confidently as settled law and widely understood as such, is largely wrong as constitutional doctrine. The Article surveys constitutional law to demonstrate the vitality of an important, if implicit norm against …

Alternative Dispute Resolution For Election Access Issues In A Post-Voting Rights Act Section 5 Landscape, Casey Millburg

Arbitration Law Review (2009 - Present)

No abstract provided.

Dilution Of The Black Vote: Revisiting The Oppressive Methods Of Voting Rights Restoration For Ex-Felons, Tara A. Jackson

University of Miami Race & Social Justice Law Review

No abstract provided.

Election Slapps: Effective At Suppressing Political Participation And Giving Anti-Slapp Statutes The Slip, Leah Mcgowan Kelly

Maine Law Review

Most states have established an intricate network of rules and procedures that independent candidates need to follow in order to get on the state’s ballot for the presidential election. If a candidate manages to make it onto a state’s ballot, most states also have a mechanism that allows almost anyone to challenge the process the candidate went through to get on the ballot. Citizens can challenge the candidate’s nomination petition, and then appeal the decision on the challenge at several different levels. An independent candidate running for national office can become embroiled in simultaneous petition challenges, and appeals, throughout the …

Aviram V. Minister Of Justice, Neal Hendel, Isaac Amit, Uzi Vogelman

Translated Opinions

A petition concerning whether the Knesset is required to ensure that a member of the opposition serves on the Judicial Selection Committee (hereinafter: the Committee) at all times. Background: The two Members of Knesset sitting on the Committee are elected by the Knesset by secret ballot. Since 1990, the Knesset has elected at least one Committee member from the ranks of the opposition. This was also the case in the last elections, with the election of MK Ilatov to the Committee. MK Ilatov was a meber of Yisrael Beitenu, which then sat in the opposition. Shortly thereafter, Yisrael Beitenu joined …

What Impact Is Felony Disenfranchisement Having On Hispanics In Florida?, Angel E. Sanchez

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This research produces original empirical estimates of Hispanics in Florida’s Dept. of Corrections (FDOC) and uses those estimates to measure the impact felony disenfranchisement is having on Hispanics in Florida. Research institutions find that data on Hispanics in the criminal justice system, particularly in Florida, is either lacking or inaccurate. This research addresses this problem by applying an optimal surname list method using Census Bureau data and Bayes Theorem to produce an empirical estimate of Hispanics in FDOC’s data. Using the Hispanic rate derived from the empirical FDOC analysis, the rate of Hispanics in the disenfranchised population is estimated. The …

Transforming Election Cybersecurity, David P. Fidler

Articles by Maurer Faculty

No abstract provided.

Turning Cash Into Votes: The Law And Economics Of Campaign Contributions, Brett Silverberg

University of Miami Business Law Review

As a result of the recent Citizens United decision and its “Super PAC” spawn, individuals, corporations, and unions are allowed to independently spend unlimited amounts to influence elections. The ramifications of the Citizens United ruling have seemingly had a grave impact on the 2016 Presidential Election. In addition to examining the laws—and their loopholes—of political campaign contributions, this Essay will also explore the economics of campaign contributions. Ultimately, there are two reasons as to why corporations provide such large sums of money: one is rent creation, which is the attempt to gain political favors for “special interests;” the second is …

Arbitrating Ballot Battles, Rebecca Green

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Clearing The Political Thicket: Why Political Gerrymandering For Partisan Advantage Is Unconstitutional, Michael Parsons

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

If I Go Crazy, Then Will You Still Call Me A Super Pac? How Enmeshment With Political Action Committees Makes Contribution Limits Enforceable On Independent Expenditure-Only Committees, Brian Greivenkamp

University of Cincinnati Law Review

No abstract provided.

Beyond Citizens United, Nicholas Almendares, Catherine Hafer

Articles by Maurer Faculty

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 …

Keeping Up With New Legal Titles, Tina M. Brooks

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

In this book review, Tina M. Brooks discusses Voters' Verdicts: Citizens, Campaigns, and Institutions in State Supreme Court Elections by Chris W. Bonneau and Damon M. Cann.

Is The Uniform Faithful Presidential Electors Act Constitutional?, Robert J. Delahunty

Cardozo Law Review de•novo

My topic is both timely and perennial: The Electoral College. More specifically, I will first discuss the constitutional problem known as the “Faithless Elector” and, then, I will attempt to solve such problem. My proposed solution is the Uniform Faithful Presidential Electors Act (UFPEA), a statute that several states have adopted.

On Commercial—And Corporate—Speech, Jonathan Weinberg

Marquette Law Review

none

Sins Of Omission: Abstention In Democratic Institutions, Grant M. Hayden

Faculty Journal Articles and Book Chapters

Assumptions regarding the effect of an abstention guide the theory and practice of abstention across the full range of democratic decisionmaking. Sometimes, however, these assumptions are false, and may prevent voters from achieving their objectives. This Article examines the effect that abstention has under common voting procedures, dispelling many assumptions that voters make about the effect of an abstention.

The Good American Legislator: Some Legal Process Perspectives And Possiblilities, Robert F. Blomquist

Akron Law Review

In this Article, I intend to sketch some theoretical attributes of the good American legislator...In Part I of the Article, I will discuss the original legal process jurisprudence of the 1940s and 1950s, and will attempt to tease out of this body of thought concepts that bear on defining the good American legislator. In Part II, I turn, successively, to the three offshoots of the original legal process material, written over the last twenty years: process formalists, process progressives and process pragmatists. I do this in order to uncover insights that might further our understanding of the good American legislator. …

Hopeful Losers? A Moral Case For Mixed Electoral Systems, Loren King

Political Science Faculty Publications

Liberal democracies encourage citizen participation and protect our freedoms, yet these regimes elect politicians and decide important issues with electoral and legislative systems that are less inclusive than other arrangements. Some citizens inevitably have more influence than others. Is this a problem? Yes, because similarly just but more inclusive systems are possible. Political theorists and philosophers should be arguing for particular institutional forms, with particular geographies, consistent with justice.

Les démocraties libérales encouragent la participation citoyenne et protègent nos libertés. Pourtant, ces régimes élisent des politiciens et décident de problèmes importants via les systèmes électoral et législatif, qui sont moins …

In All Fairness: Using Political Broadcast Access Doctrine To Tailor Public Campaign Fund Matching, Andrew V. Moshirnia, Aaron T. Dozeman

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Recent United States Supreme Court decisions have undermined the viability of campaign public financing systems, a vital tool for fighting political corruption. First, Citizens United v. FEC allowed privately financed candidates and independent groups to spend unlimited amounts of money on campaigning. Publicly financed candidates now risk being vastly outspent. Second, Arizona Free Enterprise Club’s Freedom PAC v. Bennett invalidated a proportional fund matching system whereby privately financed candidates’ or independent groups’ spending triggered funds to publicly funded candidates. These decisions effectuate a libertarian speech doctrine: all speakers, individual or corporate, must be absolutely unburdened. To comply with this approach, …

Paths Of Resistance To Our Imperial First Amendment, Bertrall L. Ross Ii

Michigan Law Review

In the campaign finance realm, we are in the age of the imperial First Amendment. Over the past nine years, litigants bringing First Amendment claims against campaign finance regulations have prevailed in every case in the Supreme Court. A conservative core of five justices has developed virtually categorical protections for campaign speech and has continued to expand those protections into domains that states once had the authority to regulate. As the First Amendment’s empire expands, other values give way. Four key cases from this era illustrate the reach of this imperial First Amendment. In Wisconsin Right to Life, Inc. v. …

Election Law—Introduction, Jessica A. Levinson

Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review

No abstract provided.