[EL] ELB News and Commentary 10/18/12

Thu Oct 18 07:36:37 PDT 2012

    "The state of the U.S. election system: New report from MIT and
    Caltech notes gains in voting-machine technologies, but warns they
    could be cancelled out by errors introduced through mail and
    Internet voting." <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=41940>

Posted on October 18, 2012 7:33 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=41940> 
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Press release 
<http://web.mit.edu/press/2012/mit-caltech-voting-technology-report.html>: 
"When it comes to the integrity and accuracy of voting systems in the 
United States, the good news is that widespread technological upgrades 
have largely eliminated the voting-machine problems that were so evident 
when Florida's disputed recount determined the 2000 presidential 
election. The bad news is that some of those improvements in accuracy 
could be undermined by increases in early voting through the mail, which 
is turning out to be a relatively low-accuracy method of voting, 
according to a new research report 
<http://vote.caltech.edu/content/voting-what-has-changed-what-hasnt-what-needs-improvement> 
released by MIT and the California Institute of Technology."

Once I have a chance to read this report, I plan to blog more about it.  
Doug Chapin offers some early thoughts here 
<http://blog.lib.umn.edu/cspg/electionacademy/2012/10/_image_courtesy_of_votecaltech.php>, 
and promises more posts about it as well.

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Posted in election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, 
voting technology <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=40> | Comments Off

    "Interest Groups Inundate Northeast Ohio Race"
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=41937>

Posted on October 18, 2012 7:24 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=41937> 
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Roll Call reports 
<http://www.rollcall.com/issues/58_30/Interest-Groups-Inundate-Northeast-Ohio-Race-218298-1.html>.

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, 
campaigns <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=59> | Comments Off

    Ornstein on Sherman-Berman <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=41934>

Posted on October 18, 2012 7:22 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=41934> 
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Don't knock 
<http://www.rollcall.com/issues/58_30/Howard-Bermans-Travel-Should-Get-Credit-Not-Knocks-218273-1.html?pos=hbtxt> 
Berman's travels---commend them.

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Posted in Uncategorized <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1> | Comments Off

    "Munger Siblings Spend $54 Million to Sway California Vote"
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=41931>

Posted on October 18, 2012 7:14 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=41931> 
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Bloomberg reports 
<http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-12/munger-siblings-spend-54-million-to-sway-california-vote.html>.

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, direct 
democracy <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=62> | Comments Off

    "Husted will probe any voter intimidation"
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=41927>

Posted on October 17, 2012 8:52 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=41927> 
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Columbus Dispatch 
<http://dispatchpolitics.dispatch.com/content/blogs/the-daily-briefing/2012/10/17-october-2012---voter-intimidation.html>: 
"If Secretary of State Jon Husted becomes aware of voter intimidation in 
this year's election, he will act swifty to investigate and seek 
prosecution of any offenders, spokesman Matt McClellan said today. His 
comments came in response to a warning to Husted from the 10 Democratic 
Ohio senators about the activities of a Houston-based group, True The Vote."

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Posted in election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, 
The Voting Wars <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>, voting 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=31> | Comments Off

    "Fairfax Democrats worry GOP might taint vote process"
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=41924>

Posted on October 17, 2012 7:39 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=41924> 
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

/WaPo/'s Robert McCartney 
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/fairfax-democrats-worry-gop-might-taint-vote-process/2012/10/17/e0c6dde2-1891-11e2-8bfd-12e2ee90dcf2_story.html>: 
"A political and legal tussle is gaining force in Northern Virginia over 
guaranteeing a fair vote on Election Day. Fairfax County Democrats are 
complaining that Republican-appointed county elections officials are 
breaking or twisting some rules to help the GOP in the biggest 
jurisdiction in a key swing state....Democrats also worry that the 
process could be tainted because some top officials in the 
Republican-controlled county election apparatus have records as 
aggressive GOP partisans. In particular, Hans von Spakovsky, who is vice 
chairman of the Fairfax Electoral Board, is one of the nation's most 
prominent advocates of voter identification laws strongly opposed by 
Democrats."

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Posted in election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, 
fraudulent fraud squad <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=8>, The Voting 
Wars <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60> | Comments Off

    Sad News: Texas Senator Mario Gallegos Has Died
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=41921>

Posted on October 17, 2012 7:34 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=41921> 
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Following up on this post, <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=41580>Senator 
Gallegos has passed away.

The Texas Tribune 
<http://www.texastribune.org/texas-senate/texas-senate/hold-seat-democrats-must-vote-late-senator/> 
explains what it means for the election: "State Sen. Mario Gallegos 
<http://www.texastribune.org/directory/mario-gallegos-jr/> Jr. died 
Tuesday after a long illness, just days before voters begin filling in 
ballots that include the Houston Democrat's name. So starts a 
cringe-inducing change of power that occurs not when an officeholder 
loses a re-election bid, but when one dies shortly before Election Day 
and only days before the start of early voting. It's too late to replace 
Gallegos on the ballot. If the late senator wins next month, his party 
has a chance to hold his seat in the state Senate. Should voters instead 
turn to the live Republican on the ballot --- Rasuali Bray --- Gallegos' 
death could figure into partisan control of the Texas Legislature."

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Posted in Uncategorized <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1> | Comments Off

-- 
Rick Hasen
Chancellor's Professor of Law and Political Science
UC Irvine School of Law
401 E. Peltason Dr., Suite 1000
Irvine, CA 92697-8000
949.824.3072 - office
949.824.0495 - fax
rhasen at law.uci.edu
http://law.uci.edu/faculty/page1_r_hasen.html
http://electionlawblog.org
Now available: The Voting Wars: http://amzn.to/y22ZTv

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