[EL] ELB News and Commentary 8/18/14

Mon Aug 18 08:32:10 PDT 2014

Sean,

Whether municipal elections have been on- or off-cycle (with federal
elections) has varied a lot over space and time. Election timing is an old
tool for playing with turnout by those less disposed to turn out.

I don't have a list of that variation for you right now, but just off the
top of my head, DC is one major city with on-cycle elections. Granted, the
April primary is the decisive round... for now.

Here are some relevant cites:

1) From Seth Masket:
http://www.mischiefsoffaction.com/2014/08/off-cycle-elections-and-parties.html

2) From Sarah Anzia:
http://www.amazon.com/Timing-Turnout-Off-Cycle-Elections-Organized/dp/022608681X/ref=la_B00E92IYJE_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1408375612&sr=1-1

3) From Jessica Trounstine:
http://www.amazon.com/Political-Monopolies-American-Cities-Reformers-ebook/dp/B00EHQIOVU/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1408375633&sr=1-1&keywords=trounstine+political+monopolies

Jack

On Mon, Aug 18, 2014 at 11:14 AM, Sean Parnell <
sean at impactpolicymanagement.com> wrote:

> The issue of white dominance of the political system of Ferguson, MO is an
> interesting one. ThinkProgress had an interesting (and I think reasonable)
> assessment (
> http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2014/08/18/3472278/this-is-the-most-important-reform-ferguson-can-enact-to-prevent-another-standoff/)
> that provides a bit more information than Matt Yglesias. It all boils down,
> apparently, to the fact that Ferguson elects its local government in April
> of odd-numbered years. Here’s what ThinkProgress concludes:
>
>
>
> *So the solution to the fact that Ferguson’s black majority is nearly
> unrepresented in its government could be as simple as rescheduling its
> municipal elections so that they are held in November of even-numbered
> years — the same time that federal elections are held.*
>
>
>
> I don’t have any strong feelings one way or the other on this, but I am
> curious if any other municipal government in the country currently holds
> elections on the same day as federal elections? I know many (most? all?)
> counties do, but to the best of my recollection I’ve never lived in an area
> where municipal elections (or school board) were held on the same day as
> federal elections. Anybody have any insights on this?
>
>
>
> Sean Parnell
>
> President
>
> Impact Policy Management, LLC
>
> 6411 Caleb Court
>
> Alexandria, VA  22315
>
> 571-289-1374 (c)
>
> sean at impactpolicymanagement.com
>
>
>
> *From:* law-election-bounces at department-lists.uci.edu [mailto:
> law-election-bounces at department-lists.uci.edu] *On Behalf Of *Rick Hasen
> *Sent:* Monday, August 18, 2014 11:03 AM
> *To:* law-election at UCI.edu
> *Subject:* [EL] ELB News and Commentary 8/18/14
>
>
> The Perry Indictment <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64388>
>
> Posted on August 18, 2014 7:59 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64388> by
>  *Rick Hasen* <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
>
> You can read it here.
> <http://www.scribd.com/doc/236936143/Rick-Perry-Indictment>
>
> Eugene Volokh analyzed count I
> <http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/08/16/does-a-governor-have-custody-or-possession-of-funds-the-legislature-wants-to-appropriate-in-a-bill-that-he-vetoes/>
>  and count II
> <http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/08/16/is-the-indictment-of-texas-gov-rick-perry-inconsistent-with-a-texas-court-of-appeals-precedent-as-to-the-coercion-count/>
>  separately.
>
> I’ve written to put the indictment into a broader context of the
> criminalization of politics <http://t.co/K5yWcNzt9E>.
>
> I am scheduled to be on MSNBC’s The Cycle today at 3:20 pm pacific/12:20
> pm eastern to talk about this. As always TV appearances on these news shows
> are always tentative.
>
> [image: Share]
> <http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D64388&title=The%20Perry%20Indictment&description=>
>
> Posted in Uncategorized <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>
> “How whites have retained political power in Ferguson, and why they’ll
> lose it soon” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64386>
>
> Posted on August 18, 2014 7:52 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64386> by
>  *Rick Hasen* <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
>
> Matt Yglesias writes
> <http://www.vox.com/2014/8/18/6029141/why-ferguson-government-is-so-white?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=ezraklein&utm_content=monday>
>  for Vox.
>
> [image: Share]
> <http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D64386&title=%E2%80%9CHow%20whites%20have%20retained%20political%20power%20in%20Ferguson%2C%20and%20why%20they%E2%80%99ll%20lose%20it%20soon%E2%80%9D&description=>
>
> Posted in voting <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=31>
> “Empirically Measuring the Impact of Photo ID Over Time and Its Impact on
> Women” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64384>
>
> Posted on August 18, 2014 7:50 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64384> by
>  *Rick Hasen* <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
>
> Mike Pitts has posted this draft
> <http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2479500> on SSRN
> (forthcoming, *Indiana Law Review*).  Here is the abstract:
>
> *This article is part of a series of studies related to the impact of
> Indiana’s photo identification law during the two presidential election
> cycles at which it has been implemented — 2008 and 2012. This article
> tracks the number of provisional ballots cast and not counted because of a
> lack of voter identification at Indiana’s 2012 general election.
> Importantly, this article also addresses an argument against photo
> identification laws that has became more prominent in recent years — the
> idea that photo identification laws disparately disfranchise female voters.
> This article addresses that argument by tracking the gender of those
> persons who cast provisional ballots due to a lack of valid photo
> identification — something that does not seem to have been previously done
> anywhere in the literature. While the research presented here allows for
> several conclusions, the most important of those conclusions are as
> follows. First, Indiana’s photo identification law has a relatively small
> (in relation to the total number of ballots cast) overall actual
> disfranchising impact on the electorate. Second, Indiana’s photo
> identification law’s actual disfranchising impact seems to be headed in a
> downward direction when one compares data from the 2012 general election to
> the 2008 general election. Third, Indiana’s photo identification law
> appears to have a disparate impact on women.*
>
> Mike’s work is careful and important.  I look forward to reading this!
>
>
>
> [image: Share]
> <http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D64384&title=%E2%80%9CEmpirically%20Measuring%20the%20Impact%20of%20Photo%20ID%20Over%20Time%20and%20Its%20Impact%20on%20Women%E2%80%9D&description=>
>
> Posted in election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, The
> Voting Wars <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>, voter id
> <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=9>
> “Election Spending 2014: Nine Toss-Up Senate Races”
> <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64382>
>
> Posted on August 18, 2014 7:47 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64382> by
>  *Rick Hasen* <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
>
> Brennan Center
> <http://www.brennancenter.org/analysis/election-spending-2014-nine-toss-up-senate-races>
> :
>
> *With control of the Senate at play in the 2014 election, tight races have
> seen astronomical spending from outside groups. Even with almost three
> months left until Election Day, an analysis of outside spending in the nine
> most competitive Senate races found several trends. Like previous Brennan
> Center analyses
> <http://www.brennancenter.org/analysis/election-spending-2014-13-toss-house-districts>,
> we observed inadequate transparency and single-candidate spenders providing
> opportunities to avoid contribution limits. We also discovered two key
> findings:*
>
> *1.      **These nine Senate races have seen $72 million worth of
> independent expenditures thus far. As a point of comparison, in the 2010
> midterms, nonparty outside spending reached only $97 million — and that was
> for the whole election in all 37 Senate races. The highest levels of
> independent expenditures in our sample were seen in North Carolina, with
> $14 million, and Kentucky, with $12 million.*
>
> *2.      **The competitive Senate races also reveal a potential new trend
> — organizations that benefit a single candidate and hide their donors.
> These single-candidate, dark-money groups make it impossible to know
> whether candidate contributors are attempting to curry favor by also making
> large donations to candidate-specific spenders.*
>
> [image: Share]
> <http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D64382&title=%E2%80%9CElection%20Spending%202014%3A%20Nine%20Toss-Up%20Senate%20Races%E2%80%9D&description=>
>
> Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
> “Political Activity Limits and Tax Exemption: A Gordian’s Knot”
> <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64380>
>
> Posted on August 18, 2014 7:44 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64380> by
>  *Rick Hasen* <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
>
> Roger Colinvaux has posted this draft
> <http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2476435> on SSRN
> (forthcoming, *Virginia Tax Review*).  Here is the abstract:
>
> *The article considers the correct tax treatment of political activity by
> the tax system and discusses the problems that have arisen from political
> activity depending on whether the organization is a charity, a
> noncharitable exempt, or a political organization. The article then
> examines administrative and legislative options to the problems raised by
> political activity. Quantum-based solutions to the problem of political
> activity by noncharitable exempts do not provide a clear advantage over
> present law. Formally quantifying the “primarily” test would result in more
> certainty, but would also require that the Service be more, not less,
> involved in the regulation of political activity. If the policy goal is to
> curb political activity by noncharitable exempts, changing the test from
> “primarily” to something more restrictive like “substantially” or
> “exclusively” would be effective, but would create new categories of
> taxable nonprofits that are treated worse than political organizations for
> engaging in less political activity, which is irrational. Further, it is
> not clear, especially after the Citizens United decision, why as a matter
> of tax exemption the regulations decree that political activity may not
> further noncharitable exempt purposes. Before Citizens United, the
> political activity limits were not especially relevant, but at least helped
> to differentiate organization types. However, Citizens United largely
> rendered existing tax law limitations obsolete by making a new kind of
> multi-purpose organization possible. As a result, definitional political
> activity limits are no longer justified and should be eliminated, but only
> if the 527(f) tax on investment income remains vital and the differences in
> the disclosure regimes between political organizations and noncharitable
> exempts are erased. In addition, Congress should affirm that the gift tax
> does not apply with respect to political contributions, but also extend the
> income tax to transfers of appreciated property to noncharitable exempts.
> Further, Congress should acknowledge that the increase in political speech
> by noncharitable exempts will lead to abuse of charitable organizations,
> and take steps to prevent the laundering of independent expenditures
> through the charitable form. Congress also should recognize that Citizens
> United has led to a need to develop a new tax baseline for political
> activity conducted “for profit” or outside of section 527.*
>
> [image: Share]
> <http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D64380&title=%E2%80%9CPolitical%20Activity%20Limits%20and%20Tax%20Exemption%3A%20A%20Gordian%E2%80%99s%20Knot%E2%80%9D&description=>
>
> Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, tax law
> and election law <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=22>
> “Rob Richie: How Florida can hold elections in fair districts in 2014″
> <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64378>
>
> Posted on August 18, 2014 7:42 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64378> by
>  *Rick Hasen* <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
>
> Gainesville Sun oped.
> <http://www.gainesville.com/article/20140815/OPINION/140819673?Title=Rob-Richie-How-Florida-can-hold-elections-in-fair-districts-in-2014->
>
> [image: Share]
> <http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D64378&title=%E2%80%9CRob%20Richie%3A%20How%20Florida%20can%20hold%20elections%20in%20fair%20districts%20in%202014%E2%80%B3&description=>
>
> Posted in redistricting <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=6>
> “Trying to Ensure the Fundamental Right to Vote”
> <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64376>
>
> Posted on August 18, 2014 7:41 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64376> by
>  *Rick Hasen* <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
>
> NYT Letters to the editor
> <http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/18/opinion/trying-to-ensure-the-fundamental-right-to-vote.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss>from
> Rob Ritchie and Barry Feldman.
>
> [image: Share]
> <http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D64376&title=%E2%80%9CTrying%20to%20Ensure%20the%20Fundamental%20Right%20to%20Vote%E2%80%9D&description=>
>
> Posted in voting <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=31>
> “Black groups tell Supreme Court Ala. districts biased”
> <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64374>
>
> Posted on August 17, 2014 8:44 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64374> by
>  *Rick Hasen* <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
>
> Mary Troyan reports
> <http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/story/news/local/alabama/2014/08/17/black-groups-tell-supreme-court-ala-districts-biased/14190749/>
>  for Gannett: “The Alabama Legislature will be further racially polarized
> by new district boundaries that pack more black voters into certain
> districts than the law requires, state black political groups told the
> Supreme Court last week.”
>
>
>
> [image: Share]
> <http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D64374&title=%E2%80%9CBlack%20groups%20tell%20Supreme%20Court%20Ala.%20districts%20biased%E2%80%9D&description=>
>
> Posted in redistricting <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=6>, Voting
> Rights Act <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=15>
> “Arizona Free Enterprise Club violated election law”
> <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64372>
>
> Posted on August 17, 2014 7:50 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64372> by
>  *Rick Hasen* <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
>
> AP reports.
> <http://www.azfamily.com/news/Arizona-Free-Enterprise-Club-violated-election-law-271540271.html>
>
> [image: Share]
> <http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D64372&title=%E2%80%9CArizona%20Free%20Enterprise%20Club%20violated%20election%20law%E2%80%9D&description=>
>
> Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
> Jill LePore on Campaign Finance Reform, Corruption, Lessig, Teachout,
> Mutch, and Post <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64369>
>
> Posted on August 17, 2014 7:46 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=64369> by
>  *Rick Hasen* <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
>
> Here
> <http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:NqFUthMvNBoJ:www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/08/25/crooked-dead+%22buying+the+vote%22+mutch&cd=15&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us>,
> in the New Yorker.
>
> [image: Share]
> <http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D64369&title=Jill%20LePore%20on%20Campaign%20Finance%20Reform%2C%20Corruption%2C%20Lessig%2C%20Teachout%2C%20Mutch%2C%20and%20Post&description=>
>
> Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
>
> --
>
> 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://www.law.uci.edu/faculty/full-time/hasen/
>
> http://electionlawblog.org
>
>
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