[EL] ELB News and Commentary 2/16/17

Wed Feb 15 21:24:29 PST 2017

“‘Soft Money’ Case a Test for Trump, Supreme Court”<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=91140>
Posted on February 15, 2017 9:17 pm<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=91140> by Rick Hasen<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Bloomberg BNA:<http://news.bna.com/mpdm/MPDMWB/split_display.adp?fedfid=105706366&vname=mpebulallissues&jd=a0k8w7p5d2&split=0>
A filing due next month in a key Supreme Court case could provide the first indication of whether the Trump administration will seek to uphold or challenge longstanding campaign finance laws that restrict unlimited “soft money” contributions to political parties (Republican Party of Louisiana v. Federal Election Commission, U.S., No. 16-865, jurisdictional statement filed 1/6/17).
The Supreme Court has set a deadline of March 13 for the Justice Department to file a response to a jurisdictional statement seeking review of a lower-court decision upholding current Federal Election Commission limits on party soft money. The response is expected to be filed on behalf of the FEC by the Office of U.S. Solicitor General, now headed by Acting Solicitor General Noel Francisco.
President Donald Trump hasn’t yet named a permanent Solicitor General, the top DOJ official in charge of representing the government before the Supreme Court. Whoever is nominated would have to be confirmed by the Senate, making it unlikely that the new solicitor general will be in place by the time the government’s response to the soft-money challenge is due.
Francisco, who’s currently holding the job came from the law firm Jones Day, where he represented former Virginia Gov. Robert McDonnell (R) before the Supreme Court in a major corruption case decided last year. The high court sided with McDonnell in that case and overturned his conviction related to accepting gifts from a Virginia businessman.
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Posted in campaign finance<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, Supreme Court<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>

Washington Times Says 1-2 Million Hispanic Non-Citizens Illegally Registered to Vote in U.S.<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=91138>
Posted on February 15, 2017 9:08 pm<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=91138> by Rick Hasen<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Here we go again.<http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/feb/15/nearly-2-million-non-citizen-hispanics-illegally-r/>
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Posted in The Voting Wars<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>

“Where Were Out-of-State IDs Used to Vote in New Hampshire Last November?”<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=91134>
Posted on February 15, 2017 9:03 pm<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=91134> by Rick Hasen<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Very interesting data <http://nhpr.org/post/where-were-out-state-ids-used-vote-new-hampshire-last-november#stream/0> from NHPR:
In the 2016 general election, according to the Secretary of State’s office, Election Day registrants of all kinds made up about 11 percent of all ballots cast. Within that, first-time New Hampshire voters made up 6 percent of all votes in November — and, within that, first-time voters who registered without a New Hampshire driver’s license made up less than one percent.
When people talk about the potential for “voter fraud” in New Hampshire, they often point to the idea that the state allows people to register on Election Day and to use out-of-state licenses. But that alone doesn’t mean those voters are doing anything illegal.
There are reasons why someone might legitimately register to vote with an out-of-state license – most obviously, they could have moved to the state recently or could be attending college here. (The state makes clear that out-of-state students attending college in New Hampshire are allowed to vote here<http://sos.nh.gov/nhsos_content.aspx?id=12816>, as long as they aren’t also voting in another state.)
To register with an out-of-state license, you still have to prove that you hold domicile in the state – using a utility bill or lease, for example, or by signing an affidavit affirming you actually live where you’re trying to vote. See here for more details on what’s required for first-time voters to register in New Hampshire<http://nhpr.org/post/how-nh-tries-guard-against-fraud-when-new-voters-show-election-day>.
According to the data provided by the Secretary of State’s office<https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1touDrzOd11Jjd3E_t5mvSLxIvuG3boQ9U6EZqBBl3kc/edit?usp=sharing>, 5,903 people newly registered to vote in New Hampshire using an out-of-state license on the day of the last election.
Related: Bill aims to close voting ‘domicile loophole’ in election law<http://www.unionleader.com/state-government/Bill-aims-to-close-voting-domicile-loophole-in-election-law#sthash.nbjwxB0l.dpuf>.
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Posted in election administration<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>

“Common Cause Wary of Judge Who Cleaned Up Part of Their Mess in Colorado”<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=91131>
Posted on February 15, 2017 3:32 pm<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=91131> by Rick Hasen<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Steve Klein blogs.<https://www.pillaroflaw.org/index.php/blog/entry/common-cause-wary-of-judge-who-fixed-part-of-their-mess-in-colorado>
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Posted in campaign finance<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, Supreme Court<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>

--
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
rhasen at law.uci.edu<mailto:rhasen at law.uci.edu>
http://www.law.uci.edu/faculty/full-time/hasen/
http://electionlawblog.org<http://electionlawblog.org/>
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