[EL] ELB News and Commentary 11/8/17

Tue Nov 7 21:09:05 PST 2017

12 Votes Separates D and R Candidates in VA HD-94, With House Control Perhaps at Issue and Libertarian with 675 Votes<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95876>
Posted on November 7, 2017 9:03 pm<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95876> by Rick Hasen<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
That’s the results as of this moment.<http://results.elections.virginia.gov/vaelections/2017%20November%20General/Site/Locality/NEWPORT%20NEWS%20CITY/Member%20House%20of%20Delegates%20(094).html>
There are still Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.<http://12%20votes%20separates%20d%20and%20r%20candidates%20in%20va%20hd-94%2C%20with%20house%20control%20perhaps%20at%20issue%20and%20libertarian%20with%20675%20votes%20http/electionlawblog.org/?p=95876>) provisional ballots to count and a possible recount.
If the state had used instant runoff voting, it could have affected who controlled state legislative house.
[hare]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D95876&title=12%20Votes%20Separates%20D%20and%20R%20Candidates%20in%20VA%20HD-94%2C%20With%20House%20Control%20Perhaps%20at%20Issue%20and%20Libertarian%20with%20675%20Votes>
Posted in alternative voting systems<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=63>, ballot access<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=46>

“Trial Likely in Lawsuit Over Massachusetts City’s Election System”<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95874>
Posted on November 7, 2017 8:35 pm<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95874> by Rick Hasen<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
VOA:<https://www.voanews.com/a/lowell-massachusetts-election-lawsuit-trial-likely/4101382.html>
When residents of Lowell, Massachusetts, vote Tuesday, they’ll be exercising their civic responsibility against the backdrop of a lawsuit that will pit the city against its minority citizens.
In a city notable for its diversity — taken together, ethnic minorities almost form a majority<https://www.voacambodia.com/a/diverse-minorities-in-massachusetts-mill-town-struggle-for-representation/3916246.html> — Tuesday’s contests for City Council and school committee are playing out against a voting rights lawsuit<http://lawyerscom.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Lowell-Voting-Rights-Lawsuit-FAQ-Final.pdf> 13 Asian-American and Hispanic residents filed against the city in May, an action that echoes others elsewhere in the United States.
On Oct. 17, at the first public hearing on Huot v. City of Lowell in U.S. District Court, Judge William Young denied the city’s motion to dismiss<http://www.lowellsun.com/todaysheadlines/ci_31383932/judge-rejects-bid-toss-suit-voting-rights-lowell>.
The suit alleges the city’s at-large electoral “winner-take-all” system dilutes the minority vote and discriminates against candidates from minority communities.
Young’s decision means the city government of Lowell is likely headed to trial against some of its minority residents.
[hare]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D95874&title=%E2%80%9CTrial%20Likely%20in%20Lawsuit%20Over%20Massachusetts%20City%E2%80%99s%20Election%20System%E2%80%9D>

Posted in Uncategorized<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>
God Does Not Heed Election Administrator’s Prayer in Va House of Delegates<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95871>
Posted on November 7, 2017 8:01 pm<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95871> by Rick Hasen<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
1h<https://twitter.com/ElectProject/status/928108221751025664>
Replying to @ElectProject<https://twitter.com/_/status/928104889686818816>
Add to recount list HD-40, where Tanner (D) leads by 68 votes, likely with provisional ballots outstanding
<https://twitter.com/ElectProject/status/928108764187774977>

That makes 50-50 tie probable, with recounts likely in 2 Rep leading race and 1 Dem leading race, could swing control either way or tie remains
7:55 PM - Nov 7, 2017<https://twitter.com/ElectProject/status/928108764187774977>
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Posted in Uncategorized<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>

“Get free bed bug spray if you vote, but it might be illegal.”<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95869>
Posted on November 7, 2017 7:51 pm<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95869> by Rick Hasen<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Ew.<https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2017/11/07/get-free-bed-bug-spray-if-you-vote-but-might-illegal/841244001/>
I prefer the illegal ice cream<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=88143>.
[hare]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D95869&title=%E2%80%9CGet%20free%20bed%20bug%20spray%20if%20you%20vote%2C%20but%20it%20might%20be%20illegal.%E2%80%9D>
Posted in vote buying<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=43>

“New York State voters reject constitutional convention, approve proposal to seize pensions of corrupt politicians”<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95867>
Posted on November 7, 2017 7:43 pm<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95867> by Rick Hasen<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
NYDN:<http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/n-y-voters-reject-constitutional-convention-article-1.3618014?cid=bitly>
 Voters on Tuesday rejected the idea of holding a convention to overhaul New York’s constitution but approved an amendment allowing corrupt politicians to be stripped of their pensions.
With opposition driven by some of the state’s most powerful labor unions and interest groups, the proposal to hold a constitutional convention — known as Proposition One — was crushed by more than 50 percentage points, according to early returns.

[hare]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D95867&title=%E2%80%9CNew%20York%20State%20voters%20reject%20constitutional%20convention%2C%20approve%20proposal%20to%20seize%20pensions%20of%20corrupt%20politicians%E2%80%9D>
Posted in Uncategorized<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>

“Virginia voter suppression tweets went undetected by Twitter for hours”<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95865>
Posted on November 7, 2017 7:26 pm<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95865> by Rick Hasen<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
CNN:<http://money.cnn.com/2017/11/07/media/twitter-virginia-voter-suppression/index.html>
A Twitter account misleading Democratic voters in Virginia by telling them they could cast their ballot by text message was active for almost three hours on Tuesday morning before Twitter suspended the account.
The account, “MAGA Mike King,” was suspended after it tweeted more than a dozen times a graphic purportedly instructing Virginians on how to vote by text and including the logos of the Democratic Party and its gubernatorial candidate, Ralph Northam.
The account doesn’t appear to have had much success spreading its message, with less than a handful of interactions on each of the offending tweets, but to some observers that’s almost beside the point. Their concern is that the account remained active for almost three hours out of the 13 hours that polls are open in Virginia, despite the fact that Twitter knows these sorts of efforts are a potential problem on its platform, and has claimed success in fighting back against them.
[hare]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D95865&title=%E2%80%9CVirginia%20voter%20suppression%20tweets%20went%20undetected%20by%20Twitter%20for%20hours%E2%80%9D>
Posted in campaigns<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=59>, chicanery<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=12>, social media and social protests<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=58>

NYT Editorial Strongly Pushes for National Popular Vote to End Run Electoral College<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95863>
Posted on November 7, 2017 7:10 pm<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95863> by Rick Hasen<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Here.<https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/07/opinion/elections-electoral-college-voting.html?_r=0>

[hare]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D95863&title=NYT%20Editorial%20Strongly%20Pushes%20for%20National%20Popular%20Vote%20to%20End%20Run%20Electoral%20College>

Posted in electoral college<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=44>
“Lawsuit Challenges Arizona’s Overly Burdensome Dual Voter Registration System”<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95861>
Posted on November 7, 2017 3:54 pm<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95861> by Rick Hasen<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Release:<http://www.campaignlegalcenter.org/news/press-releases/lawsuit-challenges-arizona-s-overly-burdensome-dual-voter-registration-system>
 Today, Campaign Legal Center (CLC), the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and private co-counsel filed a federal lawsuit<http://www.campaignlegalcenter.org/document/lulac-v-reagan-us-district-court-district-arizona-complaint> challenging Arizona’s overly burdensome and confusing voter registration process that has disenfranchised 26,000 voters in Maricopa County alone. Maricopa is the largest county in Arizona.
The Arizona law requires eligible voters to attach specific documents such as a birth certificate to registration forms if they want to vote in state elections. However, federal law requires Arizona to accept federal registration forms, which permit an applicant to swear, under penalty of perjury, to their citizenship, at least for federal elections.
As a result of this dual voter registration system, Arizona voters submit valid registration forms assuming they are registered for both state and federal elections, but whether they can vote in those elections hinges on the form they were provided. In sum, eligible voters are denied the right to vote simply because of the registration form they happen to fill out.
[hare]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D95861&title=%E2%80%9CLawsuit%20Challenges%20Arizona%E2%80%99s%20Overly%20Burdensome%20Dual%20Voter%20Registration%20System%E2%80%9D>
Posted in NVRA (motor voter)<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=33>, The Voting Wars<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>

“Putin, Trump and Democracy’s Slippery Slope Toward Oligarchy”<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95859>
Posted on November 7, 2017 8:06 am<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95859> by Rick Hasen<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
New Common Cause report.<https://democracy-to-oligarchy.org/>
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Posted in The Voting Wars<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>

Maine: “Ranked-choice voting supporters to begin ‘people’s veto’ campaign today”<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95857>
Posted on November 7, 2017 8:05 am<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=95857> by Rick Hasen<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Press-Herald reports.<http://www.pressherald.com/2017/11/06/ranked-choice-voting-supporters-to-begin-peoples-veto-campaign-tuesday/>

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Posted in alternative voting systems<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=63>

--
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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