[EL] ELB News and Commentary 10/11/18

Wed Oct 10 20:42:40 PDT 2018

“Voter Registrations Spike as Deadlines Loom. Taylor Swift Had Something to Do With It.”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101454>
Posted on October 10, 2018 6:13 pm<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101454> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

NYT reports. <https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/09/us/politics/taylor-swift-voter-registration.html?fallback=0&recId=1BPHEVGCW4VfY3guioWJHN3EM66&locked=0&geoContinent=NA&geoRegion=NY&recAlloc=contextual-bandit-home-geo&geoCountry=US&blockId=midterm-elections&imp_id=776418929&action=click&module=Election%202018&pgtype=Homepage>
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Posted in voter registration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=37>

I Talked to KCRW Press Play About California’s Motor Voter Snafu, North Dakota Voter ID, and Concerns About Voter Fraud and Voter Suppression<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101452>
Posted on October 10, 2018 2:59 pm<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101452> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Listen.<https://kcrw.co/2A2V5aU>
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Posted in The Voting Wars<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>

“Federal judge deals another blow to group challenging Ohio’s voter roll purge”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101450>
Posted on October 10, 2018 2:56 pm<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101450> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Cleveland.com reports. <https://www.cleveland.com/court-justice/index.ssf/2018/10/federal_judge_deals_another_bl_1.html#article>
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Posted in Uncategorized<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>

Utah Republican Party Files Interesting Cert Petition on Whether State Can Force Parties to Use Primary Rather than Caucus<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101447>
Posted on October 10, 2018 2:36 pm<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101447> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

You can find the cert. petition in Utah Republican Party v. Cox at this link<https://electionlawblog.org/wp-content/uploads/utah-rep.pdf>. Here are the questions presented:

As a private expressive association, “[a] political party” enjoys a general First Amendment right “to choose a candidate-selection process that will in its view produce the nominee who best represents its political platform.” N.Y. Bd. Of Elections v. Lopez Torres, 552 U.S. 196, 202 (2008). The First Amendment thus gives “special protection” to “the process by which a political party selects a standard bearer” California Democratic Party v. Jones, 530 U.S. 567, 575 (2000). Here, however, the Tenth Circuit has joined the Ninth in permitting a government to force a political party to select candidates through a primary rather than a caucus system, for the viewpoint-based purpose of avoiding candidates with “extreme views.”

The questions presented are:

1 Does the First Amendment permit a government to compel a political party to use a state-preferred process for selecting a party’s standard-bearers for a general election, not to prevent discrimination or unfairness, but to alter the predicted viewpoints of those standard-bearers?

2. When evaluating the First Amendment burden of a law affecting expressive associations, may a court consider only the impact on the association’s members, instead of analyzing the burden on the association itself, as defined by its own organizational structure?

The brief cites to my earlier writing on this question:

Richard L. Hasen, “Too Plain for Argument?” The Uncertain Congressional Power to Require Parties to Choose Presidential Nominees Through Direct and Equal Primaries<https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1118392> , 102 Nw. U. L. Rev. 2009, 2010 (2008)
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Posted in Uncategorized<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>

“Layered on top of previous mistakes, California’s DMV finds an additional 1,500 people wrongly registered to vote under new system”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101445>
Posted on October 10, 2018 10:43 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101445> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

LA Times:<http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-ca-dmv-more-voter-registration-errors-20181008-story.html>

Randall Marquis has lived in California for 31 years, but he knew it was a mistake when he received a notice last month that said he was newly registered to vote. He may have a state driver’s license, but he’s a citizen of Canada.

“When I saw that card, I just threw it out,” Marquis said. “I know I’m not going to vote. I’m not allowed to vote, it’s stupid that I should be registered to vote.”

The Newport Beach resident, who has a green card and is married to a U.S. citizen, was one of some 1,500 people who the California Department of Motor Vehicles said on Monday were wrongly registered to vote between late April and late September. These errors, which included other non-citizens, are in addition to the roughly 23,000 registration mistakes disclosed by the DMV last month<http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-ca-dmv-voter-registration-error-20180905-story.html>….

Shimoto and Amy Tong, the director of the state’s technology department, notified Secretary of State Alex Padilla of the errors on Monday.

The revelation prompted Padilla — who held a conference call with elections officials across California to discuss the new issues — to ask for an independent audit of the implementation of the motor voter system.

Padilla said in a letter to Shiomoto and Tong that he is “deeply frustrated and disappointed” after the repeated errors. “Immediate and transparent action is imperative,” Padilla wrote.
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Posted in election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>

“Federal election officials question Rep. Duncan Hunter campaign’s identification of donors”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101443>
Posted on October 10, 2018 10:03 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101443> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

The San Diego Union-Tribune reports. <http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/watchdog/sd-me-hunter-fec-20181009-story.html>
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Posted in campaign finance<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>

“Why federal courts may become the next front in the battle to secure our elections”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101441>
Posted on October 10, 2018 9:59 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101441> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Larry Schwartztol oped<https://thehill.com/opinion/judiciary/410684-why-federal-courts-may-become-the-next-front-in-the-battle-to-secure-our> in The Hill.
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Posted in election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, voting technology<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=40>

“Preparing for the 2020 Census: Considerations for State Attorneys General”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101439>
Posted on October 10, 2018 9:56 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101439> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

New ACS Issue Brief. <https://www.acslaw.org/issue_brief/briefs-landing/preparing-for-the-2020-census-considerations-for-state-attorneys-general/>

There’s also an Oct. 18 webinar.<https://getinvolved.acslaw.org/component/events/event/119>
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Posted in Uncategorized<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>

“New Report Emphasizes Threat Posed by Online Voting, Urges Nationwide E-Ballot Quarantine”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101437>
Posted on October 10, 2018 9:53 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101437> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Release:<https://www.commoncause.org/press-release/new-report-emphasizes-threat-posed-by-online-voting-urges-nationwide-e-ballot-quarantine/>

Today, leading experts in the field of election security released a report outlining the serious and unaddressed threat to the integrity of the nation’s elections and democracy posed by the continued use of online voting in 32 states. The report highlights that at the very least nearly 100,000 ballots were reported to have been cast online in the 2016 general election. The report, “Email and Internet Voting: The Overlooked Threat to Election Security<https://www.commoncause.org/page/email-and-internet-voting-the-overlooked-threat-to-election-security/>,” examines the threats faced by various forms of online voting including blockchain internet voting which is being used in West Virginia this election cycle. Due to the extensive vulnerabilities, the report emphasizes that online voting must be discontinued completely by 2020, and recommends short-term best practices for voters and elections officials in the 2018 election.

The report was jointly released by experts in the field of election security from the National Election Defense Coalition<https://www.electiondefense.org/> (NEDC), R Street Institute<https://www.rstreet.org/>, Association for Computing Machinery US Technology Policy Committee<https://www.acm.org/public-policy/ustpc>, and Common Cause<https://www.commoncause.org/>.
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Posted in election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, voting technology<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=40>

AP: Ga. SOS Kemp, Running for Governor Against African-American Opponent, Holding 53,000 Voter Registrations (70% from African Americans) Because of Minor Discrepancies Like Missing Hyphens in Names<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101432>
Posted on October 10, 2018 9:40 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101432> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

AP<https://www.wabe.org/voting-rights-become-a-flashpoint-in-georgia-governors-race/>:

According to records obtained from Kemp’s office through a public records request, Appling-Nunez’s application —like many of the 53,000 registrations on hold with Kemp’s office — was flagged because it ran afoul of the state’s “exact match” verification process.

Under the policy, information on voter applications must precisely match information on file with the Georgia Department of Driver Services or the Social Security Administration. Election officials can place non-matching applications on hold.

An application could be held because of an entry error or a dropped hyphen in a last name, for example.

Appling-Nunez says she never saw any notice from Kemp’s office indicating a problem with her application.

An analysis of the records obtained by The Associated Press reveals racial disparity in the process. Georgia’s population is approximately 32 percent black, according to the U.S. Census, but the list of voter registrations on hold with Kemp’s office is nearly 70 percent black.

Kemp’s office blamed that disparity on the New Georgia Project, a voter registration group founded by Abrams in 2013.
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Posted in The Voting Wars<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>

Trump Advancing Adelson’s Financial Interests<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101430>
Posted on October 10, 2018 7:21 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=101430> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Justin Elliott<https://features.propublica.org/trump-inc-podcast/sheldon-adelson-casino-magnate-trump-macau-and-japan/> for ProPublica:

After decades as a major Republican donor, Adelson is known as an ideological figure, motivated by his desire to influence U.S. policy to help Israel. “I’m a one-issue person. That issue is Israel,” he said last year. On that issue — Israel — Trump has delivered. The administration has slashed funding for aid to Palestinian refugees and scrapped the Iran nuclear deal. Attending the recent opening of the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem, Adelson seemed to almost weep with joy, according to an attendee.

But his reputation as an Israel advocate has obscured a through-line in his career: He has used his political access to push his financial self-interest. Not only has Trump touted Sands’ interests in Japan, but his administration also installed an executive from the casino industry in a top position in the U.S. embassy in Tokyo. Adelson’s influence reverberates through this administration. Cabinet-level officials jump when he calls. One who displeased him was replaced. He has helped a friend’s company get a research deal with the Environmental Protection Agency. And Adelson has already received a windfall from Trump’s new tax law, which particularly favored companies like Las Vegas Sands. The company estimated the benefit of the law at $1.2 billion.
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Posted in campaign finance<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, campaigns<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=59>, Plutocrats United<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=104>

--
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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