[EL] ELB News and Commentary 7/16/19

Tue Jul 16 10:52:20 PDT 2019

"Some Fear Undercount As Texas Decides Not To Spend Money On 2020 Census"<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106355>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:50 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106355> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

Well, that's an interesting strategy<https://www.npr.org/2019/07/16/741325838/texas-and-other-states-decide-not-to-spend-money-on-2020-census>:

You've got to spend money to make money. But that's not the way Texas, and a handful of other states, are looking at the 2020 census. Officials in Texas have decided not to spend any money or make statewide plans for the census, despite the fact that the state experienced massive population growth in the past decade.
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Posted in census litigation<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=125>, chicanery<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=12>
"2020 Dems Pledge To Reverse Trump's Move Towards Anti-Immigrant Redistricting"<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106353>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:50 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106353> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

The candidates weigh in<https://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/democrat-campaigns-redistricting-citizenship-data-census> on using citizenship data in the redistricting process.
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Posted in census litigation<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=125>, redistricting<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=6>
"Budget gridlock imperils 2020 census"<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106351>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:49 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106351> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

A reminder<https://www.politico.com/story/2019/07/15/budget-gridlock-imperils-2020-census-1587943> that we're not out of the woods yet.

I wonder if this will come up in the Senate hearing on the Census<https://www.hsgac.senate.gov/2020-census-conducting-a-secure-and-accurate-count> in an hour.
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Posted in census litigation<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=125>
Trial begins in party ballot position case<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106349>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:49 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106349> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

Trial has started up in Florida<https://www.tampabay.com/florida-politics/buzz/2019/07/15/florida-judge-weighs-democrats-challenge-to-ballot-positions/> over the law automatically placing candidates of the governor's party in the first position of the ballot.  I've been watching this case pretty closely; it's a really interesting test of the prevailing constitutional doctrine for evaluation of electoral regulations.
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Posted in ballot access<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=46>, election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, election law and constitutional law<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=55>, The Voting Wars<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>
"Surge In Voters With Disabilities May Influence 2020 Election"<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106347>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:48 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106347> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

A reminder<https://www.disabilityscoop.com/2019/07/16/surge-voters-disabilities-may-influence-2020-election/26899/> of a significant population often overlooked when summary stats are compiled.

In 2018, 14.3 million people with disabilities cast ballots, more than the 11.7 million Latino voters that year and nearly as many as the 15.2 million African-American voters.

What's more, the report found that an additional 10.2 million voters last year were people who live with someone who has a disability. When these voters are added to those with disabilities, that means that 20 percent of all voters in the 2018 midterms came from what the researchers called "disability households."
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Posted in political equality<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=69>, voters with disabilities<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=71>, voting<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=31>
State v. county election systems management<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106345>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:48 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106345> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

An important story<https://www.valleyrecord.com/news/was-new-voting-system-concerns-county-elections-officials/> in Washington State about the integration of county registration systems into a newer statewide system.  It's not important because it's particularly new or surprising (it's neither), but just as a reminder of the details to be ironed out in any new election-related I/T system.  They don't just happen magically.
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Posted in election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, voter registration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=37>, voting technology<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=40>
"Top Democrat demands answers on election equipment vulnerabilities."<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106343>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:47 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106343> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

The Hill reports<https://thehill.com/policy/cybersecurity/453123-top-democrat-demands-answers-on-election-equipment-vulnerabilities> on Sen. Ron Wyden's questions of the EAC.  Senator Wyden took to the floor<https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4807377/wyden-july-15-2019-floor-speech-election-security>yesterday to speak about the issue as well.
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Posted in voting technology<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=40>
Summary of Congressional Legislation on Security of Voting Systems<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106341>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:47 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106341> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

An interesting summary<https://www.forbes.com/sites/taylorarmerding/2019/07/15/multiple-bills-seek-to-secure-elections-will-they-do-it/#6064fe616e0e> in Forbes of the bills on the table.
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Posted in voting technology<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=40>
"Diversifying the Donor Pool: How Did Seattle's Democracy Vouchers Program Reshape Participation in Municipal Campaign Finance?"<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106339>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:46 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106339> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

A new paper<https://osf.io/preprints/socarxiv/afxmn/#show_login> about Seattle's campaign finance voucher program, from Brian McCabe and Jennifer Heerwig.  I'm looking forward to reading this one.

The abstract:

In this paper, we evaluate whether an innovative new campaign finance program in Seattle, Washington shifted the composition of campaign donors in local elections.  In 2015, voters in Seattle approved the creation of the Democracy Voucher program with the intent of broadening representation in the campaign finance system and expanding participation from marginalized communities. Every registered voter in Seattle was provided with four, twenty-five-dollar vouchers that they could, in turn, assign to the local candidate(s) of their choice.  Through an analysis of the inaugural implementation of the program in 2017, we investigate whether this innovative public financing system increased participation, broadened involvement from underrepresented groups and led to a donor pool that was more representative of the electorate. Compared to cash donors in the municipal election, we report that voucher users are less likely to be high-income and more likely to come from poor neighborhoods.  While older residents are over-represented among voucher users, there is little difference in the racial composition of cash donors and voucher users.  Our analysis confirms that the Democracy Voucher program successfully moved the donor pool in a more egalitarian direction, although it remains demographically unrepresentative of the electorate.  The lessons from Seattle's inaugural implementation offer key insights for other municipalities considering public financing policies, and these lessons have the potential to reshape the national policy debate about the influence of political money.
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Posted in campaign finance<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
"GOP megadonors pour money into Trump campaign"<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106337>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:45 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106337> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

The Trump takeover of the GOP is reflected<https://www.politico.com/story/2019/07/16/gop-mega-donors-trump-campaign-2020-1416543> in the recent campaign finance disclosures.  The subhead of the piece: "Some of the same donors who bankrolled anti-Trump efforts in 2016 are at the center of the president's reelection."
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Posted in campaign finance<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, political parties<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=25>
"Kamala Harris Picks Perkins Coie as Firm Ramps Up Work for Democrats"<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106335>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:44 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106335> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

The National Law Journal<https://www.law.com/nationallawjournal/2019/07/16/kamala-harris-picks-perkins-coie-as-firm-ramps-up-work-for-democrats/> reviews the law firms behind the presidential contenders.
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Posted in election law biz<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=51>, primaries<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=32>
Thad Hall to get ballots to the bottom of the Grand Canyon<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106333>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:44 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106333> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

Former election professor Thad Hall is practicing what he preaches<https://editions.lib.umn.edu/electionacademy/2019/07/16/go-west-electiongeek-thad-hall-to-run-cococino-county-az-elections/>, moving to become the Director of Elections in Coconino County, Arizona, from a similar gig in Richland County, South Carolina.

Among other attributes, Coconino is "the second largest geographic county in the contiguous United States, one that includes a chunk of the Grand Canyon - including a polling location at the bottom that can be reached only by helicopter or donkey."

(h/t Doug Chapin)
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Posted in election law biz<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=51>
"Why More Companies Are Encouraging Their Employees to Vote - and How Yours Can, Too"<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106331>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:44 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106331> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

The power of brand leadership<https://www.popsugar.com/news/Why-Companies-Want-You-Vote-46363591> in encouraging participation.

Relatedly, Electionday.org<https://www.electionday.org/> has a running project encouraging companies to give their employees the day off on Election Day. I'm a fan.
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Posted in voting<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=31>
"Why Was the Electoral College Created?"<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106328>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:42 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106328> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

The History Channel has an explainer<https://www.history.com/news/electoral-college-founding-fathers-constitutional-convention>.
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Posted in electoral college<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=44>
"Why Congress' Plan to Fix Gerrymandering Falls Short"<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106326>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:42 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106326> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

Harvard undergrads<https://www.thecrimson.com/column/san-francisco-values/article/2019/7/16/york-congress-plan-gerrymandering/> weigh in on HR 1.
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Posted in redistricting<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=6>
Redistricting reform in New Jersey<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106324>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:42 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106324> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

As a Jersey native, this one caught my eye pretty quickly: an impressive group of scholars and advocates published a report recommending reforms<https://www.insidernj.com/part-legislative-redistricting-proposal-academics-want-expanded-number-independent-chief-justice-appointed-members/> to New Jersey's redistricting system.
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Posted in redistricting<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=6>
"Voters to decide on increased campaign finance disclosures, new limits on contributions"<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106321>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:41 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106321> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

San Francisco puts a measure<https://www.sfexaminer.com/the-city/voters-to-decide-on-increased-campaign-finance-disclosures-new-limits-on-contributions/> on the November ballot aimed at disclosing the top funders of committees, rather than just the committee name itself.
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Posted in campaign finance<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
"NC trial looks at partisan bias after US justices won't"<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106319>
Posted on July 16, 2019 10:41 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106319> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

A report<https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/nc-trial-looks-at-partisan-bias-after-us-justices-wont/2019/07/15/8f8d8252-a75d-11e9-8733-48c87235f396_story.html> from the opening days of the state court's partisan gerrymandering trial in North Carolina.
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Posted in chicanery<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=12>, political parties<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=25>, redistricting<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=6>
"Defending the Census: The Next Frontier in the Fight for Our Democracy"<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106314>
Posted on July 15, 2019 11:53 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=106314> by Justin Levitt<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=4>

Video from a Netroots Nation panel<https://www.facebook.com/NetrootsNation/videos/2229199977330041/> with Adam Bonin, Eric Holder, Alex Padilla, Denise Merrill, and Vanita Gupta.

Man, last Thursday seems like a long time ago.
[Share]<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D106314&title=%E2%80%9CDefending%20the%20Census%3A%20The%20Next%20Frontier%20in%20the%20Fight%20for%20Our%20Democracy%E2%80%9D>
Posted in census litigation<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=125>

Justin Levitt   (he/him/his)
Associate Dean for Research
Professor of Law / Gerald T. McLaughlin Fellow

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