[EL] ELB News and Commentary 1/14/20

[Daniel Tokaji]

Citizens United at 10 <https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108960>
Posted on January 14, 2020 1:19 pm <https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108960>
by Dan Tokaji <https://electionlawblog.org/?author=5>

Hard to believe, but one week from today will mark the 10th birthday
of *Citizens
United*. To help us commemorate/mourn the occasion, the Center for
Responsive Politics has this report
<https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2020/01/citizens-united-on-its-10th-anniversary/>,
“More money, less transparency: A decade under *Citizens United*.” And from
Issue One <https://www.coordinationwatch.org/> “Coordination Watch: How
candidates and outside groups work together to evade anti-corruption laws.”
More to come, I’m sure, in the next several days.
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Posted in campaign finance <https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
Absentee Votes and Turnout in Michigan Could Delay Election Results
<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108957>
Posted on January 14, 2020 10:37 am <https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108957>
by Dan Tokaji <https://electionlawblog.org/?author=5>

Free Press
<https://www.freep.com/story/news/politics/2020/01/14/michigan-voter-turnout-2020-election-results-delayed/4460065002/>,
with a quote from former election law prof Jocelyn Benson, Michigan’s
Secretary of State:

Adding hundreds of thousands of voters, many of whom will now be able to
cast their ballots by voting absentee, will overwhelm local clerks with
ballots that they can’t begin counting until 7 a.m. on Election Day.

And that could translate into Michigan not being able to tally and announce
the results of the 2020 election until a day or two after the polls close
on Nov. 3, said Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson.

“Due to the great increase in voting by mail, without a change in law, it
is likely that clerks across the state won’t be able to finish counting
ballots on election night,” she said in a statement.

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Posted in absentee ballots <https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=53>
Wisconsin Appeals Court Puts Purge on Hold
<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108955>
Posted on January 14, 2020 10:32 am <https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108955>
by Dan Tokaji <https://electionlawblog.org/?author=5>

Journal Sentinel
<https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/2020/01/14/appeals-court-blocks-purge-wisconsin-voter-rolls-time-being/4465158002/>
:

An appeals court ordered the state to keep more than 200,000 people on its
voter rolls Tuesday, a day after an Ozaukee County judge found election
officials in contempt of court for not following his December decision to
suspend voter registrations.

In a separate order, one of the judges on the appeals court blocked the
contempt finding, relieving the commission and three of its members of $800
a day in fines.

More coverage from AP
<https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/nation/2020/01/14/wisconsin-appeals-court-puts-voter-rolls-purge-hold/40998277/>
.
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Posted in voter registration <https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=37>
“Redistricting power at stake in 2020 legislative elections”
<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108953>
Posted on January 14, 2020 4:19 am <https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108953>
by Dan Tokaji <https://electionlawblog.org/?author=5>

AP report <https://apnews.com/db1ad1c1d335599b579f90262ee0e537>, with a
rundown of the major states in play.
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Posted in redistricting <https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=6>
“Nebraska GOP lawmakers renew voter ID bill effort”
<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108951>
Posted on January 14, 2020 4:14 am <https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108951>
by Dan Tokaji <https://electionlawblog.org/?author=5>

CNN
<https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/13/politics/nebraska-voter-id-bill/index.html>:
” The measure
<https://www.nebraskalegislature.gov/FloorDocs/106/PDF/Journal/r2journal.pdf#page=224>,
introduced Friday by state Sen. Andrew La Grone, is a proposed state
constitutional amendment that would require a poll worker to ‘review a
photograph or digital image of each voter to verify the identity of the
voter prior to allowing the voter to vote.'”
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Posted in voter id <https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=9>
“Texas Democrats launch largest voter registration campaign to hobble GOP’s
grip on the state” <https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108949>
Posted on January 14, 2020 4:13 am <https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108949>
by Dan Tokaji <https://electionlawblog.org/?author=5>

ABC News
<https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/texas-democrats-launch-largest-voter-registration-campaign-hobble/story?id=68150180>,
on the collaboration with Stacey Abrams’ group Fair Fight 2020: ” Texas
Democrats, fueled by the party’s nearly quarter-century-held dream
<https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/trump-era-beto-orourke-eyes-end-republican-grip/story?id=56816778>
of
turning Texas blue, are mounting an aggressive ground-game operation with
the largest voter registration program in the state’s history, according to
the state party, and an expansive voter protection effort ahead of the 2020
election <https://abcnews.go.com/alerts/elections>.”
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Posted in voter registration <https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=37>
“Ohio bill proposes automatic voter registration for voting-age high
schoolers” <https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108947>
Posted on January 14, 2020 4:10 am <https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108947>
by Dan Tokaji <https://electionlawblog.org/?author=5>

Cleveland.com
<https://www.cleveland.com/open/2020/01/ohio-bill-proposes-automated-voter-registration-for-voting-age-high-schoolers.html>
:

A group of Democratic state lawmakers has proposed automatically
registering all Ohio high-school students to vote once they reach voting
age.

The bill, introduced in the Ohio House on Monday, also requires the state
BMV to offer Ohioans the chance — without any additional paperwork — to
register to vote or to update their registration when they visit, with an
eye toward expanding it to other state agencies in the future. That’s
similar to another bill introduced last year
<https://www.cleveland.com/open/2019/08/ohio-elections-bill-would-streamline-voter-registration-at-bmv.html>
in
the state Senate with backing from Secretary of State Frank LaRose, a
Republican.

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Posted in voter registration <https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=37>
“Seattle City Council bans ‘foreign-influenced’ companies from most
political spending” <https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108945>
Posted on January 14, 2020 3:12 am <https://electionlawblog.org/?p=108945>
by Dan Tokaji <https://electionlawblog.org/?author=5>

Seattle Times
<https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/seattle-city-council-bans-foreign-influenced-companies-from-most-political-spending/>
:

The Seattle City Council voted Monday to ban most political spending by
“foreign-influenced corporations,”
<https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/seattle-council-advances-ban-on-most-political-spending-by-foreign-influenced-companies/>
in
a move that could hinder attempts by multinational tech titans to influence
the city’s elections….

The city’s new ban applies to corporations with a single non-United States
investor holding at least 1% ownership, two or more holding at least 5%
ownership or a non-U.S. investor participating in decision making related
to U.S. political activities.

*Update*: The legislation and a press release from Free Speech for People
are here <https://freespeechforpeople.org/seattle-legislation/>. Reuters
has this story
<https://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2020/01/13/us/politics/13reuters-usa-politics-seattle.html>
.
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Posted in campaign finance <https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>

Daniel P. Tokaji

Associate Dean for Faculty | Ebersold Professor of Constitutional Law

The Ohio State University | Moritz College of Law

55 W. 12th Ave. | Columbus, OH 43210

614.292.6566 | tokaji.1 at osu.edu

>
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