[EL] ELB News and Commentary 6/22/20

[Rick Hasen]

“Trump spreads new lies about foreign-backed voter fraud, stoking fears of a ‘rigged election’ this November”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112458>
Posted on June 22, 2020 8:41 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112458> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

CNN<https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/22/politics/trump-voter-fraud-lies-fact-check/index.html>:

Reeling after a weekend campaign rally with lower-than-expected turnout, President Donald Trump changed the subject Monday morning with a series of widely debunked lies about alleged voter fraud in US elections, stoking fears of a “rigged election” this November.

Trump tweeted an article <https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1275023295755190272> highlighting Attorney General William Barr’s recent comment that expanding mail-in voting “absolutely opens the floodgates to fraud.” (This specific claim has been debunked many times.) Trump added his own commentary to the article, tweeting, “This will be the Election disaster of our time. Mail-In Ballots will lead to a RIGGED ELECTION!”Trump then tweeted an all-caps missive <https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1275024974579982336> with many of the debunked claims he’s been pushing all year: “RIGGED 2020 ELECTION: MILLIONS OF MAIL-IN BALLOTS WILL BE PRINTED BY FOREIGN COUNTRIES, AND OTHERS. IT WILL BE THE SCANDAL OF OUR TIMES!”

In a third tweet <https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1275062328971497472> Monday morning, Trump said “Because of MAIL-IN BALLOTS, 2020 will be the most RIGGED Election in our nations history – unless this stupidity is ended,” and accused his political opponents of “using Covid in order to cheat by using Mail-Ins,” without providing proof.C

Nonpartisan election experts rejected Trump’s claims on Monday within minutes of his tweets.”That info is FALSE,” David Becker, founder of the nonpartisan Center for Election Innovation and research, tweeted<https://twitter.com/beckerdavidj/status/1275043584354418688> in response to Trump’s posts Monday morning. “There is zero evidence to support it, and states have many protections in place to prevent rigging of mail ballots.”

It would be a “waste of paper” for foreign countries to print fraudulent ballots, tweeted<https://twitter.com/ElectProject/status/1275047556209430529> Michael McDonald, a political science professor at the University of Florida who runs the United States Elections Project and is a leading authority on voting data and statistics. “The legally valid (ballots) printed by election officials have many safeguards to protect against fraudulent voting.”
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Posted in fraudulent fraud squad<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=8>


“Coronavirus fears postponed a Texas election. Now it will go forward with even greater risk for some voters.”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112456>
Posted on June 22, 2020 8:34 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112456> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

The Texas Tribune reports.<https://www.texastribune.org/2020/06/22/coronavirus-postponed-texas-election-now-theres-even-greater-risk-some/>
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Posted in election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>


“Trump’s Failed Rally Raises Questions of Chinese Meddling”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112454>
Posted on June 22, 2020 8:29 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112454> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Political Wire:<https://politicalwire.com/2020/06/22/trumps-failed-rally-raises-questions-of-chinese-meddling/>

Second, the Trump campaign’s high expectations were fueled by an organized online prank on TikTok<https://politicalwire.com/2020/06/21/how-teens-sank-the-trump-rally/>, which aimed to get tens of thousands to register for the rally without ever intending to show up.

TikTok is a short-form video app that’s become hugely popular among teenagers. But more important for its impact on American politics, TikTok is owned by a Chinese internet company called ByteDance. The company is facing a national security review in the United States over evidence the app sends data to China, according to the New York Times<https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/01/technology/tiktok-national-security-review.html>.

Technology analyst Ben Thompson explained on his Dithering podcast<https://dithering.fm/> that the mysterious algorithm TikTok uses to promote videos is a “black box,” meaning it’s not really known how posts are deemed popular so they are shown to more users. If the TikTok algorithm is open to manipulation by the Chinese government, it’s entirely possible there was nothing organic about the effort to encourage fake registrations to the Trump rally.
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Posted in chicanery<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=12>, social media and social protests<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=58>


Georgia Settles Lawsuit Agreeing Not to Enforce Requirement that Recall Petition Circulators Be Voters Registered in the District<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112451>
Posted on June 22, 2020 8:07 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112451> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

See here<https://electionlawblog.org/wp-content/uploads/2020-06-19-009-joint-motion-for-entry-of-a-consent-judgment.pdf>.
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Posted in Uncategorized<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>


“‘This is shocking to me’: A voter ID case that could rattle Wisconsin’s fall election has been on hold for more than 3 years”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112449>
Posted on June 22, 2020 7:24 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112449> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel:<https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/2020/06/19/wisconsin-voter-id-case-has-been-hold-3-years-7th-circuit/5287138002/>

 A voter ID lawsuit that has been simmering before an appeals court for more than three years could upend Wisconsin’s election this fall.

Then again, the three judges in charge of the case could continue to sit on the litigation<https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/2018/05/31/appeals-court-yet-rule-voter-id-election-laws-after-16-months/656115002/>, leaving it unresolved until after November. The sweeping lawsuit covers the voter ID law, early voting rules and a host of other election policies.

The three-year delay in issuing a decision is unusual and unexplained.

“This is shocking to me that it’s still pending without any resolution,” said Joshua Douglas<https://law.uky.edu/directory/joshua-a-douglas>, a University of Kentucky College of Law professor who focuses on election laws.

“To me, this goes beyond just ‘this is a difficult case and so we’re taking our time working on it.’ I think it’s reasonable to speculate that there’s some major disagreement, a lot of back and forth between competing opinions. Perhaps one of the judges is equivocating.”

Frank Easterbrook, one of the appeals judges hearing the case, told Slate<https://twitter.com/mjs_DC/status/1257743786450526209?s=20> in January the case was difficult but “being actively worked on<https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/01/7th-circuit-same-sex-parents-birth-certificate-delay.html>.”

The case is the oldest pending case before the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, according to the court’s administrator, Collins Fitzpatrick. Typically the court takes six to eight months to dispose of cases, he said.
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Posted in Uncategorized<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>


“Alabama seeks to block federal judge’s order allowing curbside voting, relaxing absentee ballot rules”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112447>
Posted on June 22, 2020 7:18 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112447> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Al.com reports.<https://www.al.com/news/2020/06/alabama-seeks-to-block-federal-judges-order-allowing-curbside-voting-relaxing-absentee-ballot-rules.html?utm_campaign=reckonalabama_sf&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social>
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Posted in election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>


“‘I Want My Vote to Be Counted’: In South Carolina, A Peek at Covid-19’s Impact on Elections”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112445>
Posted on June 22, 2020 6:56 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112445> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

CPI/NBC reports.<https://publicintegrity.org/politics/elections/in-south-carolina-a-peek-at-covid-19s-impact-on-elections-polling-place/>
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Posted in Uncategorized<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>


“NJ agrees No Internet voting in July, vague about November”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112443>
Posted on June 21, 2020 6:55 pm<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112443> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

New<https://freedom-to-tinker.com/2020/06/20/nj-agrees-no-internet-voting-in-july-vague-about-november/> at Freedom to Tinker.
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Posted in Uncategorized<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>


AG Barr Adds Fuel to the Fire by Fanning Trump’s Unsupported Allegations of Widespread Voter Fraud Via Mail in Ballots; Despicable and Dangerous<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112422>
Posted on June 20, 2020 10:29 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112422> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

It’s not just what Barr has now done to SDNY’s Berman<https://takecareblog.com/blog/the-sdny-debacle-and-the-supreme-court>, or how he spun the media with a misleading reading of the Mueller report. Barr is now doubling down<https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/503679-barr-echoes-trumps-concerns-about-mail-in-voting-says-it-could-open> on President Trump’s wholly unsubstantiated claims of massive voter fraud via absentee ballots:

Attorney General William Barr<https://thehill.com/people/william-barr> echoed concerns from President Trump<https://thehill.com/people/donald-trump> over mail-in voting, saying the method could be particularly susceptible to fraud.

“The thing we have going for us, especially when there’s intense division in the country, is that we have peaceful transfers of power and a way of resolving it is to have an election,” Barr said in an interview with Fox Business anchor Maria Bartiromo<https://thehill.com/people/maria-bartiromo> that will air Sunday.

“But when state governments start adopting these practices like mail-in ballots, that open the floodgates of potential fraud, then people’s confidence in the outcome of the election is going to be undermined,” he added.

That the chief law enforcement officer of the United States would seek to undermine confidence in the election process without evidence for political gain is not just despicable; it’s dangerous.
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Posted in fraudulent fraud squad<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=8>


“Beware the Fall Ballot Harvest; Too many states aren’t preparing for a potential vote-by-mail mess.”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112420>
Posted on June 20, 2020 10:21 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112420> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

WSJ editorial.<https://www.wsj.com/articles/beware-the-fall-ballot-harvest-11592607662?mod=opinion_lead_pos1>
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Posted in Uncategorized<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>


New York: “No Charges Against Jacobs Following Complaint Alleging Voter Fraud”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112417>
Posted on June 20, 2020 10:17 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=112417> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Spectrum News reports<https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nys/buffalo/politics/2020/06/19/no-charges-to-be-filed-against-chris-jacobs>.
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Posted in Uncategorized<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>


--
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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