[EL] ELB News and Commentary 5/11/20

Sun May 10 21:20:19 PDT 2020

“Trump attacks decision to add in-person voting center in California House race”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111282>
Posted on May 10, 2020 9:06 pm<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111282> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

WaPo:<https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-attacks-decision-to-add-in-person-voting-center-in-california-house-race/2020/05/09/6c1d1f92-922d-11ea-9e23-6914ee410a5f_story.html>

President Trump spent a portion of his Saturday focused on a special election in the suburbs of northern Los Angeles County<https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/democrats-hold-on-house-seat-in-jeopardy-as-coronavirus-complicates-vote-in-california/2020/05/06/4a206a14-8b3b-11ea-ac8a-fe9b8088e101_story.html?tid=lk_inline_manual_1&itid=lk_inline_manual_1>, attacking a decision to add an in-person voting center there in a series of misleading tweets.

The race is between Democratic state assemblywoman Christy Smith and Republican businessman and ex-Navy pilot Mike Garcia. They are seeking to fill a seat left vacant by former congresswoman Katie Hill (D), who resigned in the fall. Whoever wins on Tuesday will hold the California seat through the end of the year. Regardless of the outcome, the two will face each other again in November for a full two-year term.

Because of the coronavirus<https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/02/28/what-you-need-know-about-coronavirus/?tid=lk_inline_manual_3&itid=lk_inline_manual_3>, voters were encouraged to mail in ballots, with every voter receiving a prestamped ballot to fill out and return. But a limited number of in-person polling places were long planned to be open, and one was added recently in Lancaster.AD

“Governor @GavinNewsom of California won’t let restaurants, beaches and stores open, but he installs a voting both system in a highly Democrat area (supposed to be mail in ballots only) because our great candidate, @MikeGarcia2020, is winning by a lot. CA25 Rigged Election!” Trump tweeted Saturday.

He also tweeted: “So in California, the Democrats, who fought like crazy to get all mail in only ballots, and succeeded, have just opened a voting booth in the most Democrat area in the State. They are trying to steal another election. It’s all rigged out there. These votes must not count. SCAM!”

Lancaster, like the rest of the 25th district. has been trending more Democratic. However, it is not the most Democratic area in California, as Trump suggests. In the state legislature, Lancaster is represented by two Republicans, and the mayor, Rex Parris, is a Republican.
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Posted in fraudulent fraud squad<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=8>

“Alaska: Supreme Court rules in favor of recall effort against Governor”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111280>
Posted on May 10, 2020 9:03 pm<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111280> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

The Recall Elections Blog<https://recallelections.blogspot.com/2020/05/alaska-supreme-court-rules-in-favor-of.html>.
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Posted in recall elections<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=11>

Democrats File New Georgia Lawsuit Over Absentee Ballot Procedures<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111277>
Posted on May 8, 2020 3:11 pm<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111277> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Release.<https://www.democracydocket.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/41/2020/05/PR_New-Georgia-Voting-Rights-Lawsuit_20200508.pdf>
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Posted in Uncategorized<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>

“Trump made Florida his official residence. He may have also made a legal mess.”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111275>
Posted on May 8, 2020 1:11 pm<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111275> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

WaPo<https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/trump-made-florida-his-official-residence-he-may-have-also-made-a-legal-mess/2020/05/07/17d53fb2-849c-11ea-878a-86477a724bdb_story.html>:

Trump’s switch to Florida also tossed a quirky legal puzzle into the mix. Trump — who has traveled to Mar-a-Lago repeatedly as president and has referred to the club as his Winter White House — has said that he voted by mail in Florida’s Republican primary last month. Florida law requires voters to register using their “legal residence” addresses under penalty of perjury.

What would happen to his voting status, some of his adversaries in the dock fight have begun to wonder, if Palm Beach declares that he doesn’t have the legal right to use Mar-a-Lago as his official domicile?

Zeitz called Trump’s possible violation of his agreement with Palm Beach “a substantial and serious potential legal impediment” to the president using Mar-a-Lago as his voter-registration address and official domicile.

In Florida, a state with a long, florid history of voting controversies, a person needs to cross multiple hurdles to legally register at a particular address, according to Ronald Meyer, a Florida lawyer and election law expert, who spoke about the law in general rather than the specifics of Trump’s situation.
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Posted in Uncategorized<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>

“Ohio’s election was a mess. It would be a disaster at the national level.”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111273>
Posted on May 8, 2020 1:07 pm<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111273> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Stephen Stromberg WaPo column<https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/05/08/ohios-election-was-mess-it-would-be-disaster-national-level/>.
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Posted in election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>

“All California voters will be asked to vote by mail in November due to coronavirus fears, Newsom says”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111271>
Posted on May 8, 2020 12:39 pm<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111271> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

LAT:<https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-05-08/all-california-voters-will-be-asked-to-vote-by-mail-in-november-2020-coronavirus>

Citing public health concerns over millions of Californians showing up at voting locations this fall, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday ordered ballots to be mailed to the state’s 20.6 million voters for the November election while imposing strict new rules for anyone who participates in person.

The decision, Newsom said, reflects the assessment from health officials that the COVID-19 pandemic will not have subsided enough to permit the election to move forward under its traditional rules. While a majority of California’s votes are now cast away from a voting place, it would be the first time in state history that every registered voter is mailed a ballot….

Newsom’s order, however, requires some in-person voting to be allowed. The governor cited the needs of disabled voters, in particular, who may require assisted technology to cast a ballot.

“We still want to have the appropriate number of physical sites for people to vote as well,” he said.
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Posted in election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>

“To Save Election Day, Start by Getting Rid of Election Night?”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111269>
Posted on May 8, 2020 9:45 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111269> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Eric Lach<https://www.newyorker.com/news/campaign-chronicles/to-save-election-day-start-by-getting-rid-of-election-night> for the New Yorker:

In April, Wisconsin held elections<https://www.newyorker.com/news/campaign-chronicles/why-is-wisconsin-holding-an-election-during-the-coronavirus-pandemic> even as covid-19 was spreading quickly through the state’s communities. Election officials there scrambled both to find safe ways to hold in-person voting and to keep up with a surge of absentee-ballot requests. The legal disputes, confusion, and unsafe conditions that resulted were a wake-up call for many. No one can say when the coronavirus crisis will fully pass, and election planners could not simply continue with business as usual this year. In response, lawmakers and activists began pushing for measures to safeguard the November elections from the coronavirus. Now a group of scholars calling themselves the Ad Hoc Committee for 2020 Election Fairness and Legitimacy have put out<https://www.law.uci.edu/faculty/full-time/hasen/2020ElectionReport.pdf> a helpful report listing fourteen recommendations. The group calls for absentee-ballot processes to be strengthened, and for lawmakers to recommit themselves to making voting accessible to all. But it also calls on the media to rethink the concept of Election Night. “It is especially important for the media to convey to the public the idea that, given an expected increase in absentee ballot voting in the November 2020 elections, delays in election reporting are to be expected, not evidence of fraud, and that the 2020 presidential election may be ‘too early to call’ until days after election day,” the report states.

The report is worth reading in its entirety, because it offers advice to all corners: lawmakers, the media, election administrators, outside groups. It’s a reminder that preserving elections at a time of increased partisanship and low public trust isn’t the responsibility of just one group or another, and won’t be fixed by just one solution picked from many. “The reasons for growing voter concern about the fairness and legitimacy of the U.S. election process are multifaceted, raising issues in law, media, politics and norms, and tech,” the group, which was convened by Richard L. Hasen, a law professor at the University of California, Irvine, wrote. “This means that solutions to bolster American confidence in the fairness and accuracy of the elections must be multifaceted as well.”
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Posted in election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>

“The Voting Rights of Florida Citizens Hang in the Balance Once Again”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111267>
Posted on May 8, 2020 9:43 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111267> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Ciara Torres-Spelliscy for TPM Cafe<https://talkingpointsmemo.com/cafe/cafe-florida-ex-felon-voting-rights-desantis-jones-trial>.
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Posted in felon voting<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=66>

“Don’t Let COVID-19 Eclipse Election Security Concerns”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111265>
Posted on May 8, 2020 9:41 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111265> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Alex Zaheer and Tom Westphal for Lawfare<https://www.lawfareblog.com/dont-let-covid-19-eclipse-election-security-concerns>.
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Posted in election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>

“INSIGHT: Voting By Mail in November—It’s Not a Matter of if, But How”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111263>
Posted on May 8, 2020 9:39 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111263> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Jason Abel, Evan Glassman, and Daniel Podair opinion piece<https://news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/insight-voting-by-mail-in-november-its-not-a-matter-of-if-but-how?context=search&index=0> for Bloomberg Law.
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Posted in Uncategorized<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>

“Taking government money? Disclose your political spending: Companies should opt for transparency now more than ever”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111261>
Posted on May 8, 2020 9:37 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111261> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Bruce Freed NYDN oped<https://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/ny-oped-taking-government-money-20200508-inu4noupqfg53iq3mjfebsuspe-story.html>.
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Posted in campaign finance<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>

Oklahoma May Reinstate Notarization Requirement (!) for Absentee Ballots<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111258>
Posted on May 8, 2020 7:35 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111258> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Just wow.<https://kfor.com/news/local/notary-bill-passes-oklahoma-house/>

Update: The law has been passed:<https://www.tulsaworld.com/news/state-and-regional/gov-stitt-signs-fast-moving-bill-to-restore-notary-requirement-on-oklahoma-absentee-ballots/article_13753f29-d58c-5bae-aa61-cbeb0ca1b76e.html#1>

Senate Pro Tem Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City, said the state’s high court absolutely and unequivocally legislated from the bench. Treat said the Legislature had clearly required a notary for absentee voting. He said the requirement was designed to prevent voter fraud.

According to the new law, if an emergency declaration is in effect 45 days before a scheduled election, absentee voters could send in a copy of their driver’s license or other identification along with their ballot in lieu of a notary’s signature.

In-person voters currently must show identification to vote.
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Posted in Uncategorized<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>

“The Cybersecurity 202: Coronavirus has upended election security training with just months before November”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111256>
Posted on May 8, 2020 6:48 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111256> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

WaPo:<https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/the-cybersecurity-202/2020/05/08/the-cybersecurity-202-coronavirus-has-upended-election-security-training-with-just-months-before-november/5eb463a1602ff11bb1177587/>

Russian hackers could target election officials working from home. Adversaries could spread rumors about coronavirus outbreaks at polling sites to deter people from showing up on Election Day. Or they could launch disinformation campaigns claiming elections have been delayed or canceled entirely because of the virus.

Those are just some of the new scenarios the University of Southern California’s Election Security Initiative is tackling as it races to conduct virtual training programs for campaign and election officials across all 50 states before November.

The big takeaway: Every aspect of securing elections is now far harder than they ever imagined. The array of challenges officials are facing now make the pre-pandemic concerns about Russian hacking seem simple by comparison.
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Posted in chicanery<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=12>, election administration<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>

Nevada: “Group backing redistricting commission files lawsuit seeking e-signatures, extended deadline”<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111254>
Posted on May 8, 2020 6:45 am<https://electionlawblog.org/?p=111254> by Rick Hasen<https://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

The Nevada Independent reports.<https://thenevadaindependent.com/article/group-backing-independent-redistricting-commission-files-lawsuit-seeking-e-signatures-extended-deadline>
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Posted in direct democracy<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=62>, redistricting<https://electionlawblog.org/?cat=6>

--
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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