"Uncertainty Surrounds November's Special Vote"

The San Diego Union Tribune offers this report. In related commentary, Dan Weintraub writes: "Will Prop. 77 survive? Davis appointee is the key." I expect the Prop. 77 ruling today and will link to it when it is issued.

"The dilemma of Voting Rights Act"

The Virginia Pilot offers this editorial. The Clarion-Ledger (Mississippi) editorializes: "Voting Rights: Landmark Act Should Not Be Diluted." Jesse Jackson writes "Voting Act's Promise Unfulfilled" in the Chicago Sun-Times. Joseph Darby writes "Voting Rights Still Can't Be Taken for Granted" in The State (South Carolina). The Argus Leader (South Dakota) editorializes "Elections Affect Us All; It's not healthy when any group of people is not represented at the polls." The Seattle Post Intelligencer editorializes "Adapt Voting Rights Law to New Realities."

"Suit claims finance law for judges is not legal"

A.P. offers this report from North Carolina, with the subhead, "Anti-abortion group, judge contend law restricts free speech."

"Forrester seeks ruling on financing"

The Philadelphia Inquirer offers this report, with the subhead: "He asked a state agency to confirm his ability to pay for his own campaign. His role in an insurance firm is at issue."

"Public Choice Principles of Redistricting"

John Matsusaka and Thomas Gilligan have posted this working paper on SSRN. Here is the abstract:

This paper uses fundamental principles of public choice, mainly the median voter theorem, to develop a simple theory of redistricting. The focus is on how closely policy outcomes correspond to majority rule. The main results are: (1) Potential policy bias in favor of nonmajority groups is structurally linked to the number of legislative seats and the population, and the structure of most states puts them very close to the theoretically maximum bias. (2) Random districting, which might seem like the essence of neutrality, does not eliminate policy bias on average. (3) Traditional principles of compact, contiguous districts that respect existing political boundaries, stressed in the Supreme Court's Shaw v. Reno decision, minimize the chance of nonmajoritarian outcomes.

-- 
Rick Hasen
William H. Hannon Distinguished Professor of Law
Loyola Law School
919 Albany Street
Los Angeles, CA  90015-1211
(213)736-1466
(213)380-3769 - fax
rick.hasen@lls.edu
http://www.lls.edu/academics/faculty/hasen.html
http://electionlawblog.org