William & Mary Law School | Election Law Society
The writers and editors of State of Elections are currently on our spring break hiatus. We will return with new content soon.
By Nick Raffaele:
At this point, most everyone is familiar with Florida’s comically pitiful track record when it comes to administering elections. The state certainly earned this reputation when it suffered what is probably its most notorious voting disaster in 2000, and Broward County in particular has consistently maintained poor performance ever since. The county was a standout in 2000 when it used lackadaisical standards in reviewing contested punch card ballots containing dimpled chads, and even included these unclear votes in their certified results. Broward doubled down on their anything goes attitude towards elections in 2003, when they sent mail-in ballots to voters who had moved and sparked fear of fraudulent votes. [Read more…] about Another Election, Another Voting Controversy in Florida
By: Mark Listes
Ohio is no stranger to changes in election administration and regulation. The Supreme Court determined the constitutionality of Ohio’s voter ID laws. The Sixth Circuit recently permanently enjoined the enforcement of Ohio’s campaign fair practice law that prohibited making false statements in campaigns. Ohio was highlighted in the 2004 election for extraordinarily long lines at its polls, and just eleven days before the 2014 midterm, the Sixth Circuit reversed the Southern District of Ohio, denying the right to vote to persons incarcerated but not yet convicted. [Read more…] about Friday at 6pm: Another Example of Changes in Ohio’s Election Regulation
By: The William & Mary Election Law Society
Due to inclement weather in Williamsburg, William & Mary’s Annual Election Law Society symposium has been cancelled as result of school closings. In the early morning on February 26th, Williamsburg received several inches of snow, which resulted in the law school closing for the day. Several symposium panelists had also previously alerted the Election Law Society of flight cancellations in anticipation of weather. Will Cooke and Jacob Kipp of the Election Law Society did an incredible job planning and organizing this event, and society members were disappointed as months of planning evaporated in an evening.
By: Joe Castor
Which special interests have the most clout in New Jersey? On September 10th, the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission released a study of the amount of money in New Jersey elections controlled by special interests. The report found that from 1999-2013 special interests poured in over $311 million. Special interests from unions to large business interests all take part in the massive election spending spree in New Jersey. This money is calculated from spending on campaign contributions, lobbying, and independent spending on campaigns. [Read more…] about Some Special Interests More Special than Others