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Who’s Afraid of Virginia’s Split Precincts? The Resulting Anomalies From Split Precincts in Virginia’s 2017 and 2019 Elections

Election Law Society · April 13, 2020 ·

By: James Lomonosoff

No election is perfect. Indeed, one reason the Virginia Department of Elections regularly releases a report summing up the year’s election day complaints is likely to demonstrate the fallibility inherent in any human-run electoral system. Another reason, naturally enough, is so that the number of complaints and what matter they relate to can be tracked over time. In November 2018, as that year’s after-action report indicates, there were around 25 complaints related to “ballot” incidents. What might prompt a ballot-related complaint?

Nebraska Makes a Second Try at Post-Sentence Felony Re-enfranchisement

Election Law Society · April 8, 2020 ·

By: George Townsend

When the Nebraska legislature meets in January 2020 one of the bills up for consideration will be LB 83, which would restore the right to vote to citizens convicted of felonies once they have completed their sentence and parole.

How New York is Pioneering Campaign Finance Reform

Election Law Society · April 6, 2020 ·

By: David Lim

Last year, Democrats took the New York legislature for the first time in a decade. This is important given the state’s notorious reputation of having highly restrictive voting laws and corruption in public office. By flipping the state Senate, New York has a unique opportunity to implement meaningful election and campaign finance reform. Indeed, state Democrats have been taking advantage of the opportunity. In the past year, Albany has enacted several reforms, including, but not limited to, early voting, more paid time off to vote, and holding both state and federal primary elections on the same day. Most notably, these reforms did not touch on campaign finance reform. However, this is not to say that New York is not doing anything about it.

Opinion: The Problem with Voter ID in North Dakota

Election Law Society · April 3, 2020 ·

At a basic level, voter ID laws seem perfectly rational. Election security is important and requiring voters to present identification looks like a good way to prevent fraud. Yet in the United States, voter ID laws have been sharply criticized because in practice, they tend to disenfranchise voters and have the potential to reduce participation by discouraging voters from heading to the polls. Many Americans may lack the required ID and face barriers to obtaining one.

Sheridan, Wyoming’s Special Election Saga

Election Law Society · April 1, 2020 ·

By: Camden Kelliher

On November 5^th, residents of Sheridan, Wyoming took to the polls to participate in a special election and on November 7^th the Sheridan City Council certified the results. The election was over Charter Ordinance 2202, which was passed to clarify the roles of the City Administrator and Mayor. The City Administrator position was only created in 2015 by Charter Ordinance 2158, and since then critics have claimed that it takes too much authority away from the Mayor. The current Mayor of Sheridan, Roger Miller, ran his campaign around the idea of strengthening the “mayor form of government.” However, Sheridan residents must not have felt as strongly as their elected Mayor, because they voted to keep Charter Ordinance 2202.