State of Elections

William & Mary Law School | Election Law Society

California

Weekly Wrap Up

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Every week, State of Elections brings you the latest news in state election law.

– ACORN, the controversial voter registration and activist group, is disbanding because of declining revenue.

– In the Arkansas Senate race, there’s some controversy over an obscure state law that prevents the use of professional or honorary titles on ballots.  One Republican Senate candidate had hoped to put the title “Colonel” in front of his name on the ballot, but was refused by election officials.  Nicknames, however, are perfectly legal.  Just ask Harold Kimbrell, who will appear on the ballot as “Porky” Kimbrell.

–  During last week’s election law Symposium at William & Mary, the panelists mentioned that census data can be skewed when large numbers of incarcerated felons are counted as “residents” of the state they are incarcerated in.  Here a few editorials discussing that practice.

– More news on the California Redistricting Commission.  Even though over 25,000 people filed the initial application to be on the Commission, less than 1,200 have completed the second step of the application process.  For more general information on the Commission, see this post.

– Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty has signed a law that should make absentee voting easier in that state.  The law will require election officials to send a replacement ballot, or notify the voter that he should cast a new ballot, if an absentee voter’s ballot is rejected.

– After much debate, the Florida Senate has passed an electioneering bill.  An alternate version of the bill was ruled unconstitutional for requiring all organizations to register with the state and comply with financial reporting requirements if they even mentioned a candidate or political issue.  The new version of the bill would still require certain organizations to register, but not those that focused only on issues.

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Weekly Wrap Up

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Every week, State of Elections brings you the latest news in state election law.

– The Idaho and Alaska legislatures have introduced bills to streamline the absentee voting process.

– A Mississippi proposal to require voter identification at the polls will appear on the 2011ballot.

– Election Systems and Software, the nation’s largest voting machine provider, has agreed to a settlement in an anti-trust action.  ES&S will be required to sell off assets acquired in its recent merger with Premier Election Solutions.

-The Kansas legislature is considering a change to the state constitution that would protect the voting rights of the mentally ill.

– In San Francisco, Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi has proposed an amendment to the county charter that would allow same day voter registration.  If passed, the amendment would make San Francisco the first county in California to allow same day registration.

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California’s Citizens Redistricting Commission: Do it Yourself Gerrymandering!

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For too long, the joys of disenfranchising minorities and gerrymandering a district into irrelevancy have been selfishly hoarded by state legislatures. But in California, a group of 14 ordinary citizens will get the opportunity to draw the lines themselves, as members of California’s first Citizens Redistricting Commission.

The Citizens Redistricting Commission was created as a result of California’s citizen initiative process. California Common Cause, a nonpartisan organization for “open and accountable government”, proposed an amendment to the California Constitution that would take the task of redistricting out of the hands of the legislature and put it directly in the hands of the people.  That proposed amendment became Proposition 11, also known as the Voter First Initiative, and was voted on by the people of California in the 2008 general election.  Despite receiving support from a number of prominent figures, including Arnold Schwarzenegger and Michael Bloomberg, Prop 11 barely passed, receiving less than 51% of the vote. [Read more…] about California’s Citizens Redistricting Commission: Do it Yourself Gerrymandering!

Weekly Wrap Up

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Every week, State of Elections brings you the latest news in election law.

– The Indiana Supreme Court heard oral arguments today regarding that state’s 2005 law requiring a photo ID at the polls.

– An Idaho bill to require a photo ID at the polls has passed that state’s House.

– Over 31,000 Californians have applied to be members of that state’s Citizen Redistricting Commission.  In 2008, California voted to transfer the responsibility of redistricting from the legislature to a citizen’s committee.  This Citizen’s Committee is unique among the states and the upcoming redistricting session will be its first test.

– A Virginia bill that would have created a bipartisan panel to prepare redistricting plans for the legislature has been shot down in a house subcommittee.  The bill was proposed by Creigh Deeds, former candidate for Virginia governor, and passed unanimously in the state senate.

– The Justice Department is investigating the merger between voting machine manufacturers Diebold and Election Systems and Software.

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Weekly Wrap Up

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Every week, State of Elections brings you the latest news in state election law.

– New Orleans has experienced a record number of early voters for its municipal election.  About 16,600 ballots have been cast already, compared to 12,850 early votes in the 2008 presidential election.  Experts speculate that the rise in early voting is because the election is scheduled for this Saturday, just one day before the Saints play in the Superbowl.

– A measure that would allow overseas voters to send their ballots by email has passed the Washington House, and is headed to that state’s Senate.

– A judge in New Jersey has ordered a panel of experts to evaluate the security of New Jersey’s 11,000 voting machines.  Some have criticized the ruling for not requiring that the machines be retrofitted to produce a paper trail.

– A corporation has announced its candidacy for Congress!  Murray Hill Inc. plans on filing to run in the Republican primary in Maryland’s 8th Congressional District.  Feeling liberated by the Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United, the corporation has decided to take the logical next step in their struggle for equal rights.  According to Murray Hill “It’s our democracy.  We bought it, we paid for it, and we’re going to keep it.”

– The California governor’s race has taken a bizarre turn.  Steve Poizner, a Republican candidate, has accused his rival Republican Meg Whitman of trying to bully him out of the race.   Poizner claims that an e-mail sent to him from Whitman’s office violates four federal and state election laws.  A copy of Poizner’s complaint, including a copy of the email, can be found here.

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