Election-Campaign Law

GovTrack Insdier reports: A long-stand­ing

Posted on March 20, 2010
GovTrack Insdier reports: A long-stand­ing con­sti­tu­tion­al de­bate, dat­ing to at least the 1960s in its cur­rent form, resur­faced Tues­day af­ter­noon in the House Ju­di­cia­ry Com­mit­tee's Sub­com­mit­tee on the Con­sti­tu­tion, Civil Rights and Civil Lib­er­ties...

Google-powered elections

Posted on March 19, 2010
Marketplace reports: Welcome to the world of Google-powered elections. The company calls that tactic a network blast. In Massachusetts, Willington says those blasts cost about $25,000 a day. Far less than TV and worth every penny. WILLINGTON: People think Google...

How the VRA dodged a bullet

Posted on March 04, 2010
Jeffrey Rosen writes in The New Republic about the NAMUDNO case: And then, there was last term's voting-rights case, in which Roberts wrote an 8-1 decision rejecting a broad constitutional challenge to the Voting Rights Act and instead deciding the...

Alabama: 50 years later, Alabama State University rights a wrong

Posted on February 26, 2010
The Montgomery Advertiser reports: Nine Alabama State University students expelled 50 years ago for taking part in a sit-in at a segregated lunchroom were "reinstated" Thursday. ASU President William Harris, invoking the authority of his office, said later that it...

To access this complete feed in the blog feed reader login or register for free.

5 national party committees sued for return of Allen Stanford contributions

Posted on February 23, 2010
Peter Overby reports on All Things Considered: A court-appointed officer in Dallas has sued national party committees, both Democratic and Republican, to recover campaign contributions from indicted financier R. Allen Stanford. The money at stake totals $1...

Voting Section seeks civil rights analysts

Posted on February 23, 2010
The Voting Section has posted ads seeking to fill a total of up to 14 civil rights analyst positions to review voting changes under the preclearance provisions of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act. There are four ads -...

Alabama Gov. Riley's Gambling Task Force

Posted on February 19, 2010
Whether it relates to voting or not, this is funny:...

Alabama: soon to be easier for overseas voters to vote

Posted on February 17, 2010
The Montgomery Advertiser reports: A new law that would expand voting options for military members and citizens living or working overseas is moving through the Alabama Legisla­ture. The bill, HB 30, has been unanimously approved by the Senate Constitution, Campaign...

Invitation from the Legal Defense Fund

Posted on February 15, 2010
In commemoration of the 45th Anniversary of "Bloody Sunday" and the enactment of the Voting Rights Act, please join us in Selma on Friday, March 5th for an important discussion about what's at stake in the upcoming 2010 Census and...

Alabama: grand jury indicts candidate for late campaign disclosure and false statement on form

Posted on February 02, 2010
The Daily Home reports: City Schools Board Member Troy ?Skip? Smithwick was indicted on two counts relating to campaign contributions by a Talladega County Grand Jury. A spokesperson for the Talladega County Sheriff?s Department said Smithwick was charged on Friday...

Justice Department announces job opening for Voting Section Chief

Posted on January 28, 2010
In addition to the trial attorneys and deputy chief, DOJ is now seeking a Chief of the Voting Section. Go to USAJOBS - Search Jobs...

Alabama: Autauga Co. registrars fighting each other

Posted on January 26, 2010
The Prattville Progress reports: Three high-ranking members of Alabama Secretary of State Beth Chapman's office arrived in Prattville Thursday morning to conduct a basic training session for members of the Autauga County Board of Registrars. ... Jean Brown, Chapman's chief...

Voting Section seeks experienced attorneys

Posted on January 23, 2010
The U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division is seeking up to 10 experienced attorneys for the position of Trial Attorney in the Voting Section in Washington, D.C. The Civil Rights Division is primarily responsible for enforcing federal statutes and...

Citizens United v. FEC

Posted on January 21, 2010
The Supreme Court has overturned the prohibition on corporate money in campaigns, holding that corporations have the same First Amendment rights as people do. They did not strike down the requirement of reporting those contributions. The opinions in the case...

Alabama: Parker Griffith will not return pre-election campaign donations

Posted on January 14, 2010
The Huntsville Times reports: U.S. Rep Parker Griffith neglected to mention the fine print attached to his seemingly broad offer to refund campaign contributions. Griffith, who switched from the Democratic to the Republican party Dec. 22, initially said he'd return...

Alabama House committee reviews 4 election bills today

Posted on January 13, 2010
Four bills are up for hearing today in the Alabama House Committee on Constitution and Elections: HB 30 -- Elections, overseas absentee voting, Electronic Overseas Voting Advisory Committee, established to advise whether secure electronic means of voting available, duties of...

Alabama Democrats open qualify this Saturday

Posted on January 11, 2010
From a press release of the Alabama Democratic Party: The State Democratic Executive Committee of Alabama will meet at 11:00 AM on Saturday, January 16 in the Main Hall of Montgomery's RSA Commerce Center, 401 Adams Ave., to pass a...

Voting Right Section: Chris Coates leaves

Posted on January 08, 2010
The American Prospect has an article online, The Battle for Voting Rights, that makes me a little uneasy. I'll wait while you go read it. I know and have worked with several of the people mentioned in the article. I...

Alabama; 2 GOP reps to introduce bills to reform campaign finance

Posted on December 25, 2009
The Huntsville Times reports: Campaign reporting by public officials included in package Two area Republican legislators said Wednesday they will sponsor a package of bills in the 2010 session aimed at raising the bar of transparency in state government and...

California: somehow pols are evading the campaign finance laws. Who'd a thunk it?

Posted on December 23, 2009
From a press release of the Center for Governmental Studies: Loopholes, Tricks and End Runs: Evasions of Campaign Finance Laws, and a Model Law to Block Them, a new report issued today by the Center for Governmental Studies (CGS), concludes...

ACORN has not broken federal laws, House Judiciary Committee says

Posted on December 23, 2009
Politico reports: A Congressional Research Service report commissioned by the House Judiciary Committee says ACORN hasn?t violated any federal regulations the last five years. The report, released by Judiciary Chairman John Conyers? (D-Mich.) staff Tuesday evening, also reports that the...

GAO releases report on DOJ under Bush

Posted on December 22, 2009
The Government Accountability Office has released a 180-page report on the enforcement efforts of the Justice Department during fiscal years 2001-07. The summary on the Voting Section says: From fiscal years 2001 through 2007, the Voting Section was responsible for...

New Book on the VRA and Language Minorities

Posted on December 16, 2009
James Tucker's new book, The Battle over Bilingual Ballots: Language Minorities and Political Access Under the Voting Rights Act has been published by Ashgate. For information on the book, including a table of contents, preface, and index (you can give...

Cedar Bluff: long-running election contest over, council members to be seated

Posted on December 15, 2009
The Post reports: It took over 16 months to seat them, but the Cedar Bluff Town Council finally has three new members, as of last week. Candidates Evan Smith, Jack Bond, and Mark Hicks will join Lenora McWhorter, also recently...

"Hear that giant sucking sound?"

Posted on December 11, 2009
That's all of your time being sucked away as you delight in using Dave's Redistricting App...

GAO study on voting in long-term care facilties

Posted on December 01, 2009
The Government Accountability Office has issued a report entitled, "ELDERLY VOTERS: Information on Promising Practices Could Strengthen the Integrity of the Voting Process in Long-term Care Facilities." The summary includes the following: Localities also used a variety of actions to...

Birmingham: was the city council election held at the correct time?

Posted on November 27, 2009
The Birmingham News reports: A Birmingham neighborhood president and former council member who unsuccessfully ran for city council this year said he filed a lawsuit this morning against the city because he wanted to bring it to the attention of...

Birmingham: is there a city council president?

Posted on November 27, 2009
The Birmingham News reports: The Birmingham City Coun­cil's vote to select Steven Hoyt as president pro tempore may have violated the Mayor-Council Act and be invalid, city attorneys and at least one council member said Wednesday. ... The contention comes...

California: ACRU defending Edwards-backer in campaign-finance prosecution

Posted on November 19, 2009
TPM Muckraker reports: A heavy-hitting group of conservative lawyers led by Ken Starr and Ed Meese is jumping to the defense of a Democratic trial lawyer and major John Edwards backer. ... To explain: The American Civil Rights Union --...

Alabama: Packard proposes amendments to election laws

Posted on November 15, 2009
Ed Packard, supervisor of voter registration for the State of Alabama, suggests several amendments to the State's election laws regarding emergency balloting procedures, changed voter ID procedures for absentee voters, and confidentiality of voter information...

Bloggers, promote your law blog by nominating your blog for inclusion in USLaw.com's Law Blog Directory and RSS Reader. Benefits described.