Saturday, August 31, 2024

Georgia election board goes from moribund to MAGA activist


Georgia has long been subject to questionable voter purges supported by Gov. Brian Kemp and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, both Republicans. Under a new law, an individual citizen can challenge the voter registration of tens of thousands of voters "based on unvetted documentation and unreliable information . . . , such as screenshots of purported property records or social media posts." Federal courts are reviewing the law and the implementation.

However, the newest attack on election integrity comes from the formerly inactive state board of elections. With the appointment of a majority of MAGA members, they have adopted the now well-known procedure for each county election board to refuse to certify an election as they conduct a "reasonable inquiry" to determine whether tabulation and canvassing are true and accurate. The existing practice has been to tally the results from mail-in ballots and various polling stations and to leave dispute resolution to the courts.

"[T]he Georgia Association of Voter Registration and Election Officials (GAVREO), which is composed of over 500 county election workers and officials across the state, asked the board to stop passing last-minute rule changes," however, they plan to consider new rules at a meeting scheduled for September 20.

Friday, August 30, 2024

The Billionaires behind record high-dollar contributions to PACs


A good summary that shows that big money is setting new records and gives examples of which billionaires want what policy concessions. Republicans are leading Democrats in the highest-dollar contributions.

Monday, August 26, 2024

List of megadonors

SCOTUS issues shadow docket rulings in Arizona election disputes


SCOTUS reversed a lower court and put back a confusing ruling that is at odds with their self-proclaimed "Purcell principle" that rulings too close to an election should be avoided in order not to confuse voters. See a quote below from UofTexas law professor Steve Vladeck.

"Third, and most importantly, there's the difference-splitting votes of one/both of the Chief Justice and Justice Kavanaugh—and the difficulty of reconciling those votes with the Court's purported adherence to the controversial "Purcell principle." Professor Rick Hasen wrote about this over at his Election Law Blog on Friday, but to make a long story short, the best defense of Purcell is the need to avoid court rulings that increase voter confusion heading into an election cycle. How can that "principle" be reconciled with a ruling that puts back into effect Arizona's requirement that those registering to vote on the state paper form provide documentary proof of citizenship, when those who register online or use the federal form don't have to? Or the need for different ballots depending upon whether the voter registered with a state paper form, a state electronic form, or a federal form? Or the possibility that those who used the state paper form while the proof-of-citizenship requirement was blocked might now have their registrations rejected?"


Election deniers in swing states are organized and working to subvert state laws


In Georgia, the Republican-dominated state board of elections has ordered local boards to conduct "a reasonable inquiry" before certifying election results. There is no new funding or staff accompanying the order. Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger says that this new rule is illegal if it conflicts with state law requiring that county boards certify election results by November 12 (one week after election day). Local boards in Arizona, Michigan, and Nevada have refused to certify elections in the past and are organizing to resist deadlines.

Saturday, August 24, 2024

Outside spending (e.g., PACs, SuperPACs, etc.) way, way up



Outside spending through August 15 is nearly double that seen in any prior federal election cycle.
Here are the 5 biggest spenders so  far:

Name – Founding - Tendency

Millions of $

Make America Great Again, Inc. (MAGA) – new Trump-aligned

$125

American for Prosperity – long-standing Republican       

$ 78

Future Forward "Repeal tax cuts for the rich and focus on policies that help the middle class" founded 2018

$ 48

Fairshake – New.  Pro-cryptocurrency

$ 46

United Democracy Project – New. Founded 12/21 by American Israel PAC to oppose progressives

$ 36

TOTAL

$313

Friday, August 23, 2024