The Fulcrum is a nonprofit and nonpartisan news organization focused exclusively on efforts to reverse the dysfunctions plaguing American democracy.
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Two prominent voting rights groups are attempting to formally intervene so they can fight a Pennsylvania lawsuit that threatens thousands of names on the voter rolls in that marquee battleground state.
This article was first published on The Fulcrum
Updated Monday afternoon to describe four, not three, lawsuits.
Expanding voters' access to absentee ballots across the South during the coronavirus pandemic is the goal of the four newest lawsuits brought by Democrats and civil rights groups.
This article was first published on The Fulcrum
While $400 million in federal funds has been allocated to make voting safer during the coronavirus pandemic, local election officials and good-government groups say that's not nearly sufficient. In fact, spending all the money in just five bigger states would not even cover their necessary expenses.
Originally published on The Fulcrum.
All Kentuckians will get the chance to vote by mail in the June 23 primary under a deal worked out between Gov. Andy Beshear, a Democrat, and Secretary of State Michael Adams, a Republican.
The switch is an attempt to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Kentucky is now the 10th state that normally strictly limits mail-in voting, but will make it nearly universal during the pandemic.
When it comes to changing the rules for gathering signatures to get on the ballot during the coronavirus crisis, some states have been more lenient than others.
In Massachusetts, a state court has loosened signature requirements for politicians this year, given the national health concerns. But a federal court in Arizona did not consider doing the same for ballot measure campaigns.
This story was originally published on The Conversation, and later re-published on The Fulcrum.
Originally published on The Fulcrum.
Enactment of the Voting Rights Act in 1965 remains a celebrated landmark in American history. It's time to celebrate the law's potential anew by making some big changes in how state legislatures are elected. My home state of Virginia illustrates the merits of doing so.
Originally published on The Fulcrum.
Bernie Sanders ending his campaign, obviating the need for more Democratic presidential primaries, is the biggest news of the week about keeping democracy safe during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Vermont senator dropped out Wednesday, hours after the end of a chaotic day of primary voting in Wisconsin that went ahead on schedule even though a federal court is keeping the results sealed until next week.
Originally published on The Fulcrum.
An estimated 1.4 million freed Florida felons may start registering to vote, a federal judge has ruled.
Tuesday's decision by District Judge Robert Hinkle is a potential watershed in the two-year fight over the future political rights of those who have been released from prison in the nation's biggest battleground state.
Originally published on The Fulcrum.
Sarat is a professor of jurisprudence and political science at Amherst College.