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Articles on Election law

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Local residents wait in line to receive their ballots before casting their vote, Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022, in West Des Moines, Iowa. AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall

I’m an election law expert who ran a polling station this election – here’s what I learned about the powerful role of local officials in applying the law fairly

What’s it like for an election law scholar to work at a polling place on Election Day? A law school professor sees how election laws work – or keep election workers guessing – at the ground level.
A Black man and his son leave a polling location in Atlanta after casting a vote in the Georgia primary election on May 24, 2022. Jessica McGowan/Getty Images

Georgia’s GOP overhauled the state’s election laws in 2021 – and critics argue the target was Black voter turnout, not election fraud

In a state where elections have turned on Black voters, the recent GOP overhaul of Georgia election laws has many voting rights activists and Democrats concerned that turnout may be affected.
Voters line up at a polling station in Houston to cast their ballots during the Texas presidential primary on March 3, 2020. Mark Felix/AFP via Getty Images

It’s taking more time to cast a ballot in US elections – and even longer for Black and Hispanic voters

A 2014 US Presidential Commission set a guideline that voters should not have to wait more than 30 minutes to cast their ballots. In some voting districts, it’s taking longer than an hour.
If the House of Representatives selects the president, each state would get a single vote – not one vote per House member. iStock/Getty

Congress could select the president in a disputed election

Judges are generally reluctant to decide elections, as the Supreme Court controversially did in 2000. As a result, Trump’s flurry of litigation could wind up throwing the election to the House.
Wisconsin voters had to wait in line in April, wearing masks, because they could not vote by mail. Kamil Krzaczynski/AFP via Getty Images

Some states more ready for mail-in voting than others

In many states, any voter can ask for an absentee ballot and mail it in – but in others, there are stricter rules about who can vote by mail.
Milwaukee voters wait in a social-distancing line, some wearing masks, before voting in the state’s spring elections on April 7. AP Photo/Morry Gash

Why the Supreme Court made Wisconsin vote during the coronavirus crisis

The Supreme Court under Chief Justice John Roberts has reversed its decadeslong practice of protecting voters’ rights and removing barriers to casting ballots.

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