Category: state legislatures

State Legislature Elections: Little National Press, Big Voter Impact

There are 435 U.S. House and 34 U.S. Senate seats on midterm referendums nationwide with voters also set to elect 36 governors, but these contests will only occupy the top sections of ballots people in most states will see when they go to polls on Nov. 8. Also on tap will be 133 ballot measures…


State Legislature Elections: Minimal National Press, Big Voter Impact

There are 435 U.S. House and 34 U.S. Senate seats on midterm referendums nationwide, with voters also set to elect 36 governors. But these contests will only been seen by people in most states when they go to the polls on Nov. 8. Also on tap will be 133 ballot measures in 37 states and…


Ranked-Choice Voting Measures Vying for 2022 Ballots in Missouri, Nevada

Proponents are gearing up for stretch-run petition drives to secure signatures needed to get prospective constitutional amendments implementing ranked-choice voting on 2022 ballots in Missouri and Nevada. The Missouri Top-Four Ranked-Choice Voting Initiative would give voters the option to pick from both Republicans and Democrats during open primaries and vote in all general elections for either…


2020 Election Nullification, Audit Bills Dead or Dying in State Legislatures

Nine of 10 bills filed in six states seeking to audit 2020 election results—including three that would have nullified Joe Biden’s victory—have fallen by the wayside as legislative sessions wind down. Seven bills seeking 2020 general elec­tion audits were filed in four states, Flor­ida, New Hamp­shire, South Caro­lina, and Tennessee. Only a New Hampshire measure proposing…


‘Voter Suppression’ Mantra Derailing Sober Analysis of Election Laws, State Lawmakers Say

Despite establishment media handwringing over Republicans in state legislatures menacing democracy with an onslaught of “voter suppression” laws, more bills that expand access to the ballot box were adopted in the nation’s statehouses in 2021 than those that restrict it. That pattern continues in 2022 as the 46 legislatures that convene this year—41 are in…


How State Legislatures Can Break the Power of Corrupt Big-City Machines in Presidential Elections

Commentary This is the fourth essay in a five-part series. This essay explains how lawmakers in swing states can contain local corruption in presidential elections: by changing how their states choose presidential electors. This is the fourth in a five-part series on how to cleanse our presidential contests from the kind of irregularities we saw…


State Legislatures Are Central to Our Constitutional System—So Why Didn’t They Act to Resolve the 2020 Election?

Commentary Irregularities in the 2020 presidential election left the winner in doubt in six states. In that situation, federal law (3 U.S.C. § 2) explicitly invites the state legislature to arrange for appointment of their state’s presidential electors. All six contested states were certified for the Democratic ticket. In five of those states, the legislative…