Election Law @ Moritz

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Edward B. Foley
Free & Fair is a collection of writings by Edward B. Foley, one of the nation's preeminent experts on election law.

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Commentary on the latest developments in election law. [See List by Author]


2009

  • Nov. 5 - Uncounted Ballots: A Measure of Vulnerability (Edward B. Foley)
  • Oct. 20 - Election Commissions and Supreme Courts (Edward B. Foley)
  • Sep. 9 - Line-drawing after Overruling Austin (Edward B. Foley)
  • Jul. 31 - Citizens United, Stare Decisis, and Democracy (Edward B. Foley)
  • Jun. 30 - Impressive Unanimity: the Historical Significance of Coleman v. Franken (Edward B. Foley)
  • Jun. 1 - Conscientious Judging on Display (Edward B. Foley)
  • May. 14 - Factual Points and Uncertainties Relevant to the Coleman v. Franken Appeal (Edward B. Foley)
  • May. 5 - State Law Issues Loom Large in Coleman v. Franken Appeal (Edward B. Foley)
  • Apr. 21 - Speculations about Equal Protection: The Difficulties of Principled Line-Drawing (Edward B. Foley)
  • Apr. 14 - Out from the Shadows of Bush v. Gore (Edward B. Foley)
  • Apr. 1 - Situation Normal: Election Too Close to Call (Edward B. Foley)
  • Mar. 31 - Unsurprising Ruling Does Not End Minnesota Senate Case (Edward B. Foley)
  • Mar. 17 - Reluctance to Void Elections - Some Memorable Cases (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Mar. 11 - What has to happen to unring this Bell? (Sarah Cherry)
  • Mar. 2 - Un-counting votes in Minnesota’s U.S. Senate race (Sarah Cherry)
  • Feb. 25 - Coin-flipping: Is it a good idea? (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Feb. 16 - A Victory for the Rule of Law (Edward B. Foley)
  • Feb. 12 - Minnesota Law and Federal Equal Protection (Edward B. Foley)
  • Feb. 12 - In the Coleman-Franken Contest, the Three-Judge Court Will Now Be Tested (Edward B. Foley)
  • Feb. 4 - Understanding Yesterday’s Rulings in Coleman v. Franken (Edward B. Foley)
  • Jan. 22 - MN Contest Court Off to a Good Start (Edward B. Foley)
  • Jan. 20 - Inauguration Day (Edward B. Foley)
  • Jan. 15 - MN Analysis: Allegations of Double-Counted Duplicates (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Jan. 12 - Analysis of Coleman Claim Re: Uninitialed Ballots (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Jan. 7 - Who Will Judge the Minnesota Contest? (Edward B. Foley)

2008

  • Dec. 23 - What to Tell an Electoral Elf (Edward B. Foley)
  • Dec. 9 - If the Minnesota Recount Involved a Presidential Race… (Edward B. Foley)
  • Nov. 26 - New Bush v. Gore Precedent (Edward B. Foley)
  • Nov. 25 - Eyes Now Turn to Ohio Supreme Court (Edward B. Foley)
  • Nov. 10 - Voting next time—and in 2020 (Edward B. Foley)
  • Nov. 5 - Minnesota under the Microscope (Edward B. Foley)
  • Nov. 4 - Four Sub-Categories of Uncounted Ballots (Edward B. Foley)
  • Nov. 3 - Only in Ohio (Ruth Colker)
  • Nov. 1 - 3 Things I'm Watching For (Edward B. Foley)
  • Oct. 30 - Post-election contests: Four states to watch (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Oct. 30 - McCain v. Obama: What's Next? (Chris Elmendorf)
  • Oct. 29 - Waiting for a Presidential Winner: The Lessons of 1884 and 1916 (Edward B. Foley)
  • Oct. 29 - The Ohio Ballot Experiment of 2008 (David Kimball)
  • Oct. 28 - Unanimous Decision in McCain v. Obama (hypothetical) (Edward B. Foley)
  • Oct. 22 - The Latest from the Land of [Election] Litigation (Edward B. Foley)
  • Oct. 19 - Understanding the Supreme Court’s Decision in Brunner v Ohio Republican Party (Dale A. Oesterle)
  • Oct. 17 - ORP v. Brunner: What is at stake? (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Oct. 7 - The First Bush v. Gore — and the Next:
    New York's Election of 1792 & Its Continuing Relevance (Edward B. Foley)
  • Sep. 23 - McCain v. Obama,
    a U.S. Supreme Court hypothetical (one hopes) (Edward B. Foley)
  • Sep. 22 - McCain Likely to Win Ballot Request Fight (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Sep. 9 - EL@M Publishes Major New Research (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Aug. 26 - Social Initiatives on State Ballots (Dale A. Oesterle)
  • Aug. 12 - Do We Need a Box for "Abstain"? (Dale A. Oesterle)
  • Jul. 29 - Bipartisanship in Election Administration: Is There Enough? (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Jul. 15 - Regulation of voter registration drives: Will there be further litigation? (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Jul. 1 - Registration Bottlenecks: Will They Be a Problem in ’08? (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Jun. 17 - Election-Day Emergencies: Are We Prepared? (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Jun. 3 - Are We Condemned to Repeat It? (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • May. 20 - A November Hypothetical (Edward B. Foley)
  • May. 6 - Judicial Review of Electoral Mechanics After Crawford (Chris Elmendorf)
  • Apr. 29 - Crawford: It Could Have Been Worse (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Apr. 15 - Federal Court Extension of Polling Hours: Problem, Proposal, Example (Part 3) (Edward B. Foley)
  • Apr. 1 - Federal Court Extension of Polling Hours: Problem, Proposal, Example (Part 2) (Edward B. Foley)
  • Mar. 18 - Federal Court Extension of Polling Hours: Problem, Proposal, Example (Edward B. Foley)
  • Mar. 3 - Ohio Paper Ballots Done Right (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Feb. 19 - Administering the March 4 Primary in Ohio (Edward B. Foley)
  • Feb. 5 - The Potential Election Administration Challenges of Super Tuesday 2008 (Steven F. Huefner)
  • Jan. 22 - On Lopez Torres and Line Drawing (Chris Elmendorf)
  • Jan. 8 - The Amicus Briefs in the Indiana Voter Identification Case: I read... so you don't have to (Mike Pitts)
  • Jan. 3 - EL@M Announces New Interactive Map Feature (Nathan Cemenska)

2007

  • Dec. 20 - More Planning Needed to Prepare for '08 Election (Steven F. Huefner, Daniel P. Tokaji, and Edward B. Foley)
  • Dec. 11 - Ohio provisional ballots: Could they determine our next President? (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Nov. 27 - Quality of Election Administration Varies Among Great Lake States (Forthcoming Report: From Registration to Recounts) (Steven F. Huefner, Daniel P. Tokaji, and Edward B. Foley)
  • Nov. 13 - You Can't Predict, You Can Only Plan: More Lessons From Ohio (Terri L. Enns)
  • Oct. 30 - AVBM: What If We Could Make It Fraud-Proof? (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Oct. 23 - Don't Play Poker with All Saints Church (Donald B. Tobin)
  • Oct. 2 - The Supreme Court and Election Law: In Search of Doctrinal Specificity (Edward B. Foley)
  • Sep. 18 - What Congress Should Be Talking About (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Sep. 4 - Super-Duper Tuesday: What Does It Mean for Election Administration? (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Jul. 3 - Precedent and Judicial Responsibility (Edward B. Foley)
  • Jun. 19 - A Model Court for Contested Elections (Or, the “Field of Dreams” Approach to Election Law Reform) (Edward B. Foley)
  • Jun. 5 - Money for Data: Funding the Oldest Unfunded Mandate (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • May. 22 - The Politics of Justice (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • May. 8 - Auditing a State’s Laws for Resolving Election Contests (Edward B. Foley)
  • Apr. 24 - Courts Need to Keep a Skeptical Eye on New Voter Identification Laws (Richard L. Hasen)
  • Apr. 10 - Running Elections in Cuyahoga County Next Year (Edward B. Foley)
  • Mar. 27 - The Secretary of State's Complaint Against the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections (Terri L. Enns)
  • Mar. 13 - Early Voting in 2008 (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Feb. 27 - AVBM: Let's See How It Would Work in Ohio (Nathan Cemenska)
  • Feb. 13 - The Nation's Interest in Ohio's New Secretary of State (Edward B. Foley)
  • Jan. 30 - The Democracy Index: A Reply (Heather Gerken)
  • Jan. 16 - Designing the Democracy Index (Edward B. Foley)

2006

  • Dec. 19 - Political Campaigning by Churches and Charities (Donald B. Tobin)
  • Dec. 19 - Election Reform's Top Priority: Changing the Electoral College Calendar (Edward B. Foley)
  • Dec. 12 - Happy Birthday, Bush v. Gore (Edward B. Foley)
  • Dec. 5 - Timing is Everything (Edward B. Foley)
  • Nov. 28 - Congress Turns to Election Administration (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Nov. 21 - Election Night: Do We Really Need to Know Results Before We Can Sleep? (Terri L. Enns)
  • Nov. 14 - Local Blackouts on the Electoral Grid (Edward B. Foley)
  • Nov. 7 - Be Thankful If It’s All Over By Thanksgiving (Edward B. Foley)
  • Oct. 31 - The South Dakota Referendum on Abortion: An Alternative to Court Review? (Dale A. Oesterle)
  • Oct. 31 - Recount Redux?: What Might Happen in a Close Election (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Oct. 24 - Purcell's Implications on Pre-Election Litigation (Steven F. Huefner)
  • Oct. 17 - The Machinery of Democratic Accessibility (Ruth Colker)
  • Oct. 10 - How to Identify a Successful Election (Edward B. Foley)
  • Oct. 3 - Ohio's Expanded Absentee Voting Rules: Some Thoughts on Their Impact (Terri L. Enns)
  • Sept. 26 - The IRS and All Saints Church: Tax Procedure in a Case about the Mixing of Religion and Politics (Donald B. Tobin)
  • Sept. 19 - In Praise of Pre-Election Litigation (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Sept. 12 - Burdick or Carrington?: "Fencing Out" and the Voter ID Litigation (Christopher S. Elmendorf)
  • Sept. 5 - Will the Election System Function Properly This Year? (Edward B. Foley)
  • July 25 - Ohio is not Mexico, but... (Edward B. Foley)
  • July 18 - Thinking About Democracy: Justice Stevens and the Roberts Court (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • July 11 - The Risks of Wedge Citizen Initiatives (Dale A. Oesterle)
  • July 3 - Justice Kennedy Deserves Praise, Part II (Edward B. Foley)
  • June 27 - The Importance of Randall's Indecisiveness (Edward B. Foley)
  • June 20 - Voting Rights Act Preclearance: Why Process Matters (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • June 13 - Online Voter Registration is the Answer (Edward B. Foley)
  • June 6 - AWay to Rescue Redistricting Reform (Edward B. Foley)
  • May 30 - Administering the New Voter ID Rule Reasonably (David Stebenne)
  • May 23 - Ballot Initiatives: Use By Political Parties (Dale A. Oesterle)
  • May 16 - Democracy's Revenge? Bush v. Gore and the National Popular Vote (Peter M. Shane)
  • May 9 - Electoral Laments in Major and Minor Keys (Edward B. Foley)
  • May 2 - Welcome to the Machines: Election Day in Ohio (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Apr. 25 - Primary Challenges (Terri L. Enns)
  • Apr. 18 - The Future of Accessible Voting: A Crossroad? (Ruth Colker)
  • Apr. 11 - The Example of Commissioner Martinez
  • Apr. 4 - A Review of the Transcript in the Texas Redistricting Case (Edward B. Foley)
  • Mar. 28 - Will the Expansion of Absentee Voting Yield an Increase in Abuse? (Edward B. Foley)
  • Mar. 21 - Statewide Registration Lists: The Most Important Election Reform? (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Mar. 14 - Voting Technology: Beyond HAVA, Beyond Paper (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Mar. 7 - Incrementalist Election Law? (Edward B. Foley)
  • Feb. 21 - The Roberts Court and the Law of Democracy (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Feb. 14 - Doubleheader Tests the Court's Impartiality: EL@M to host Electronic Roundtable on Pending Pair (Edward B. Foley)
  • Feb. 7 - The Remand in WRTL (Edward B. Foley)
  • Jan. 31 - Campaign Intervention by 501(c)(3) Organizations (Donald B. Tobin)
  • Jan. 24 - Exit Polling's Impact on Voter Confidence (Terri L. Enns)
  • Jan. 17 - The Roberts Court and Precedent: An Early Test in the Context of Campaign Finance (Edward B. Foley)
  • Jan. 10 - Echoes of Bush v. Gore: Courts Are Not Always the Right Forum for Election Contests (Steven F. Huefner)
  • Jan. 3 - Will Election Law Become Clearer This Year? (Edward B. Foley)

2005

  • Dec. 13 - Ohio's ID Proposal: More Harm Than Good (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Dec. 6 - Too Little, Too Late (Ruth Colker)
  • Nov. 29 - The Federalism Defect in the Prosecution of Tom DeLay (Edward B. Foley)
  • Nov. 22 - The IRS and Secret Campaign Regulation (Donald B. Tobin)
  • Nov. 15 - Future Redistricting Reform Must Learn From This Year's Mistakes (Edward B. Foley)
  • Nov. 8 - The Ten Most Urgent Election Reforms (Edward B. Foley)
  • Nov. 1 - Issue 3 is a Big Mistake (Edward B. Foley)
  • Oct. 25 - Redistricting, Electoral Competition, and Citizen Control (Steven F. Huefner)
  • Oct. 18 - The Moneyball Approach to Election Reform (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Oct. 11 - Ohio's Dramatic Citizen Initiative: "Reform Ohio Now" (Dale A. Oesterle)
  • Oct. 4 - Federal Courts Should Not Run State Elections (Edward B. Foley)
  • Sept. 27 - Unhappy Trails in California (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Sept. 20 - The Carter-Baker Report: Two Wrongs Don't Make a Right (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Sept. 13 - How to Hire a Fair Election Law Umpire? (Edward B. Foley)
  • Sept. 6 - Is There a Middle Ground in the Voter ID Debate? (Edward B. Foley)
  • July 26 - Goodbye Mr. Smith, and Welcome Back to Ohio
  • July 19 - What Should the New Justice Do About Campaign Finance? (Edward B. Foley)
  • July 12 - Sharing the Burden: Some Thoughts on Voter Registration Lists (Terri L. Enns)
  • July 5 - Fact-Specific Election Law (Edward B. Foley)
  • June 28 - I Want My MTV ... Mayor! (Christopher M. Fairman)
  • June 21 - Are Election Reforms Increasing the Margin of Litigation? (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • June 14 - A Bad Bill, With Some Good Things in It (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • June 7 - Refusing to Unseat a Governor Despite a Flawed Election (Edward B. Foley)
  • May 31 - A Fiduciary Conception of Democracy (Edward B. Foley)
  • May 24 - The People and their Constitution (Edward B. Foley)
  • May 17 - The Filibuster and Democracy (Edward B. Foley)
  • May 10 - Ohio Considers Election Reform - Part II (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • May 3 - Ohio Considers Election Reform - Part I (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Apr. 26 - The Work Ahead (Steven F. Huefner)
  • Apr. 19 - Debate Over Campaign Finance Reform in Ohio Prompts Question: Is Disclosure Enough? (Terri L. Enns)
  • Apr. 12 - ID and the Right to Vote (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Apr. 5 - The Provisional Ballots of Unregistered Voters (Edward B. Foley)
  • Mar. 29 - Verifying Voter Registration Lists, Part 2 (Edward B. Foley)
  • Mar. 22 - Verifying Voter Registration Lists (Edward B. Foley)
  • Mar. 15 - The Problems with Early Voting (David Stebenne)
  • Mar. 8 - Thoughts on Gerrymandering (Dale A. Oesterle)
  • Mar. 1 - Election Reform: The Process Matters (Terri L. Enns)
  • Feb. 22 - New 527 Bill Plugs Some Major Holes, but is it Constitutional? (Donald B. Tobin)
  • Feb. 15 - Independent Election Administration (Steven F. Huefner)
  • Feb. 8 - How Did Ohio's Voting Equipment Fare in 2004? (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • Feb. 1 - Making Mock Elections Real (Mary Beth Beazley)
  • Jan. 25 - When to Redo an Election? (Edward B. Foley)
  • Jan. 18 - Ohio's Disabled Voters: Ignored Again (Ruth Colker)

2004

  • Dec. 21 - Minimizing the Need for Provisional Ballots: A Reform Worth Wishing For (Edward B. Foley)
  • Dec. 14 - The Legislature Can Do Better and the Citizens of Ohio Deserve Better (Donald B. Tobin)
  • Dec. 7 - Investing in Politicians to Boost Corporate Profits (Edward B. Foley)
  • Nov. 30 - Reforming the Timetable for the Electoral College Process (Steven F. Huefner)
  • Nov. 23 - Voters with Disabilities: The Potential Swing Vote in the Presidential Election (Ruth Colker)
  • Nov. 17 - When Should a Presidential Election Be Over? (Edward B. Foley)
  • Oct. 19 - Two Weeks Before Election Day, and Yet... (Terri L. Enns)
  • Oct. 12 - Signs of High Turnout Signal Need for Prepared Poll Workers (David Stebenne)
  • Oct. 5 - Blackwell's Mixed Record So Far (Edward B. Foley)
  • Sept. 28 - Let the Sunshine In (Edward B. Foley)
  • Sept. 21 - Lying to Win (Edward B. Foley & Donald B. Tobin)
  • Sept. 14 - Better Voter Training Through Television (Mary Beth Beazley)
  • Sept. 7 - The Power of the Airwaves and the Power of the Vote (Mary Beth Beazley)
  • August 31 - Partisan Gerrymandering and the Impoverishment of Politics (Steven F. Huefner)
  • August 24 - Point-Counterpoint on Election Activities of Churches and Charities (Allan Samansky & Donald B. Tobin)
  • August 17 - Election of State Court Judges: The Ohio Experience (Dale A. Oesterle)
  • August 10 - What if Bush Again Wins without the Popular Vote? (David Stebenne)
  • August 3 - Are Our Democratic Instincts Atrophying? (Peter M. Shane)
  • July 27 - The Paper Trail (Daniel P. Tokaji)
  • July 20 - Welcome to Election Law @ Moritz (Edward B. Foley)
  • July 13 - Judges and Elections (Dale A. Oesterle)
  • July 6 - Election Law 5-to-4 (Edward B. Foley)
  • June 29 - Comparing Two Cases (Edward B. Foley)
  • June 22 - The Missed Opportunity of Vieth (Edward B. Foley)
  • June 15 - The Necessity of Law for Democracy (Edward B. Foley)