OSU Navigation Bar

Election Law @ Moritz Home Page

Election Law @ Moritz

Election Law @ Moritz


Media Information

Share

Media Contact

Barbara Peck
Chief Communications Officer
Moritz College of Law
55 W. 12th Ave.
Columbus, OH 43210-1391
Email: peck.5@osu.edu
Phone: (614) 292-0283

Covered Topics

The Election Law @ Moritz program has faculty experts with expertise in election law and related fields, including the following topics:

  • Absentee & Early Voting
  • Ballot Access
  • Ballot Design
  • Campaign Advertising
  • Campaign Finance
  • Candidate Eligibility
  • Citizens United & related legislation
  • Disability Access to Voting
  • Early Voting
  • Electoral College
  • Election Contest
  • Election Judges
  • False Campaign Ads
  • Felon Voting Rights
  • Get Out the Vote
  • Help America Vote Act (HAVA)
  • Improper Election Administration
  • Improper Election Communications
  • Political Activities of State Employees
  • Poll Worker Training
  • Polling Place Challenges
  • Polling Place Notices
  • Polling Place Observers
  • Polling Place Press Access
  • Primary Election Schedules
  • Provisional Ballots
  • Purging of Voter Rolls
  • Recount & Run-Off Procedures
  • Redistricting
  • Selection of Presidential Electors
  • State Voter Registration Databases
  • Student Voting
  • Vote Dillution
  • Voter Eligibility
  • Voter Fraud
  • Voter ID
  • Voter Registration
  • Voter Supression
  • Voter Turnout
  • Voting Rights Act
  • Voting Technology

Election Law @ Moritz is nonpartisan. We do not endorse, support, or oppose any candidate, campaign, or party. Opinions expressed by individuals associated with Election Law @ Moritz, either on this web site or in connection with conferences or other activities undertaken by the program, represent solely the views of the individuals offering the opinions and not the program itself.

Election Law @ Moritz institutionally does not represent any clients or participate in any litigation, but individuals affiliated with the program may from time to time in their own personal capacity engage in pro bono representation of clients other than partisan candidates or organizations.

Commentary

Donald B. Tobin

FAQ on social welfare organizations

Donald B. Tobin

The Frank E. and Virginia H. Bazler Designated Professor in Business Law and a senior fellow at Election Law @ Moritz explains the nuances of social welfare organizations and federal regulations related to them.

more commentary...

In the News

Donald B. Tobin

How Did The IRS Get The Job Of Vetting Political Activity?

Professor Donald Tobin was interviewed by the Boston NPR station on its show Here & Now about the Internal Revenue Service's investigation into groups classified as social welfare organizations (marked by the 501(c)(4) tax classification). The IRS was in search of groups that are not focusing primarly on the social welfare of the country, but have a strong political advocacy facet. Political advocacy groups might want to be classified as 501(c)(4) organizations because under that classification they do not have to disclose their donors.

"The key is if you are going to be engaged in candidate-type advocacy, and if you're going to intervene in elections and engage in election advocacy, we want disclosure of who your donors are," Tobin said.

“What groups are trying to do here is avoid having to disclose,” Tobin continued. “By earning the classification of social welfare, they’re avoiding the campaign disclosure that’s required for political organizations. So that’s really the underpinning of why we have this mess of the IRS having to get in and investigate and figure out whether an organization is political or not.”

more EL@M in the news...

Info & Analysis

Ohio Secretary of State Releases Report on Voter Fraud

Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted released a report today on voter fraud in Ohio during the 2012 general election. In a press release, Husted stated that while voter fraud does exist in Ohio, "it is not an epidemic." According to the report, 135 voter fraud cases have been referred to law enforcement for possible prosecution. Twenty of these cases involved voters attempting to vote in Ohio and another state. The report shows that 115 cases were referred to local Ohio county prosecutors. According to Husted as quoted in the Columbus Dispatch, most of these cases involved voters attempting to vote twice within the state, and in a "majority" of instances, only one vote was counted.

more info & analysis...