Tag Archives: Topic: Elections

Wall Street Journal: On Sunday, the Hawaii attorney general’s office said information Mr. Bennett provided “did not meet the requirements under Hawaii law” and the state “invited him to provide additional legal authority.”

Erik Stanley at the Speak Up Movement Church Blog: The Devon Park United Methodist Church in Wilmington, North Carolina, served as a polling place and also put a message on its church sign that read, “A true marriage is male and female and God.” Voters saw the sign on their way in to vote and some complained about the message. One woman even called the message on the sign “voter intimidation.” . . . The elections board for the county where the church is located plans to address the issue of the church’s sign in the coming days.

Daily Telegraph: Vladimir Putin’s election as Russian President was either the result of a hopelessly inept rigging exercise or voting patterns which contradict the laws of statistics, according to a new study.

EnidNews.com: Fallin nominated former Corporation Commissioner Jim Roth to the Oklahoma State Election Board last fall. Roth has since served as a member of the election board, pending a Senate confirmation hearing.

WorldNetDaily: Secretary of State Ken Bennett had promised to ask Hawaii officials for verification of Obama’s documentation, vowing that if answers are not forthcoming, Obama’s name will not be on the ballot.

Richard L. Hasen at Slate: The news this week that a federal appeals court has refused to block a lower court ruling requiring the disclosure of more funders of campaign ads has campaign finance reformers tasting their first victory in a long time. “It’s the first major breakthrough in overcoming the massive amounts of secret contributions that are flowing into federal elections,” Fred Wertheimer of Democracy 21 told the Los Angeles Times.

The Hill: Sen. John McCain is talking with Democrats about a joint effort to require outside groups that have spent millions of dollars on this year’s elections to disclose their donors.

The American: Therefore, any strategy of waiting for demographics to realize the maximalist position of gay marriage advocates across the country looks to be, at the very least, a lengthy endeavor. States on the margins, like California and Washington, where initial bans commanded marginal majorities, might support gay marriage in the near future. But on a wider scale, movement on the issue, though real, is likely to be far too slow to bring about dramatic change nationally anytime soon . . . The gay marriage movement might have other reasons to be a little less optimistic. Young voters change their political views as they age, and the overwhelming liberal tendencies of college campuses are not reflected in the American electorate.

Des Moines Register: Iowa Supreme Court Justice David Wiggins vows he won’t stand quietly by if opponents of same-sex marriage launch a potent campaign to oust him from the bench.

How Appealing links to commetary by MI Supreme Court Justice Marilyn Kelly and Sixth Circuit Judge James Ryan.

Judge Steve Leben and Judge Kevin S. Burke at MinnPost: In election years, judges frequently come under attack for a specific decision. And since judges generally can’t comment publicly about pending cases beyond what was said in the decision itself, judges can be an easy target.

LifeNews: The pro-life community in West Virginia had an excellent night during its primary election last night as 88 percent of the candidates the main statewide pro-life group endorsed made it past their primary and on to the general election.

Charlotte Observer: With 90 percent of the counties reporting, the constitutional amendment to make marriage between a man and a woman the “only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized” won resoundingly, 61 percent to 39 percent.

“Once again we see that Americans are married to marriage, the fundamental building block of a healthy, thriving society. The people of North Carolina, like 31 states before them, recognized that marriage should be strengthened and protected from legal attacks. ADF applauds the people of North Carolina who’ve followed in the footsteps of diverse cultures and faiths, throughout history and across the globe, in upholding marriage as the ideal.”

Washington Post: A review of Obama’s top bundlers–those who have brought in $500,000 or more for the campaign–shows that about one in six publicly identify themselves as gay. His overall list of bundlers also includes a number of gay couples who have wed in jurisdictions where same-sex marriage was legal.

AP: Veteran Sen. Richard Lugar’s loss in the Indiana GOP primary provides warnings for President Barack Obama and his Democrats as well as Mitt Romney and fellow Republicans six months before the November election.

AP: The candidates may be the same, but Wisconsin isn’t.

NBC (includes video):  Republican foreign policy elder statesman Sen. Richard Lugar, 80, first elected to the Senate in 1976, was defeated in the Indiana primary Tuesday by state Treasurer Richard Mourdock, who was backed by conservatives ranging from the National Rifle Association to local Tea Party activists to the Washington-based fiscal conservative group the Club for Growth.

Jordan Lorence at Townhall: Therefore, the “domestic partner” plans in Durham, Orange County, and elsewhere give the financial benefits of marriage to unmarried partners without imposing the duties of marriage. That means these local “domestic partner” ordinances treat unmarried couples better than married couples. If local governments want to give benefits to households under no legal duty to support others, they can do so with neutral criteria that apply to all unmarried households.

OregonLive.com: Nonetheless, Richard Baldwin, Nena Cook and Timothy Sercombe each have tried to stand out in the race for one of Oregon’s most influential judicial seats.

David Cortman at Townhall: Recently, she added another statement to the list when she expressed support for the idea of amending the First Amendment. (That’s not a typo.) Pelosi is pushing this under the guise of removing the influence of money from political campaigns. Because her first attempt to do this, via the McCain/Feingold Campaign Finance Reform legislation in 2003, was squashed . . .

AP: With Mitt Romney’s GOP presidential nomination all but decided, Ron Paul supporters took control of the Maine Republican Convention and elected a majority slate supporting the Texas congressman to the GOP national convention, party officials said.

BBC: Analysts say the vote has wide implications for the whole eurozone. Mr Hollande has vowed to rework a deal on government debt in member countries.

Judd Gregg at The Hill: It has been a long time getting there, but France now seems to be on the final leg of this journey of self-delusion and self-destruction. The world is becoming more and more competitive, with no time for the self-indulgent as nations seek better lifestyles for their people. The politics of envy and the real reduction in competitiveness of the French society is clearly placing France and many nations in Europe at a tipping point.

The HIll: Ron Paul supporters are taking over state party organizations across the country — and that could spell trouble for Mitt Romney and other establishment Republicans come election time.

KTUU.com: A group of Anchorage voters has formally requested a recount of ballots associated with the city’s troubled April 3 election. The group — consisting of 10 Anchorage voters, and headed by Anchorage attorney Hal Gazaway — is asking that all ballots cast in 15 different precincts be recounted by hand.

Columbus Dispatch: The Ohio Campaign to Protect Marriage sued last month, challenging DeWine’s approval of the wording on a ballot amendment proposed by Freedom to Marry Ohio.

Findlaw: In February, the Supreme Court stayed the Montana decision, (now called American Tradition Partnership v. Bullock), pending a petition for writ of certiorari. Justice Ginsburg, joined by Justice Breyer, issued a statement supporting the stay in light of stare decisis, but expressing an interest in re-examining Citizens United.

WFMZ.com: The American Civil Liberties Union is taking on Pennsylvania’s new voter identification law.

Religion Clause Blog: In France, after a first-round Presidential vote in which Muslims have been vilified, Muslim leaders– particularly in southeast France– are pressing Muslims to vote in Sunday’s run-off election . . .

LifeNews: The Planned Parenthood abortion business waged a $100,000 bet that it could influence a race for the state legislature and it lost that battle.

Gallup: Mitt Romney leads Barack Obama by 17 percentage points, 54% to 37%, among very religious voters in Gallup’s latest five-day presidential election tracking average. Obama leads by 14 points, 54% to 40%, among the moderately religious, and by 31 points, 61% to 30%, among those who are nonreligious.

WILJA.com (ADF materials shown in video): ”Preventing” same sex marriage from being legalized in Maryland, despite the Governor’s signature, is the goal for a group that held closed- door meetings all across the state Wednesday evening.

The Hill: Sen. Orrin Hatch fell just short of an outright victory at the Utah Republican convention, meaning he will face a primary to secure the GOP nomination for his own Senate seat.

NY Post: Call it President Obama’s Committee for the Re-Election of the President — a political slush fund at the Health and Human Services Department. Only this isn’t some little fund from shadowy private sources; this is taxpayer money, redirected to help Obama win another term. A massive amount of it, too — $8.3 billion. Yes, that’s billion, with a B.

Reuters: A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday ruled Arizona may require voters to show identification at the polls, a ruling likely to add fuel to the fiery debate about voting rights in a presidential election year.

Anchorage Daily News: But the Assembly at the meeting delayed certification of the election until at least April 24, and Hall said the inquiry ought to wait too. The postponement allows for the Election Commission to finish counting the remaining 13,434 votes and issue recommendations on just what an investigator ought to be looking for, he said.

Politico: The political arm of Planned Parenthood is going up with a major TV ad buy in a Pennsylvania special election, aimed at sending a message to state Republicans who are attempting to pass a restrictive ultrasound bill.

Washington Post: Egypt’s presidential electoral commission permanently disqualified 10 presidential hopefuls, including three front-runners, on Tuesday, upending the election just weeks before next month’s vote.

Marion Star: Ohio’s elections chief is violating the state constitution by requiring county election boards to follow a federal court decree instead of state law when it comes to counting provisional ballots, GOP lawmakers alleged in a lawsuit Monday.

KTUU.com: In more than 125 emails to city officials, some people are demanding that Anchorage Municipal Clerk Barbara Gruenstein be fired for her handling of the troubled April 3 city elections,according to Anchorage Assembly member Elvi Gray-Jackson.

How Appealing links to the ruling and reports.

NECN.com: The Anchorage Assembly has voted against hiring an independent special counsel to look into what went wrong in last week’s municipal election.

Mark Steyn at National Review: Melanie Phillips on an election in Yorkshire for the House of Commons in the Mother of Parliaments in the early 21st century: ‘All praise to Allah!’ he [George Galloway] saluted his victory through a loud-hailer — having previously told a public meeting that if people didn’t vote for him, Allah would want to know why.

Philadelphia Inquirer: Critics of the month-old voter-identification law are poised to challenge it in the courts and General Assembly.

Religion Clause Blog: AP reported yesterday on the problems faced by Amish and certain Mennonite sects now that Pennsylvania’s new voter identification law has come into effect.

KC Star: As an internal city review of what went wrong in Tuesday’s Anchorage election moves forward, the American Civil Liberties Union of Alaska is calling for a special counsel to investigate the matter.

Breitbart (video): In a new video provided to Breitbart.com, James O’Keefe’s Project Veritas demonstrates why Holder should stop attacking voter ID laws–by walking into Holder’s voting precinct and showing the world that anyone can obtain Eric Holder’s primary ballot. Literally.

LifeNews: While the impetus for the recall stems from leftwing opposition to Governor Scott Walker’s policies regarding collective bargaining and public employee benefits, there is much at stake for unborn children.

Joel Oster appeared on Wallbuilders Live to discuss this. | MP3 audio 9:44 mins

The Hill: With 98 percent of precincts reporting, Romney had 43 percent of the vote, with second-place finisher Rick Santorum taking 38 percent. Ron Paul came in third with 12 percent, followed by Newt Gingrich at 6 percent.

The Hill: With 75 percent of precincts reporting, Romney led with 48 percent of the vote. Chief rival Rick Santorum was next with 30 percent of the vote, while Newt Gingrich trailed with 11 percent and Ron Paul garnered 10 percent.

Anchorage Daily News: With more than 90 percent of the precincts reporting late Tuesday, 58 percent of voters had voted against Proposition 5 . . .

Alan E. Sears at the ADF Blog: The penalty for opposing the policies of El Paso mayor John Cook are getting stiffer – maybe as stiff as “sign a petition, go to jail.”

Washington Post: The mere possibility that a rich benefactor or interest group with endless amounts of money could swoop in, write massive checks and remake an entire court for ideological reasons has prompted judges here in Florida and elsewhere to prepare for battles they never expected to fight.

One News Now: A recall election has been officially ordered against embattled first-term Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker after more than 900,000 signatures were collected on petitions to force a vote.

NECN.com: A panel of federal judges has ruled that several voters represented by the American Civil Liberties Union can take part in a legal challenge over South Carolina’s new voter ID law.

AP: Bailed-out Ireland will stage a referendum on the European fiscal treaty May 31 . . .

Today three corporations asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review the Montana Supreme Court’s holding that corporations in Montana may be banned from making independent political expenditures by expressly advocate the election or defeat of state candidates.

Joel Oster at Townhall: In El Paso, Texas, Democrat Mayor John Cook is literally doing whatever he can to cram his political preferences down the throats of El Pasoans who voted against him.

“Churches and ministries shouldn’t live in fear of being punished by the government for engaging in free speech protected by the First Amendment. The substance of our argument in that regard is alive and well at the Texas Supreme Court. All the high court decided was that it would not put a hold on the ruling from the Texas Court of Appeals. It has not yet ruled on the substance of our case or on our motion for an expedited appeal.”

ADF Attorney Joel Oster appeared on the Janet Mefferd Show to discuss this: Hundreds of Christians face jail time in El Paso. | MP3 audio 13:46 mins

Al.com: oy Moore, the past and likely future chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, brushed aside today talk of someone making an independent run against him in November’s general election.

ADF Attorney Joel Oster on Washington Watch with Tony Perkins to discuss this: ADF: Hundreds of Christians face jail time in El Paso. | MP3 audio 11:54 mins

The Hill: Two Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee questioned Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski in a letter on Tuesday about his agency’s proposal to require TV stations to keep online databases of political advertising.

In 2007, New York City created a blacklist. It singled out nearly 12,000 of its most prominent citizens and said that they were the most likely to try to bribe politicians with campaign contributions. So the City published their names on the Internet for everybody to see and reduced the amount of contributions they can make to their chosen candidates by 90%

El Paso Times: Bopp, who also is mentioned in the article, said the purpose of the James Madison Center is not to help get Republicans elected, and McConnell “was not involved in (the center’s) day-to-day operations.” Instead, the James Madison Center became involved in the case at the behest of the Alliance Defense Fund, Bopp said. “This case has revealed that your Texas campaign-finance laws have some bad features,” he said . . . The Liberty Legal Institute didn’t respond last week to questions for this story. The Alliance Defense Fund, a national organization that had already joined the recall fight, also says in its mission statement that it fights for constitutional freedoms. “ADF is a legal alliance defending the right to hear and speak the Truth through . . . ” [more]

Bloomberg: However, the other cases before the court all have a common denominator: Hispanics.

NY Times: In a serious setback for justice in Alabama, primary voters chose Roy Moore to be their candidate for chief justice of the State Supreme Court in November. He is now the odds-on favorite to win. You may remember that Mr. Moore lost that job in 2003 when a special ethics court removed him from the bench after he defied a court order to remove a Ten Commandments monument from the lobby of the state judicial building in Montgomery.

Election Law Blog: Texas filed an amended complaint today [UPDATE, actually Tuesday] in its action to overcome the US Department of Justice’s objection to its voter identification law. The complaint now says that the Voting Rights Act section 5, as amended in 2006, “exceeds the enumerated powers of Congress and conflicts with Article IV of the Constitution and the Tenth Amendment.”

AP: Sen. Dick Lugar has been ruled ineligible to vote in Indiana by a county election board. The partisan vote by the Marion County Election Board was 2-1.

Christian Science Monitor: Ron Paul received the most votes in the US Virgin Islands caucuses over the weekend, but Mitt Romney got more pledged delegates.

The AP reports.

AP: “The fact is, in both states, the conservative candidates got nearly 70 percent of the vote. And if you’re the front-runner – if you’re the front-runner and you keep coming in third, you’re not much of a front-runner,” Gingrich said.

Breitbart carries the report and video.