CJ Martin is Visiting Assistant Professor at the Center for Interdisciplinary Studies at the College of the Holy Cross. This interview is based on his new book, The Precious Birthright: Black Leaders and the Fight to Vote in Antebellum Rhode […]
voting
What one election poll is telling us
At least voter apathy is on the decline.
The Author’s Corner with Donald A. Zinman
Donald A. Zinman is Professor of Political Science at Grand Valley State University. This interview is based on his new book, America’s First Wartime Election: James Madison, DeWitt Clinton, and the War of 1812 (University Press of Kansas, 2024). JF: […]
Cheering for baseball teams and presidential candidates
What to do when neither sports nor politics offer us our first choice to cheer for?
Harvard youth poll: 18-to-29-year-olds are not happy with Biden, but they will still vote for him over Trump in 2024
Here are some takeaways from a national poll of 2,098 18-to-29-year -olds released yesterday by the Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School. Learn more here. Watch:
“I want to keep politics out of schools”
I’ve been doing some last minute homework before I enter the ballot box tomorrow. As I was researching my local school board candidates I was struck by how many of them use their platforms to say something like this: “Politics […]
The Author’s Corner with Melissa Blair
Melissa Blair is Associate Professor and Department Chair of History at Auburn University. This interview is based on her new book, Bringing Home the White House: The Hidden History of Women who Shaped the Presidency in the Twentieth Century (University […]
A history of the “I Voted” sticker
Are you wearing one today? Here is Rhea Nayyar at HyperAllergic: It’s unclear where the first voting sticker debuted as they’ve been regionally available through local businesses and organizations post-World War II. The Miami Herald mentions the distribution of an […]
Is Trump’s “Big Lie” good for democracy?
Here is The Editorial Board: We all understand that the former president’s Big Lie is ruinous to democracy, the rule of law and republican government. It fueled the J6 insurrection. It inspired GOP legislators to enact draconian election laws. It […]
Is the GOP suppressing its own voters?
According to Timothy Noah at The New Republic, the GOP obsession with restricting mail-in balloting “will likely harm Republican candidates more than Democratic ones.” Here is a taste of his recent piece: Before I dig into these numbers, let me […]
100 prominent political scientists: American democracy is in danger
New America, a Washington D.C. think tank, gathered 100 political scientists to sign this statement of concern: June 1, 2021 We, the undersigned, are scholars of democracy who have watched the recent deterioration of U.S. elections and liberal democracy with […]
A Texas state representative defends the phrase “purity of the ballot box.” It does not go well.
Watch: The Washington Post has it covered: Early on in a contentious night of debate over a bill that would create newvoting restrictions in Texas, state Rep. Rafael AnchĂa (D) zeroed in on what he called a “peculiar term.” The bill said […]
Ronald Reagan in 1975: “Why don’t we try reverse psychology and make it harder to vote?”
I am reading Rick Perlstein’s Reaganland and was struck by this passage (p.93-94): Look what happened after President Carter, on March 22, sent a letter to Congress recommending a package of electoral reforms. The president was concerned that America ranked […]
Will bamboo change the election results in Maricopa County, Arizona?
Arizona is recounting the ballots from the 2020 presidential election. The audit is being conducted by an organization called Cyber Ninjas. This guy is part of the team that is overseeing the audit: What is going on here? Digby is […]
“You can repeal Obamacare from the comfort of your own home”: When the GOP encouraged its members to vote by mail
I found Amy Gardner’s piece at The Washington Post through Tom Sullivan’s post at Hullabaloo. There was once a time when the GOP loved mail-in voting. No more. Here is Gardner: Republican operatives worth their salt remember well the Sunshine […]
Kentucky expands access to voting
While Georgia and other states are restricting the right to vote, Kentucky is expanding it. Here is Tim Elfrink at The Washington Post: As Republicans in more than 40 states have pushed bills to restrict voting after former president Donald Trump’s November […]