Elections
Alabama case that could limit Voting Rights Act heard at U.S. Supreme Court
WASHINGTON – U.S. Supreme Court justices on Tuesday heard oral arguments in a case that challenges an Alabama redistricting map and could potentially eliminate remaining federal safeguards against racial gerrymandering. Voting rights advocates fear that the high court’s conservative majority will further weaken the Voting Rights Act, with implications for voters in states across the […]
Trump allies have interviewed nearly 200 election officials to probe for weaknesses
This article was originally published by Votebeat, a nonprofit news organization covering local election administration and voting access. Two of Donald Trump’s most prominent allies in his fight to overturn the 2020 election are leading a coordinated, multi-state effort to probe local election officials in battlegrounds such as Michigan, Arizona, and Texas ahead of the […]
Limited-English voters face barriers to casting ballots in Arkansas
Language poses a big challenge for voters with limited English proficiency in Arkansas, where ballots are only printed in English. Newly naturalized citizens are often afraid to vote because they don’t understand the ballot, said Mireya Reith, executive director of immigrant advocacy group Arkansas United. Voters with limited English proficiency also worry poll workers won’t […]
A conspiracy-fueled push to count ballots by hand gains traction
Nye County, a rural enclave in Nevada, has positioned itself as the epicenter of a Donald Trump-fueled conspiracy about the security of electronic vote tabulators. The Nye County Commission voted in March to make the county one of the first to act on the false narratives that machines that count votes are rigged. County Clerk […]
U.S. House passes overhaul of Electoral Count Act to stop Jan. 6 repeat
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House passed on Wednesday a bill updating a 19th-century law in an attempt to prevent the subversion of future presidential elections. The Presidential Election Reform Act, which passed 229-203, is meant to deter a repeat of the insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, in which the U.S. Capitol was attacked by a […]
An ‘unprecedented flood’ of book bans engulfs U.S. school districts, PEN report says
WASHINGTON — More than 1,600 book titles across 32 states were banned from public schools during the 2021-2022 school year, with the bulk of the ban requests coming from a handful of right-wing groups pushing for censorship of books that feature LGBTQ+ characters and characters of color, a new report issued Monday said. “What I […]
On Democracy Day, newsrooms draw attention to a crisis in the U.S. system of government
A recent poll found that 69 percent of both Democrats and Republicans think democracy in the United States is in danger of collapse. Almost two years after Donald Trump falsely claimed that voter fraud cost him the election and inspired a web of supporters and “big lie” candidates to also believe the election was rigged, […]
ON THE TRAIL: Sarah Huckabee Sanders brings anti-‘radical left’ message, celebrity
Sarah Huckabee Sanders wanted the crowd in Morrilton last week to know she’s a fighter. She fought the media and “the radical left” while in Washington D.C., she said, and if elected Arkansas’ first female governor, she pledged to do the same against the “crazy bad ideas” coming out of the nation’s capital. “I want […]
In Pennsylvania, Trump calls Mastriano and Oz vital to a Republican takeover in 2022 and 2024
WILKES-BARRE TWP., Pa. – Campaigning for Pennsylvania’s Republican gubernatorial and U.S. Senate nominees on Saturday, former President Donald Trump cast Doug Mastriano and Dr. Mehmet Oz as vital leaders in a fight to take back the state and country starting with this year’s midterm election. Trump spoke for nearly two hours at the rally outside […]
Americans think they know a lot about politics; too often they’re wrong
Ian Anson, University of Maryland, Baltimore County As statewide primaries continue through the summer, many Americans are beginning to think about which candidates they will support in the 2022 general election. This decision-making process is fraught with difficulties, especially for inexperienced voters. Voters must navigate angry, emotion-laden conversations about politics when trying to sort out […]
Candidates, mostly Republican, skip debates, bar press during midterm campaigns
WASHINGTON — With two months left of the 2022 campaign season, a majority of Republican candidates are continuing to skirt away from not only talking to local and national media outlets about their policy issues, but their own constituents, leaving voters with little information on their policy positions. “If we are to hold our elected […]
UPDATE: Arkansas Groups voice concern about impact of recreational marijuana proposal on hemp
This story has been updated. It remains unclear if Arkansans will decide whether to legalize recreational marijuana at the ballot box in November, but some in the hemp industry are already concerned. For several weeks, hemp insiders have quietly raised questions about the language of the Arkansas Adult Use Cannabis Amendment, proposed by Responsible Growth […]