Walter Olson
Number six in our series of occasional roundups on election law and policy:
The New York Times showcases proposals to introduce proportional representatives to the US House of Representatives [Jesse Wegman and Lee Drutman, more on Drutman substack]. I expressed mixed feelings when I wrote about this idea in 2023, cautioning that the problems of coalitional instability often seen in PR systems might prove damaging here. Some other counterpoints from Richard Pildes in November (European PR systems in fact “extraordinarily turbulent”), Ned Foley (true multi-party system unlikely to emerge so long as elections for the Senate and presidency remain first-past-the-post), and Yascha Mounk (scheme would necessarily lack constraints such as those employed in Germany to discourage local splinters and microparties).
Study finds “no evidence” of backsliding in minority electoral fortunes in states formerly covered by preclearance in the years following the Supreme Court’s Shelby County v. Holder decision [Alice Malmberg, Election Law Journal; earlier on the underwhelming practical impact of the Shelby County decision)
“New research suggests nonpartisan primaries curb the power of ideological PACs by about two-thirds.” [Richard Barton, Unite America]
Project 2025 report contains a curious call for Pennsylvania officials to be investigated under the Ku Klux Klan Act for adopting a liberal interpretation of state law on provisional ballots. [Justin Levitt, Election Law Blog]
Also good, from Levitt: although plenty of litigation now tends to fly around shortly before a major election, little or none of it actually poses much threat of destabilizing the outcome because most is either small-stakes, without detectable merit, or not to be decided in the present cycle. When you get down to it, much of it is filed for publicity or fundraising [Election Law Blog].
Are you active on the social media site Bluesky? Here’s a list I compiled of some 30 or so Blueskyers who post on election law and reform (and don’t forget the Cato starter pack of accounts to follow).