On Election Day, millions of Americans fulfill their civic duty to vote. Millions more will have already cast their ballot, either early or by mail, before Election Day. It may take a while – from a few days to a few weeks – to count all those ballots, but we need to be patient for our democracy to work for all of us.
A hallmark of our democracy is...
Roald Hazelhoff is a father, a grandfather, a U.S. citizen and one of the many qualified voters swept up in Alabama’s illegal voter purge.
Just weeks before voters were set to head to the polls, Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen implemented an illegal purge program that unfairly and wrongly targeted naturalized U.S. citizens.
This purge targeted...
Voters have a right to know that the officials who write, implement and interpret the laws that govern this land are prioritizing the greater public good over their own personal interests.
But just a few days away from a presidential election, the perception that many voters have toward candidates for public office — and whether they are trusted...
Throughout 2024, Campaign Legal Center has worked to identify and combat attempts to undermine the democratic process of our elections and safeguard all Americans’ right to cast a well-informed vote this fall.
Some of these threats are newly developing, like artificial intelligence (AI) spreading misinformation to voters or candidate's campaigns u...
Ahead of the 2024 election, voters, community organizations and nonprofits in Virginia and Alabama have successfully halted illegal voter purge programs that wrongfully targeted naturalized citizens, especially Black and brown voters.
As a result of lawsuits filed by Campaign Legal Center and our partner organizations on behalf of our clients in...
Wealthy donors looking to secretly influence elections frequently donate to politically active nonprofits, such as 501(c)(4) “dark money” groups, exploiting a loophole that deprives voters of their right to know who’s spending money to influence elections.
However, among the various types of nonprofits, 501(c)(3) organizations — groups that are tax...
As the 2024 election draws nearer by the day, voters — particularly in swing states like Pennsylvania and Georgia — are being flooded with campaign ads urging them to support certain candidates and political parties. Many of these ads also ask viewers to donate money.
Amidst this deluge of campaign ads, voters need robust legal guardrails that...
Wealthy special interests use campaign money to influence voters and exert control over political decision-making at all levels of government.
The 1st Circuit Court of Appeals recently heard oral arguments in four consolidated cases regarding a new Maine law that addresses one particularly troubling form of influence: spending by foreign...
Wealthy special interests have increasingly dominated the financing of our elections, threatening to drown out the voices of everyday Americans. Running an electoral campaign for public office can come with an exorbitant cost, which helps explain why megadonors — or the outside groups they bankroll — routinely end up footing the bill and, in the...
The U.S. Supreme Court delivered a win for San Francisco voters by declining to accept a case brought by plaintiffs against a local campaign finance transparency law for further review.
This decision leaves in place disclosure requirements that will provide San Francisco voters with important information on who is spending money to influence their...
Former President Donald Trump has failed to provide the public with an ethics code for his executive transition team as required by the Presidential Transition Act.
By October 1, both major party presidential candidates are required to establish ethics plans for their transition teams, which manage critical preelection and postelection matters...
Cryptocurrency companies have reportedly made more political contributions than any other industry thus far in the 2024 election cycle, spending close to $119 million as of the most recent available reporting.
In particular, the industry is pouring money into contributions supporting senators and Senate candidates who back the fast-growing financial...
Utah voters scored a big victory when the Utah Supreme Court ruled in their favor today. Holding that the people have the right to truthful ballot language and proper notice for proposed constitutional amendments, the court officially voided Constitutional Amendment D — an amendment that would have allowed the Legislature to amend or repeal citizen...
This fall will host the first presidential election where artificial intelligence (AI) will play a major role. From the campaign trail to the ballot box, bad actors have already found ways to use AI as a tool to mislead voters and misrepresent political entities in campaign communications. Federal agencies, like the Federal Election Commission (FEC...
Every four years in November, Americans head to the polls to elect a president and vice president of the United States. But what happens between the time everyone’s votes are cast and when the next president takes the oath of office on Jan. 20? A federal law, the Electoral Count Reform Act (ECRA), lays out the procedures for finalizing the election...
With the 2024 election right around the corner, all eyes are on the systems in place that ensure our elections are safe, secure and accurate. Season 4 of Campaign Legal Center’s award-winning Democracy Decoded will do a deep dive into the tried and tested systems and the checks and balances that make our elections run smoothly.
Democracy Decoded...
The Judicial Conference of the United States will meet this week to consider a number of issues concerning the judicial branch, including its ongoing investigation into Justice Clarence Thomas for willfully omitting tens of thousands of dollars of gifts from wealthy GOP donor Harlan Crow from his financial disclosures.
This investigation has taken...
Our democracy works best when every voter can participate. Even though every American regardless of where they are born has the freedom to vote, recent voter purges — including in Alabama — are threatening American citizens’ freedom to vote and targeting naturalized citizens.
Just months before voters are set to head to the ballot box to cast...
In recent years, Campaign Legal Center (CLC) has worked hard to shine a bright light on “redboxing,” an unacceptable practice in which political campaigns publish content that signals to supportive super PACs what materials and strategies they should use in their own ads.
Following the Supreme Court’s 2010 decision in Citizens United and subsequent...
This article was originally published as an edition CLC President and Founder Trevor Potter’s must-read newsletter, “From the Desk of Trevor Potter.” For more in-depth insights and expert analysis like this delivered right to your inbox this election season and beyond, sign up for the newsletter here or on LinkedIn.
The last few months have taught...
Election officials are our neighbors and friends who dedicate long hours before, during and after Election Day to ensure our elections are safe, secure and accurate.
Campaign Legal Center (CLC) spoke with Pennsylvania Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt and Kent County, Michigan Clerk Lisa Lyons about the important role of election officials...