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Trump Must Sign Ethics Pledge & Transition Documents

Press Release

Trump Must Sign Ethics Pledge & Transition Documents

President-elect Donald Trump still has not signed legal documents – including an ethics pledge - needed to formally begin his administration’s transition of power. Candidates usually file these documents well in advance of the election. As a result of this delay, the government cannot provide security clearances, briefings and resources to Trump’s incoming team before he is sworn into office on January 20th.

Media Contacts

David Vance

National Media Strategist
dvance@commoncause.org
240-605-8600

Katie Scally

Communications Director
kscally@commoncause.org
202-736-5713

Ariana Marmolejo

Regional Communications Strategist (West)
amarmolejo@commoncause.org

Jennifer Garcia

Regional Communications Strategist (South)
jgarcia@commoncause.org

Kenny Colston

Regional Communications Strategist (Midwest)
kcolston@commoncause.org

Common Cause’s network of national and state democracy reform experts are frequent media commentators. To talk with one of our experts, please reach out to any member of the press team above.

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New York Times: Supreme Court Seems Split Over Case That Could Transform Federal Elections

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New York Times: Supreme Court Seems Split Over Case That Could Transform Federal Elections

When the court closed the doors of federal courts to claims of partisan gerrymandering in Rucho v. Common Cause in 2019, Chief Justice Roberts, writing for the five most conservative members of the court, said state courts could continue to hear such cases — including in the context of congressional redistricting.

“Our conclusion does not condone excessive partisan gerrymandering,” he wrote. “Nor does our conclusion condemn complaints about districting to echo into a void. The states, for example, are actively...

McClatchy: Supreme Court hears NC case on elections, with big implications for 2024 and beyond

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McClatchy: Supreme Court hears NC case on elections, with big implications for 2024 and beyond

But the legislature’s opponents, led by Common Cause and Supreme Court litigator Neal Katyal, said there is far more historical precedent in favor of continuing the same set of checks and balances that have always been in place.

Katyal also said the Supreme Court has been incredibly hesitant in the past to rule on state constitutional issues. Yet ruling in favor of North Carolina lawmakers in Moore v. Harper, he said, would render state constitutions toothless in every state in the country — at least when it comes to...

Newsweek: Clarence Thomas’ Own Ruling Used Against Him in High-Stakes Election Case

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Newsweek: Clarence Thomas’ Own Ruling Used Against Him in High-Stakes Election Case

During the oral arguments, Neal Katyal, an attorney for the Common Cause organization, brought up past remarks that the Supreme Court made in the Bush v. Palm Beach County Canvassing Board case.

"And Justice Thomas, it's the same point picking up on Justice Kavanaugh's questioning. Palm Beach, the court said that sovereignty was at its apex when talking about state constitutions and interpretations by state courts," Katyal said. "This Court never second-guessed state interpretations of their own constitutions."

New York Times: Five Things You Need to Know About the Supreme Court Case That Could Radically Change Elections

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New York Times: Five Things You Need to Know About the Supreme Court Case That Could Radically Change Elections

Chief Justice John Roberts implicitly ruled out support for the theory in a landmark 2019 decision, Rucho v. Common Cause, which stated that partisan gerrymanders were political matters outside the purview of federal courts.

“Provisions in state statutes and state constitutions can provide standards and guidance for state courts to apply” in outlawing partisan maps, he wrote, citing a voter-approved amendment to the Florida Constitution that forbids maps drawn with the intent to favor or disfavor a political party.

Washington Post: Supreme Court to consider fundamental change in elections authority

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Washington Post: Supreme Court to consider fundamental change in elections authority

Legal battles over partisan and racial gerrymandering “are as North Carolina as barbecue, tobacco fields and hot, humid summer days,” says the executive director of the state Common Cause chapter.

North Carolina Common Cause Executive Director Bob Phillips said there has not been an election since 1971 in which the state’s redistricting plans have not been challenged.

“In the decade after the 2010 redistricting cycle , every single legislative and congressional election was run on maps that the courts...

CNN: How William Rehnquist led to the new monumental challenge to presidential election rules

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CNN: How William Rehnquist led to the new monumental challenge to presidential election rules

“It is rare to encounter a constitutional theory so antithetical to the Constitution’s text and structure, so inconsistent with the Constitution’s original meaning, so disdainful of this Court’s precedent, and so potentially damaging for American democracy,” lawyers for Common Cause and the other non-state parties said in their brief.

USA Today/Gannett: Supreme Court pressed to give state legislatures more power to oversee federal elections

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USA Today/Gannett: Supreme Court pressed to give state legislatures more power to oversee federal elections

"To give absolute power to one branch of government, unbound by state constitutions, would lead us down a dangerous road to tyranny," asserted Kathay Feng, national redistricting director for Common Cause, which is opposing the position of the North Carolina GOP lawmakers in the case. 

Austin American-Statesman: Texas’ top elections official, Secretary of State John Scott, to step down

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Austin American-Statesman: Texas’ top elections official, Secretary of State John Scott, to step down

"Confirmation hearings are how we’re supposed to have some assurance that the person in charge of elections in Texas is qualified to do that job," said Katya Ehresman, program manager for Common Cause Texas Voting Rights. "We should all be deeply alarmed by the fact that this is the third person to serve as secretary of state without having ever been confirmed by the Texas Senate. An office of this caliber should not continue to be filled by an unconfirmed and unelected official."

MEDIA ADVISORY: Pre-Moore v. Harper Rally, Post-SCOTUS Argument Press Conference on Wednesday

Press Release

MEDIA ADVISORY: Pre-Moore v. Harper Rally, Post-SCOTUS Argument Press Conference on Wednesday

Moore v. Harper is a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case involving a dangerous legal argument that seeks to eliminate the checks and balances served by the state judiciary and to allow state lawmakers to exercise nearly unchecked power to manipulate federal elections.

Tallahassee Democrat/USA Today Network: Why did voter turnout drop in 2022 versus 2018? Strict voting laws, voter arrests, say voting rights advocates

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Tallahassee Democrat/USA Today Network: Why did voter turnout drop in 2022 versus 2018? Strict voting laws, voter arrests, say voting rights advocates

“We know that registered voters with prior convictions and even people who are fully eligible to vote such as people who only have a misdemeanor are concerned or even scared about getting in trouble if they cast their ballots,” said Amy Keith, program director of Common Cause Florida.

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