Voting Rights

“I think just like everybody else in the country, Justice Roberts is really, really hoping the election isn’t close,” said Sylvia Albert, the director of voting and elections at the good government nonprofit Common Cause. “He does not want to touch this with a 10-foot pole.”

Justice Ginsburg was a stalwart defender of our democracy and the rule of law. Throughout her term on the Court, she was a key voice in protecting all Americans’ rights and liberties. Justice Ginsburg was a champion for gender equality, racial justice, LGBTQ+ rights, voting rights, commonsense campaign finance laws, fair redistricting, and more.

"The House of Representatives passed nearly 10 democracy reform bills, often with bipartisan support, this session, but Majority Leader Mitch McConnell blocked debate and markups on all of these bills and refused to allow a vote," Common Cause's director of legislative affairs, Aaron Scherb, said. The 2020 Democracy Scorecard, one of the group's initiatives, provides data on every current member of the House of Representatives and Senate, including their votes and co-sponsorships of democracy reform bills. Scherb told Newsweek that McConnell has been instrumental in blocking the current Congress from enacting laws. "There have been hundreds that have been passed by the House at this point. There have only been 158 enacted laws by this 116th Congress to this point. Yet there are hundreds of bills that have passed the House but continue to sit in Senate Majority Leader McConnell's desk, or his 'legislative graveyard' as it's been called," he said.

Turning Point USA’s Arizona troll farm takes a page from the Russian disinformation playbook from the 2016 presidential race and is likely only the tip of the iceberg. The effort is a direct attack on voters and our democracy, and is a reminder that disinformation that suppresses the vote doesn’t just come from Russia or other hostile foreign powers, or in the form of microtargeted ads. The majority of disinformation that we’ve identified through the Stopping Cyber Suppression program throughout this year’s primary elections has been “organic content” -- not ads, but posts exactly like the ones described in The Washington Post.

“I can't imagine anyone will know on election night what's going to happen in Wisconsin,” said Jay Heck, executive director of Common Cause Wisconsin. Heck added that he doesn’t expect the state Legislature coming back into session to make changes.

If the allegations are true, Mr. DeJoy would be in violation of federal election laws that prohibit so-called straw donations because they are a way of evading transparency requirements and contribution limits that are so crucial to the conduct of fair elections. Other possible violations include prohibited use of corporate money and coercion of employees. There is a five-year federal statute of limitations, but there is no time limit in North Carolina for the prosecution of felonies, including campaign violations. North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein (D) said an investigation is warranted and Common Cause North Carolina on Wednesday filed a complaint. Even Mr. Trump, with his high tolerance of wrongdoing by his allies, acknowledged the need for investigation. We urge Congress and North Carolina authorities to act expeditiously in getting to the bottom of this troubling matter.