Voting, Rights, Rules,Challenges, Elections, Election Rules & Election Fraud_3

[phkrause]

New Hampshire town elections offer a preview of citizenship voting rules being considered nationwide New Hampshire has tested out its new law requiring people to show proof of citizenship before registering to vote. The New Hampshire Campaign for Voting Rights says at least 56 people who tried to register at the polls during the March 11 town elections were turned away. Those experiences could prove instructive for the rest of the country as Congress and more than a dozen other states consider similar legislation. Read more.

Why this matters: Voting rights groups are particularly concerned that married women who have changed their names will encounter trouble when trying to register because their birth certificates list their maiden names.   The U.S. House passed legislation last year to require proof of citizenship for voter registration, but it stalled in the Senate amid Democratic opposition. With Republicans now in full control of Congress, the House is expected to take up the issue again soon.   New Hampshire is one of eight states with laws that require documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote, and similar legislation is pending in 17 states, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

[phkrause]

Welcome to the red wave. Amid this declining male workforce participation, recent research shows that American men in particular are experiencing a surge in feelings of despair and disillusionment with society. And while women of all ages are getting more liberal, men are remaining solidly moderate, with one major exception: Gen Z men — those just entering the workforce — are growing increasingly conservative. In fact, 58 percent of young men aged 18 to 27 reported voting for Donald Trump last year.

[phkrause]

Generational divide

Several young Democrats have launched bids to shake up the party’s ranks by ousting incumbent House members in deep blue seats. They see voter frustrations with the response to President Donald Trump’s actions as a mandate to remake the party.

[phkrause]

CHART OF THE DAY

 

“There is not a single congressional district in the U.S. where more than 15 percent of voters support cuts to Medicaid.” (Source: Data for Progress)

[phkrause]

Voting rights

A federal appeals court has dealt a major blow to the Voting Rights Act, which was passed by Congress in 1965 to address racial discrimination in election policies. On Wednesday, the 8th US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 that private individuals could not bring VRA lawsuits challenging election policies in seven midwestern states that allegedly discriminate based on race. This leaves enforcement of the VRA’s key provision to the Justice Department, which, under President Trump, is gutting its civil rights division and dropping longstanding voting rights cases. The new ruling stems from a lawsuit alleging that North Dakota discriminated against Native Americans in its state legislative redistricting plan.

[phkrause]

Ohio Republicans using fake ‘noncitizen voting’ problem as a false pretext to make it harder to vote

“What is the problem trying to be solved with (Ohio) Senate Bill 153?” asked a speaker testifying before a senate committee last week on yet another Republican measure to make voting harder in the state.

https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/ohio-republicans-using-fake-noncitizen-voting-problem-false-pretext-make-it-harder-vote?

[phkrause]

Justice Department’s early moves on voting and elections signal a shift from its traditional role

In North Carolina, it was a lawsuit over the state’s voter registration records. In Arizona and Wisconsin, it was a letter to state election officials warning of potential administrative violations. And in Colorado, it was a demand for election records going back to 2020.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-justice-department-voting-elections-democrats-efa955a7785fdaddbf6d28956d1072ff?

[phkrause]

✂️ Stunning split: 2 Gen Zs

Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios

The latest Yale Youth Poll found an 18-point partisan gap between younger and older members of Generation Z, Axios' Erica Pandey reports. Voters aged 22 to 29 said they would favor Democratic candidates in the 2026 midterms by 6.4 points, while those aged 18 to 21 favored Republicans by 11.7 points. Why it matters: America's youngest voting cohort may be better understood as two distinct sub-generations — divided, in large part, by how they experienced the shock of COVID-19. ? Zoom in: Youth political analyst Rachel Janfaza breaks down "Gen Z 1.0" and "Gen Z 2.0" based on how old they were during pandemic lockdowns and the rise of TikTok. Gen Z 1.0 graduated high school before COVID. They quarantined in college dorms or apartments with friends and came of age during President Trump's first term — shaped by the Women's March, gun control rallies, and the Black Lives Matter movement. Gen Z 2.0 was in high school or middle school during lockdowns, isolating at home with family and cut off from peers. The backlash to COVID-era policies pushed many younger voters right. And because they entered adulthood under President Biden, "counter-culture" often meant aligning with MAGA, Janfaza says. Between the lines: Older Gen Z-ers came of age on platforms like Instagram and Twitter. Younger Gen Z-ers are native to TikTok. 9% of young adults said they got their news from TikTok in 2020, according to Pew Research. By 2024, that figure had surged to 39%. Trump's campaign seized on that shift early, reaching young voters on TikTok months before Biden or then–Vice President Harris. ? Zoom out: As a whole, Americans under 30 still lean Democratic. But the partisan split within Gen Z came into sharp focus during the 2024 election. White men under 20 voted for Trump at higher rates than their late-20s counterparts — and even more than white Baby Boomer men, according to research from Democratic polling group Blue Rose Research.

[phkrause]

? Voting Rights Act's 60th anniversary

Photo illustration: Lindsey Bailey. Photos: Washington Bureau/Getty Images, National Archives

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 — once a cornerstone of American democracy — is facing modern threats as it approaches its 60th anniversary next Wednesday, Axios' Russell Contreras and Delano Massey write. Why it matters: The barriers the law aimed to erase — like voter suppression and gerrymandering — are reemerging, often in new legislation or state-level restrictions. A backlash to the 2020 racial reckoning has made it almost impossible for any bipartisan effort to renew the Voting Rights Act — even though the country is more racially and ethnically diverse than ever. ⚖️ The latest: Earlier this week, Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) reintroduced the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, backed by Senate leaders and civil rights groups. The bill would restore federal oversight of voting changes in states with histories of discrimination — and ban voter roll purges for missed elections. Multiple groups promoted its introduction to Congress, but it's unlikely to pass either of the GOP-controlled chambers. ?️ By the numbers: Since the passage of the Voting Rights Act, the number of Black Americans elected in the U.S. has shot up. The 119th Congress, which convened in January, was the most racially and ethnically diverse in history, with the percentage of Black House members (61 members, or 15%) roughly equivalent to that of the U.S. population (14%). Sixty years ago, when the Voting Rights Act was signed, there were six Black members of the House. Five U.S. senators are Black, including the first two Black women to serve simultaneously — Sens. Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.) and Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.) Read on.

[phkrause]

Texas Democrats leave the state to block vote on redrawn House map backed by Trump

Texas Democrats left the state Sunday in an attempt to prevent the state House from holding a vote Monday on new congressional maps that Republicans hope will net them several additional U.S. House seats in the 2026 midterm elections.

https://apnews.com/article/texas-democrats-leave-state-congressional-map-vote-b8b96080dfae00111664bbfb72fc304b?

[phkrause]

Texas redistricting

In an attempt to block Republicans from aggressively redrawing Texas’ congressional map in their favor, House Democrats left the state on Sunday. The Texas Constitution requires two-thirds of state House members to be present to conduct legislative business and the Democrats' absence denies the GOP a quorum. The proposed map the GOP put forward last week could potentially eliminate five Democratic US House seats ahead of the 2026 midterms. Such a partisan change may have significant repercussions in Washington, where House Republicans are entering a challenging midterm landscape with a razor-thin majority. “We will not be complicit in the destruction of our own communities,” Texas House Democratic Caucus Chair Gene Wu said. Gov. Greg Abbott has threatened to remove any lawmakers who don’t appear when the state House convenes this afternoon.

[phkrause]

Republican Blames Texas Governor for Getting Owned by the Dems

A state rep said it was his own party leadership’s fault for letting Democrats thwart a special session to redraw the state’s congressional map.

At least one Texas Republican is blaming his own party for not getting ahead of Democrats who skipped town on Sunday to prevent a vote on new congressional districts.

Dozens of state House lawmakers fled to Illinois, New York, and Massachusetts so that Republicans wouldn’t be able to make a quorum and hold a vote on the districts, which have been gerrymandered at President Donald Trump’s request to help Republicans pick up five seats in the 2026 midterms.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has threatened to arrest the lawmakers and try to strip them of their seats if they’re not back by Monday for a special legislative session. But at least one Texas state representative told Politico that he blamed his own party for letting Democrats thwart the special session.

“If the elected Republican leadership of Texas wanted to have had redistricting already done by now, it would have been done by now,” said state Rep. Brian Harrison, who sometimes appears on Steve Bannon’s show War Room. “This is not a success of the Democrats as much as it is a failure of elected Republicans.”

Generally speaking, it’s up to each state’s legislature to decide how the state will draw its own political map. Some states keep the process in the hands of lawmakers, while others have created special commissions to draw political districts.

The maps, however, cannot violate the Constitution or the 1965 Voting Rights Act, and usually they’re redrawn after each census—not in the middle of the decade.

Nationwide, Republicans already enjoy a 16-seat advantage in Congress because of gerrymandering, according to the Brennan Center for Justice. That means Democrats need to win far more votes just to hold the same number of seats in Congress as Republicans.

But the Republican House majority is razor thin, and lawmakers will face a restless electorate in next year’s midterms.

Those dynamics prompted Trump to call for “a simple redrawing” of Texas’ political map that would allow Republicans to pick up as many as five seats in a state where they already enjoy a five-seat advantage, according to the Brennan Center.

In a statement Sunday, Texas Democrats accused Abbott of using the special session to make relief for victims of last month’s catastrophic floods contingent on the controversial new political maps.

“Governor Abbott has turned the victims of a tragedy into political hostages in his submission to Donald Trump,” they wrote. “We will not allow disaster relief to be held hostage to a Trump gerrymander. As of today, this corrupt special session is over.”

Abbott responded by issuing a letter Sunday saying that if Democratic lawmakers didn’t return for Monday’s vote, he would consider their absence an “abandonment or forfeiture” of office, and would try to remove them from office and personally appoint replacements.

He also accused the Democrats of potentially violating the state’s anti-bribery laws by soliciting or accepting donations to cover the $500 daily fines that Texas lawmakers incur for missing days in session.

“I will use my full extradition authority to demand the return to Texas of any potential out-of-state felons,” Abbott wrote.

“Come and take it,” Texas House Democrats responded in a statement.

It’s not clear how long they can hold out, considering Abbott can keep calling new sessions until the lawmakers are finally forced to return, Politico reported. In the past, similar efforts delayed votes but didn’t prevent them.

This time, Republicans are facing threats of retaliation from Democratic governors—including Gov. JB Pritzker of Illinois and Gov. Gavin Newsom of California—which the Texas state lawmakers hope will give the Republicans pause, according to Politico.

Abbott’s letter cited an opinion from the state’s scandal-plagued attorney general Ken Paxton saying that a court could potentially conclude that a legislator has forfeited their office by intentionally breaking quorum.

The opinion, however, is not binding, and it doesn’t actually say that lawmakers who break quorum can be removed, nor does it say that breaking quorum violates the state’s constitution.

Instead, Paxton wrote that it would be up to a court to decide whether the facts surrounding the breaking of quorum showed an “actual or imputed intention” for the lawmaker to fully relinquish the office.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/republican-brian-harrison-turns-on-texas-gov-over-dems-redistricting-foil/?

[phkrause]

Texas House Standoff

The Texas House yesterday issued civil arrest warrants to force the return of Democratic lawmakers who left the state and blocked a vote on a Republican-led redistricting plan. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) said the absent lawmakers had forfeited their seats and warned he would begin efforts to remove them from office if they didn't return. The warrants can only be enforced within Texas.    Most of the 62-member House Democrats left Texas Sunday to block a quorum and stall voting on a map that would create five additional Republican congressional districts ahead of the 2026 elections. Texas’ constitution requires two-thirds of the 150-member Texas House to be present to advance legislation. See a history of the political maneuver's use in Texas here.    Democratic lawmakers, who traveled to states like Illinois and New York, argue the redrawn map dilutes the voting power of minority communities and displays characteristics of partisan gerrymandering. Republicans currently hold 25 of Texas’ 38 US House seats. See an overview of gerrymandering here.

[phkrause]

Black Americans were never supposed to exercise the right to vote

The white political elite in America – politicians, judges, lawyers, policymakers, businesses and corporations – has never as a whole acted in good faith towards its Black citizens. These “leaders” routinely moved electoral goalposts, added impediments to gum up the voting process, made promises they never intended to keep, lied, grudgingly made concessions and over time, always clawed them back.

https://floridaphoenix.com/2025/11/01/black-americans-were-never-supposed-to-exercise-the-right-to-vote/?

[phkrause]

New ballot measure operation targets the Democratic coalition in Salem

It looks like we’re about to enter another cycle of ballot measure warfare in Oregon.

https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/new-ballot-measure-operation-targets-democratic-coalition-salem?

[phkrause]

Voters swing left

Data: Axios research. Chart: Kavya Beheraj/Axios Visuals Voters swung left in major elections this year after President Trump's return to power in January. Why it matters: This chart is why Democrats are increasingly confident about taking back the House in the 2026 midterms — and why some are even dreaming of taking the Senate by picking up seats in states Trump easily won in 2024, like Ohio and Iowa, Axios national political correspondent Alex Thompson writes. ? Reality check: It's still not clear if voters are embracing Democrats or rejecting Republicans. Over the past two decades, the country has bounced back and forth from Republican to Democratic control, with voters reliably backing change over the status quo — rather than any particular ideology. Democrats are set to benefit from this in the short term. The long run is still murky. ?️ Zoom in: In key congressional and state-level races this year, voters moved sharply to the left compared to last year's presidential election. In some races, the pendulum swung by double digits, Axios' Avery Lotz reports. Most recently, Miami elected its first Democratic mayor in nearly 30 years, beating a Trump-endorsed Republican.

[phkrause]

👀 Voters say Biden was better

Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photos: Getty Images

President Trump has become so politically toxic that voters now say Joe Biden — whose unpopularity forced him into early retirement — did a better job as president, Axios' Zachary Basu writes from three new polls. Why it matters: The White House has nine months to turn the ship around before a potential midterm wipeout for Republicans. 🔎 Zoom in: Three national surveys point to the same alarming trend for a president who's done everything in his power to erase his predecessor's legacy. Harvard CAPS/Harris (Jan. 28–29): Mark Penn's polling firm found that registered voters are statistically split over whether Trump is doing a worse job than Biden. Rasmussen Reports (Feb. 2–4): The Trump-friendly pollster is fending off MAGA criticism after finding that 48% of likely voters say Biden did a better job as president, compared with 40% who chose Trump. YouGov/Economist (Feb. 6–9): This survey found that 46% of U.S. adults say Trump is doing a worse job than Biden, compared with 40% who say he's doing better. One year in, Trump has lost virtually every advantage that won him the presidency. His signature issues are now liabilities: 49% of adults "strongly disapprove" of how Trump has handled border security and immigration, according to a new NBC News poll. Trump's net approval on the economy (-18) is 26 points lower than it was at this point in his first term — and 53 points lower among independents, according to CNN polling analyst Harry Enten. White House deputy press secretary Kush Desai told us the Trump administration "remains laser-focused on continuing to cool inflation, accelerate economic growth, secure our border, and mass deport criminal illegal aliens." Keep reading.

[phkrause]

📋 Fragmenting Latino vote

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

Latino voters aren't realigning — they're fragmenting, Axios's Russell Contreras writes. Why it matters: This fracture helped reshape the 2024 election map — and it's one of the biggest wildcards in 2026 and 2028. Based on analyses of election data and interviews with political consultants, Axios identified three distinct segments of Latino voters in 2026 — MAGA Hispanics, Movement Progressives and Disillusioned Nonvoters: MAGA Hispanics align with Trump-era Republican politics, often driven by economic populism, cultural conservatism and anti-establishment sentiment, rather than traditional GOP ideology. Movement Progressives are anchored in left-leaning social and economic movements, including labor rights, racial justice, climate activism and student debt relief. Disillusioned Nonvoters are politically aware but largely disengaged, often sitting out elections entirely or voting inconsistently. Go deeper.

[phkrause]

Voter rolls

President Donald Trump’s administration has sued 25 mostly Democratic state election chiefs to gain access to voter information. It’s also encountering quiet resistance from some Republicans balking at the Justice Department’s demands.

[phkrause]

The biggest change to voting in Republican election bill could become a burden for many US voters

The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility, or SAVE America Act, cleared the U.S. House last month on a mostly party-line basis. Republicans say it would improve election integrity. U.S. President Donald Trump has called its safeguards common sense. The bill is scheduled to come up in the U.S. Senate next week for voting and debate. Republican messaging has mostly highlighted a less divisive provision in the bill that would require voters to show a photo ID, but the mandate for people to provide documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections is likely to have the most wide-ranging consequences. Read more.

[phkrause]

Cast a ballot and wait for the plane. In Alaska, a grace period for ballots is seen as a necessity

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The tiny Alaska Native village of Beaver is about 40 minutes — by plane — from the nearest city. Its roughly 50 residents rely on weekday flights for mail and many of their basic supplies, from groceries to Amazon deliveries of everyday household items.

https://apnews.com/article/election-day-mail-ballots-supreme-court-alaska-eb311b3f85f990254bf62a89fcbc0d9f?

[phkrause]

🚗 Mapped: Driving time to vote

Data: OSRM, Federal Voting Assistance Program. (No data areas are those with no or extremely sparse roads.) Map: Erin Davis/Axios Visuals More than 5 million voting-age Americans would have to drive an estimated hour or more to present citizenship documents to register to vote under the proposed SAVE America Act, Axios' Erin Davis and Alex Fitzpatrick report. The legislation's requirement to present documents in person to an "appropriate elections official" could effectively kill online and mail-in registration. The average American lives about 20 minutes by car — without traffic — from their nearest election office, per an Axios analysis. For rural Americans in Western states, that more than doubles to 49 minutes. 🔮 What's next: The SAVE Act is stuck in the Senate. But several Republican states are pushing similar measures.

[phkrause]

Flipping voters

Democrats’ victories in recent elections suggest their success rests not just on turnout from a motivated base but also on winning over Republicans and independents.

[phkrause]

🤑 You're paying for this

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

👀 Keep a close eye on the ads that inundate your screens as the 2026 midterm elections heat up: You, the taxpayer, paid for some of them. Why it matters: Each election cycle, incumbent House members use a privilege called "franking" to put millions in taxpayer dollars toward giving their reelection campaigns a thinly veiled boost. "People will say, 'This is an ad paid for by the United States Congress?'" House Administration Committee ranking member Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.) told us about some of the franked ads his colleagues are running. Morelle said the issue's on his agenda if Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries' Dems retake the House in November. Franking is overseen by the House Administration panel. Zoom in: In the 2024 election cycle, House offices spent a combined $44 million on franked mail and another $19 million on other forms of franked communications, such as ads, an Axios analysis of congressional disbursement forms found. Around $5 million of that was spent on television and digital ads, which are marked as "paid for with official funds authorized by the House of Representatives," according to AdImpact. "Next year ... I want a review of this, in a bipartisan way, to see if we can't tighten up what I think are some things that are really on the edges of what is appropriate," Morelle said. House members have already spent nearly $1.4 million in official congressional funds running ads like those since the start of the 2026 cycle, according to AdImpact. Between the lines: Most House members who have blanketed the airwaves with taxpayer-funded ads this election cycle fall into one of three groups. Battleground-district members: Reps. Tom Barrett (R-Mich.), Laura Gillen (D-N.Y.), Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa), Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), Nick Begich (R-Alaska), Sharice Davids (D-Kan.), David Valadao (R-Calif.), Kristen McDonald Rivet (D-Mich.) and Susie Lee (D-Nev.). Higher-office seekers: Reps. Robin Kelly (D-Ill.), Wesley Hunt (R-Texas), Mike Collins (R-Ga.), Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) and Nancy Mace (R-S.C.). Primary targets: Reps. Shri Thanedar (D-Mich.), Grace Meng (D-N.Y.), Brad Sherman (D-Calif.), John Larson (D-Conn.), Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) and Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.). Zoom out: House members can use franked funds to pay for billboards, digital ads, robocalls, texts and radio ads. Under federal law, members can send out these unsolicited mass communications until 60 days before their next election — the "blackout period." Former Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) faced public scrutiny for sending just under 500 franked mailers a day in the run-up to her 2022 primary — narrowly skirting the limit that would qualify them as prohibited mass communications under blackout rules. Ethics experts concluded Maloney's actions, commonly known as the "499 rule," were in line with the letter of the law if not the spirit. The bottom line: "While PSAs about constituent services have their place, it's unlikely that many taxpayers would want politicians to spend public funds on shameless self-promotion," said Michelle Kuppersmith, the executive director of Campaign for Accountability. — Andrew Solender

[phkrause]

🔴 Black voters shift right

Axios' Russell Contreras uncovers a surprising political shift that could disrupt longstanding electoral trends:

A generational and structural shift is decoupling Black identity from Democratic Party loyalty.

• The result: A segment of a once-reliable voting bloc is transforming into a cohort of "political free agents" that the GOP aims to entice.

Why it matters: Even modest GOP gains — combined with weakening party loyalty — could make a big difference in close elections in a post-Voting Rights Act world.

President Trump is making inroads with Black voters less from persuasion and more from a changing electorate that's younger, more diverse and less tied to tradition, Theodore Johnson, a senior adviser at New America, told Axios.

• "When you detach partisan identity from racial identity, you get more Black voters willing to take a chance on a Republican," he said.

📈 By the numbers: Republican identification among Black Americans climbed into the mid-to-high teens in Gallup data last year.