Link-of-the-Day – Page 57 – Democracy North Carolina

Friday, August 20, 2010

Which candidates for the NC General Assembly have the most money to spend before the election? The NC Free Enterprise Foundation posted convenient lists of the cash-on-hand for candidates in the state House and state Senate elections, based on disclosure reports through June 30, 2010. For example, Senate Democratic candidates Margaret Dickson, David Redwine, Jim [...]

By Bob Hall| 2010-08-20T12:35:26-04:00 August 20th, 2010|Link-of-the-Day, Money in Politics|0 Comments

Thursday, August 19, 2010

The bull's-eye on Target is getting bigger. As we described in our August 2 entry, the retailer donated $100,000 to a business group for ads supporting a rightwing gubernatorial candidate in its home state of Minnesota. It gave another $50,000 to help the group’s operations. Now Target is paying the price and teaching other corporations [...]

By Bob Hall| 2017-01-03T12:05:46-05:00 August 19th, 2010|Citizens United Case, Link-of-the-Day, Money in Politics|0 Comments

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

J. Art Pope, the rightwing sugar daddy for the John Locke Foundation and big donor to Americans for Prosperity, is using a 527 committee to funnel his corporation’s money into political ads aimed at discrediting Democratic candidates for the NC General Assembly in this fall’s election. Pope has done this before with six-figure donations from [...]

By Bob Hall| 2010-08-18T16:20:17-04:00 August 18th, 2010|Citizens United Case, Link-of-the-Day, Money in Politics, Voter-Owned Elections|1 Comment

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

A 120-page report by a trio of nonprofit groups analyzes the $207 million spent on the nation’s state judicial elections over the past decade, more than double the amount spent in the previous decade. Self interested “super-spenders” are especially fueling the arms race that aims to turn “blind justice” into “justice for sale.” A forward [...]

By Bob Hall| 2010-08-17T13:06:39-04:00 August 17th, 2010|Judicial Elections, Link-of-the-Day, Money in Politics, Uncategorized|0 Comments

Monday, August 16, 2010

The Associated Press has two articles about the vacancy created by NC Appeals Court Judge Jim Wynn being sworn in as a new judge on the US Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. One article highlights the fact that the opening will be filled by voters ranking their choices (Instant Runoff Voting) if more than two [...]

By Bob Hall| 2017-01-03T12:05:46-05:00 August 16th, 2010|Link-of-the-Day|0 Comments

Friday, August 13, 2010

A op-ed column by Joyce McCloy provides useful background on the ballot-price controversy the News & Observer has promoted. North Carolina has tough voting system standards because of federal and state law and experience with thousands of votes being lost by poorly designed machines. Only one company, ES&S, is willing to put up a hefty [...]

By Bob Hall| 2017-01-03T12:05:46-05:00 August 13th, 2010|Link-of-the-Day|1 Comment

Thursday, August 12, 2010

The Center for Responsive Politics has compiled a list of the top individual donors to 527 committees in the second quarter of 2010. The top three are million-dollar donors to Republican operations; then the list gets more diverse, including donors to the League of Conservation Voters and Democratic Governors Association. Altogether, individuals pumped more than [...]

By Bob Hall| 2017-01-03T12:05:46-05:00 August 12th, 2010|Link-of-the-Day|0 Comments

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Online voter registration is working well in Indiana, a state notorious for its fixation on voter fraud. Young people especially benefit and the registrations are far more accurate and easier for election officials to process than paper applications. A study by the Pew Center also shows that online registrants voted at a significantly higher rate [...]

By Bob Hall| 2010-08-12T11:45:54-04:00 August 12th, 2010|Link-of-the-Day|0 Comments

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

North Carolina voters in at least three counties (Buncombe, Cumberland and Rowan) will use Instant Runoff Voting to decide the winners in three Superior Court races this fall. Under state law (NCGS 163-329), vacancies on the Superior Court, Court of Appeals and Supreme Court which occur after the primary but more than 60 days before [...]

By Bob Hall| 2010-08-10T13:30:36-04:00 August 10th, 2010|Link-of-the-Day|5 Comments

Monday, August 9, 2010

The News & Observer had great fun with a “gotcha” story about state elections director Gary Bartlett – and more fun with a follow-up about all the “Democrats and Republicans” who “denounced election officials.” The reporters were quite selective, citing only three denouncers who had quotes that fit their story line; they avoided people like [...]

By Bob Hall| 2017-01-03T12:05:46-05:00 August 9th, 2010|Link-of-the-Day|0 Comments