New York law has long permitted political parties to expel members believed not to be in sympathy with the party’s principles.  But the law always required that action to be carried out by the party’s county committee.  On December 19. 2025, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed S7111.  It allows the expulsions to be carried out even if the party doesn’t have a county committee.

The Working Families Party typically does not have county committees.  The bill was introduced at the request of the WFP.  The expulsion power makes it easier for a party to prevent having its primary invaded by candidates who are not loyal to the party’s ideas, and who are merely hoping to seize the party’s nomination for a public office for partisan reasons.

The Alaska initiative to repeal the top-four signatures has enough valid signatures.  The initiative will appear on the November 2026 ballot.  See this story.

The Carolina Journal has this interesting article about a pending lawsuit in the North Carolina State Court of Appeals, on whether the state constitution prohibits gerrymandering.  The state constitution says all elections shall be “free.”  Bard v North Carolina State Board of Elections, COA24-1109.

Thirty state constitutions say that elections must be free and equal, or sometimes they just say they must be “free”.  Generally lawsuits filed to strike down unfair election rules seldom win on the basis of that phrase.  Judges appear to find that it is too vague.