On May 22, Great Britain voted for local government posts in many places, and also for representatives to the European Parliament. This article says that partial election returns for local races show that the UKIP (United Kingdom Independence Party) made substantial gains, and that the Green Party also gained. Results of the European Parliament voting won’t be known until Sunday. Those returns will be even more interesting, since proportional representation is being used for the European Parliament elections. Thanks to J. David Gillespie for the link. UDATE: this story has more detailed election outcomes.

The May 23 Sacramento Bee has this op-ed by Steve Maviglio, detailing how the California top-two system makes it easier for forces hostile to one major party to manipulate which member of that party qualifies for the November ballot.

The piece contains a typographical error, when it discusses the State Senate election in 2012 in Los Angeles County. Republican candidate Charlotte Svolos got 27% of the vote in the June primary, not 57%. Thanks to Mike Feinstein for the link.

On May 23, the Michigan Secretary of State formally ruled that Congressman John Conyers does not have enough valid signtures on his primary petition. This clears the way for a U.S. District Court to rule on whether the law that requires petitioners to be registered is constitutional. Michigan had argued in court that the court should abstain, on the grounds that no formal decision on the Conyers petition had been made. But that argument is no longer meaningful. The court decision is expected on Friday, May 23. See this story.