On January 27, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled unanimously that Rahm Emanuel meets the definition of “resident”, for purposes of running for Mayor in the February 22 election. Two justices did not join in the majority opinion, but they agreed with the outcome. See this story.
Still undecided is a local partisan judicial race in Hamilton County, Ohio. The race is very close and the outcome probably depends on whether almost 200 disputed provisional ballots can be counted. On January 27, the 6th circuit issued an order, generally upholding the U.S. District Court’s order that these ballots should be counted. They were cast by voters who were voting in the wrong precinct, but this was a case when several precincts were voting in the same building, and elections officials caused the error. The case is Hunter v Hamilton County Board of Elections. Thanks to Rick Hasen for the link.
Five Democratic state representatives in Hawaii have introduced HB 1116. It waives the standard rule for privacy, concerning birth certificates, for individuals of “civic prominence.” The bill defines these such a person as “a person who is a candidate for, or elected to, a public office that requires the person to be a United States citizen, either natural born or naturalized, to hold the public office for which they are a candidate or to which they have been elected.” The fee for this birth certificate would be $100. Thanks to Bill Van Allen for this news.
Five Democratic state representatives in Hawaii have introduced HB 1116. It waives the standard rule for privacy, concerning birth certificates, for individuals of “civic prominence.” The bill defines these such a person as “a person who is a candidate for, or elected to, a public office that requires the person to be a United States citizen, either natural born or naturalized, to hold the public office for which they are a candidate or to which they have been elected.” The fee for this birth certificate would be $100. Thanks to Bill Van Allen for this news.
As the Texas legislature debates whether to pass a bill to require voters at the polls to show a government-photo ID, a Democratic State Senator had some fun, and simultaneously made a serious objection to the idea behind the bill. See this. Thanks to Rick Hasen for the link.
