ELB Podcast Episode 3:5: Bart Gellman, Jessica Huseman, and Margaret Sullivan: What Can (and Should) Journalists Do to Prevent Election Subversion and Another January 6?

How can journalists best report on stories about the risks to election integrity in the United States?
Should journalists be taking sides between the forces of those supporting and opposing free and fair elections in the United States?
How should one tell local stories of election problems with national implications?

On season 3, Episode 5 of the ELB podcast, we speak with The Atlantic’s Bart Gellman, Votebeat’s Jessica Huseman, and the Washington Post’s Margaret Sullivan.

(This episode is a recording of a January 21, 2022 panel held by the Fair Elections and Free Speech Center at UCI Law).

1/27/2022

ELB Podcast Episode 3:5: Gellman, Huseman, Sullivan: Journalists and Election Subversion

ELB Podcast Episode 3:6: Deuel Ross: Everything You Wanted to Know About the Alabama Voting Rights Redistricting Case But Were Too Confused to Ask

Why did the Supreme Court put on hold a federal district court order requiring the state of Alabama to draw another Black majority congressional district? 

What does the stay order in Merrill v. Milligan mean for the future of the Voting Rights Act?

Are minority voting rights under threat by new arguments to weaken the Voting Rights Act?

On season 3, Episode 6 of the ELB podcast, we speak with NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund’s Senior Counsel and Director of Development, Deuel Ross.

ELB Podcast Ep 3:6: Deuel Ross: Everything You Wanted to Know About Ala Voting Rights Case

How did Wisconsin go from the gold standard for election administration in the United States to its laughing stock?
What does the partisan investigation into the 2020 election say about how to once again achieve bipartisan cooperation in running elections?
What is the future of free and fair elections in Wisconsin and beyond?

On season 3, Episode 7 of the ELB podcast, we speak with longtime Wisconsin election administrator and attorney Michael Haas.

ELB Podcast Episode 3:7: Mike Haas: The Mess with Wisconsin's Elections

Why has it gotten harder rather than easier to vote in the United States over the past decade?
What can be done about the risk of stolen elections in the United States?
How have the Supreme Court’s decisions on redistricting, voting rights, and gerrymandering affected the quality of American democracy?
On season 3, Episode 8 of the ELB podcast, we speak with Wendy Weiser, Vice President for the Democracy Program at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law School.
[This is the final episode of Season 3 of the podcast.]

4/27/2022

ELB Podcast Episode 3:8: Wendy Weiser: Assessing the State of American Elections and Democracy

What is the “independent state legislature theory,” and does a potential Supreme Court embrace threaten American democracy?

Will use of the doctrine raise the risk of election subversion or stolen elections?

How far could the theory go in insulating legislative voting rules from state constitutional review?

On Season 4, Episode 2 of the ELB Podcast, we hear a recent conversation that I moderated with Vik Amar, Derek Muller, Rick Pildes, Carolyn Shapiro, and Franita Tolson.

9/18/2022

ELB Podcast Episode 4:2: Moore v Harper and Potential Threats to American Democracy

Does former president Donald Trump know—and does he care—that the statements he has made undermining the integrity of the 2020 electionrun the risk of undermining the core of American democracy?

Is election denialism bigger than Trump’s hold over the GOP?

What should the Republicans, Democrats, the Press, and others do to counter concerns about threats to free elections in the United States?

On Season 4 episode 3 of the ELB Podcast, we speak with New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman, author of the new book, Confidence Man.

11/1/2022

ELB Podcast Episode 4:3: Maggie Haberman: Trump, Trumpism, and the Threats to American Democracy

Can an attempt an election subversion in the 1940s teach us how to handle current threats to American democracy?

Do failed attempts to hold Nazi sympathizers in the American government accountable through criminal litigation show the limits of the law in protecting democracy?

What role can and should journalists play in safeguarding free and fair elections today?

On Season 4, Episode 5 of the ELB Podcast, we speak with journalist Rachel Maddow, producer and narrator of the new podcast series, “Ultra.”

ELB Podcast Episode 4:5: Rachel Maddow: What “Ultra” Can Teach Us About Threats to Democracy Today

Does our decentralized system of government create conditions to strengthen or weaken democratic institutions?

Why have red and blue states adopted different sets of election rules, with some Republican states adopting restrictive registration and voting laws?

Would more a more national election process in the United States protect against the risk of election subversion?

On Season 4, Episode 6 of the ELB Podcast we speak with University of Washington Professor Jake Grumbach, author of the book “Laboratories Against Democracy.”

ELB 4:6

ELB Podcast Episode 4:6: Jake Grumbach: Laboratories Against Democracy

How do Republican voters think about Donald Trump’s false claims of a stolen 2020 election?

What are voters’ attitudes towards authoritarianism and the rule of law?

How will election denialism play out in the 2024 Republican presidential primary?

On Season 4, Episode 7 of the ELB podcast, we speak with GOP pollster and publisher of The Bulwark, Sarah Longwell.

April 11, 2023

ELB Podcast Episode 4:7: Sarah Longwell: Election Denialism and the Future of the Republican Party

Why did two conservative justices on the Supreme Court join the Court’s liberals to save section 2 of the Voting Rights Act in Allen v. Milligan?

Will voting rights plaintiffs see more success in Section 2 cases in other states including Louisiana, Georgia, and Texas?

What are the political implications of the Court siding with minority plaintiffs in Milligan?

On Season 4, Episode 9 of the ELB Podcast, we have a voting rights roundtable with Professors Guy Charles, Ellen Katz, and Rick Pildes.

June 21, 2023

ELB Podcast 4:9: Charles, Katz, Pildes: The Future of the Voting Rights Act after Milligan

What are the implications of the Supreme Court’s decision in Moore v. Harper for American democracy?

What will the case mean for 2024 election challenges?

Does the decision shut down attempts to submit slates of fake electors and subvert presidential elections?

On the Season 4 finale of the ELB podcast, a voting rights roundtable with Derek Muller, Carolyn Shapiro, Bertrall Ross, and Rick Pildes.

06/28/2023

ELB Podcast 4:10: U.S. Democracy and the Independent State Legislature Theory after Moore v. Harper

Is the Roberts Court shifting on its protection of voting rights?

How has the addition of three Trump-appointed Justices changed the nature of the Supreme Court?

Should we expect a new ethics code for Supreme Court Justices?

On Season 5, Episode 2 of the ELB Podcast, we speak with Joan Biskupic, CNN’s senior supreme court analyst and author of the new book, Nine Black Robes.

ELB Podcast 5:2: The Roberts Court and American Democracy (Joan Biskupic)

Do gag orders against presidential candidate Donald Trump in his civil or criminal trials violate the First Amendment?

What should we make of Trump’s claims that his actions to overturn the results of the 2020 elections are protected free speech?

How should we assess the dangers of government “jawboning” of social media platforms to remove objectionable conduct?

On Season 5, Episode 3 of the ELB Podcast, we delve into these issues with First Amendment experts Genevieve Lakier and Eugene Volokh.

ELB Podcast 5:3: The Trump Prosecutions, the First Amendment, and Election Interference

How should we understand the Supreme Court’s questions in the Trump immunity case?

Will the Court let  Donald Trump go to trial for 2020 election interference based just on his acts as a candidate and not as President?

Are the legal theories advanced in Donald Trump’s hush money case in New York legally sound?

On Season 5, Episode 7 of the ELB Podcast, a conversation about the latest Trump cases between Rick Pildes and Rick Hasen


ELB 5:7: Rick Pildes: The Two Ricks Discuss the Trump Immunity and Hush Money Cases

What’s the difference between how Americans communicated about politics and policies 20 or 30 years ago and how we do it today?

What are the most effective ways to combat disinformation in elections and otherwise?

Are the platforms and the rest of us ready for election-related threats in 2024?

On the season finale of Season 5 of the ELB Podcast, we speak with Renee DiResta, author of the new book, Invisible Rulers.

ELB Podcast 5:8: Renee DiResta: Invisible Rulers and the 2024 Elections

How prepared are we for a peaceful transition of power in 2024 in light of what we witnessed in the 2020 elections?

What hurdles stand before minority voters in the upcoming elections?

How has the social media and information environment affecting elections shifted since 2020?

On today’s episode of the ELB Podcast we speak with Leah Aden, of the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, John Fortier, of the American Enterprise Institute, and Yoel Roth of The Match Group.

ELB 6:1

ELB Podcast 6:1 Democracy and the Risks to the 2024 Elections (Aden, Fortier, & Roth)

Why do we have the Electoral College and is its use justified today?

Why do Democrats and Republicans think differently about the Electoral College?

Does the Electoral College make it harder or easier to subvert American elections?

On Season 6, Episode 2 of the ELB Podcast we speak with Joey Fishkin of UCLA Law, Amanda Hollis-Brusky of Pomona College, and Derek Muller of Notre Dame Law School.

ELB 6:2 The United States Electoral College and Fair Elections (Fishkin, Hollis-Brusky, Muller)

What are the risks to a peaceful transition of power once all the votes have been cast?

What can we learn from history and from other democracies about our moment of democratic peril?

How worried should we be about the risks of political violence?

On Season 6, Episode 3 of the ELB Podcast we speak with Republican election lawyer Ben Ginsberg, the Hoover Institution’s Larry Diamond, the Carnegie Endowment’s Rachel Kleinfeld, and USC law dean Franita Tolson.

ELB Podcast 6:3 From Nov. 5 to Jan. 6: Are We Prepared for a Fair and Safe Election?

How did social media’s treatment of election content change in the 2024 elections?

What do Meta’s new announcements mean for politics and society going forward?

How might AI change everything?

On Season 6, Episode 4 of the ELB Podcast, we speak with social media and politics expert Katie Harbath.

ELB Podcast 6:4:Katie Harbath: The Present and Future of Social Media, Politics, and Elections

What will the new Trump Administration and the new Congress do when it comes to voting rights and fair elections?

What challenges face state and local election officials going forward?

Will the courts stand up for voting rights and fair elections in the years to come?

On Season 6, Episode 5 of the ELB podcast, we feature a discussion with Amy Gardner, Pam Karlan, and Stephen Richer.


ELB Podcast 6:5: Fair Elections and Voting Rights: What Ahead in the Next Four Years? (Gardner, Karlan, Richer)

Do documentary proof of citizenship laws stop a lot of illegal voting or suppress the votes of eligible voters?

How have such laws been implemented in the state of Arizona and elsewhere?

What are the prospects for passage of the SAVE Act, which would bring such laws to the nation as a whole?

On season 6, Episode 6 of the ELB Podcast, we speak with Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, The Cato Institute’s Walter Olson, and Nina Perales of MALDEF.


ELB 6:6: What Do Documentary Proof of Citizenship Laws Accomplish? (Fontes, Olson, Perales)

How did campaigning and false information in campaigns change in the 2024 elections?

What role did platform content moderation play in 2024?

Is generative AI going to change campaigns in 2028 and beyond?

On Season 6, Episode 7 of the ELB podcast, a roundtable with Alice Marwick, Kate Starbird, and Joshua Tucker.


ELB Podcast 6:7: Combatting False Election Information: Lessons from 2024 and a Look to the Future (Marwick, Starbird, Tucker)

What does the Trump executive order on elections purport to do?

Why did a federal court put big parts of that executive order on hold?

Does this EO threaten the 2026 midterm elections?

On the season finale of Season 6 of the ELB Podcast, we speak with Danielle Lang of the Campaign Legal Center.



ELB Podcast 6:8: Danielle Lang: Is Trump’s Executive Order on Voting A Threat to Democracy?

How likely is it that federal troops will be in United States cities on election day in 2026?

Have federal agencies moved from allies of state and local election administrators to impediments to sound election practices?

What changes might we expect regarding voter rolls and mail-in voting in 2026

On Season 7, Episode 1 of the ELB Podcast, we speak with Ben Haiman, Liz Howard, and Stephen Richer.


ELB Podcast 7:1: The Risk of Federal Interference in the 2026 Midterm Elections

How has the Supreme Court moved to the right in areas including voting rights and campaign finance?

What is happening with “shadow docket” rulings of the Supreme Court, and what does that tell us about the relationship between the Court and President Trump? 

How should we understand how the Supreme Court has and should make decisions in its most controversial cases?

On Season 7, Episode 2 of the ELB Podcast, we speak with Michigan law professor Leah Litman, author of the new book, “Lawless.”


ELB Podcast 7:2: Leah Litman: (When) Is the Supreme Court “Lawless?”

What’s at stake for the Voting Rights Act at the Supreme Court in the pending Louisiana v. Callais case?

Will the Court weigh in on the question whether private parties can sue to enforce Section 2 of the VRA, as was assumed by all until recently? 

What’s the big picture on the Voting Rights Act and the 2026 elections?

On Season 7, Episode 3 of the ELB Podcast, we speak with Samantha Blencke, of the Native American Rights Fund, Ellen Katz of the University of Michigan, and Deuel Ross of the Legal Defense Fund.


ELB Podcast 7:3: The Supreme Court, the Voting Rights Act, and the 2026 Elections (Blencke, Katz, Ross)

What is the state of Latino voting rights in the state of Texas and beyond? What's happening with the never-ending redistricting litigation in San Antonio, raising questions about whether Texas discriminated against Latino voters and others? Has the demise of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act thanks to the Supreme Court's 2013 decision in Shelby County v. Holder hurt minority voters?

On Episode 5 of the ELB Podcast, we talk to Nina Perales, vice president of litigation for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund, and one of the country's leading voting rights lawyers.

ELB Podcast, Episode 5. Nina Perales: Latino Voting Rights Struggles in Texas and Beyond

Can the Supreme Court handle social science evidence in election law cases? Will lack of good data determine the outcome of the Supreme Court's upcoming one person, one vote decision in Evenwel v. Abbott? What role will and should evidence play in assessing questions such as the constitutionality of McCain-Feingold's soft money ban or Texas's strict voter identification law.

On Episode 6 of the ELB Podcast, we talk to law professor and political scientist Nate Persily of Stanford Law School, one of the country’s leading redistricting and election law experts.

ELB Podcast Episode 6. Nate Persily: Can the Supreme Court Handle Social Science In Election Cases?

Did Justice Ginsburg go too far in her comments against presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump? Should comments like Justice Ginsburg's be protected by the First Amendment, and would they be grounds for recusal in a future Clinton v. Trump case? Are judicial rules which bar endorsements of candidates and political statements by judges unconstitutional?

On Episode 14 of the ELB Podcast, we talk with UCI Irvine Law dean and noted constitutional scholar Erwin Chemerinsky.

Rick Hasen's Album

ELB Podcast Episode 14. Erwin Chemerinsky: Did Justice Ginsburg Cross the Line?

In this era of polarization in politics, how much power does Congress have compared to the President and the courts? Is the Republican Congress a meaningful check on President Trump? How well does Congress do at policing ethical lapses of its own members?

On Episode 17 of the ELB Podcast, we talk with Josh Chafetz, Cornell Law School professor and author of the new book, Congress's Constitution: Legislative Authority and the Separation of Powers.

ELB Podcast Episode 17

ELB Podcast Episode 17:Josh Chafetz: Congress’s Power Before, During, and After Trump

After a long hiatus, the ELB Podcast is back in time for the midterm election season with a great first guest!

What is the state of voting rights in America? What did the ACLU's lawsuit against Kris Kobach over the state of Kansas's "show us your papers" citizenship voting law teach us about the extent of the voter fraud problem? What's at stake in the litigation over the citizenship question which may appear on the 2020 census?

On Season 2, Episode 1 of the ELB Podcast, we talk with Dale Ho, Director of the ACLU's Voting Rights Project, who supervises the ACLU’s voting rights litigation and advocacy work nationwide.

Rick Hasen

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