Media

Yesterday, Justice at Stake and the Brennan Center for Justice released their analysis of campaign spending in the 2014 state judicial elections, providing a detailed look at spending on TV ads. They found almost $14 million was spent on such elections, far surpassing several state records. And about $5 million was spent by outside groups on TV ads targeting state Supreme Court races.

No matter who wins each of the hundreds of elections today, one thing's for sure: a relative handful of large donors and spenders are setting the agenda and terms of debate, while the rest of us are on the sidelines.

Early voting and Election Day Registration may have boosted turnout 

In my recent Explainer, I discussed the implications of the voting gap on policy and elections. Numerous studies show that in states where low-income voters turnout at a higher rate, inequality is lower. That is because in these chambers, policymakers tend to be more liberal and favorable to policies to decrease economic inequality.

City council races seldom get the attention of their up-ballot brethren, especially on a day like today when the fate of the U.S. Senate is up for grabs. But local elected officials probably hold greater sway over decisions that directly affect your life. And their ranks tell us something important about who holds power in any community — and, equally important, who doesn't. [...]

Election Day is a crucial time to reflect on the fact that our elected officials, and candidates running for office, don’t look like America.

The biggest campaign donors and spenders have long played an outsized role in most U.S. elections—for legislators, governors, right on up to the president. But, this year there’s an extra twist, showing that judicial elections are no longer an exception.

When many think of 21st century voter suppression, the first thing that might come to mind is the network of unnecessary voter ID laws that disproportionately affect the young, the elderly and voters of color. There is, however, a minefield of other voter suppression tactics at work, many of which are on display in the great state of Georgia.