Your weekly source for analysis and insight from experts at the Brennan Center for Justice

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The Briefing

In 18 weeks, voters will cast ballots in what is likely the most consequential election of our lifetimes. Ensuring that every eligible citizen gets to vote means vote by mail, early voting, and plenty of in-person polling locations to reduce long lines on Election Day. Take away any of those things, and the result is de facto voter suppression.

Vote by mail has drawn the most attention, and the most controversy. For many, it will be new. But it turns out that in-person voting can be just as important to protect the right to vote.

We’ve winced at the sight of election fiascos throughout the primaries. Now there’s new hard evidence that these crackups affect participation. During Wisconsin's primary in April, the number of polling locations in the city of Milwaukee dropped from 182 to just 5 due to poll worker shortages. The result: depressed turnout

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, according to my colleague Kevin Morris.

Despite a surge in absentee voting, the consolidation of polling locations in the city reduced turnout by more than 8 percentage points compared to the 2016 primary. Among Black voters, turnout dropped by more than 10 points. “If we care about the representation of nonwhite voters and voters wary of casting mail ballots, we must ensure that there are safe in-person options this fall,” says Morris.

We know how to do this safely, too, as Raul Macías outlined

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for Yes! Magazine. And we must aggressively educate the public about how this election won’t look like any election they’ve ever experienced before.

We’ve said for months that we need to find a way to keep ample in-person voting

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. Many poor and minority communities don’t have reliable mail service. Voters with disabilities may need assistance from a poll worker. Still others need language assistance. When states consolidate polling locations, it can end up disenfranchising many.

This is especially important now that it is clear the coronavirus will not have magically disappeared by November. It will take thought and effort to ensure safe in-person voting. It will take funds from Congress. And it will require robust voter education so people know their options. Doing less will muffle the voices of everyone in our democracy.

Democracy

Preparing for a Long Post-Election Count

The pandemic will likely play havoc with election night rituals. The explosive growth of absentee ballots and their slow counting will mean days of uncertainty if the election is close. Television networks can combat conspiracy theories by changing how they display election night returns, using a percentage of estimated turnout instead of precincts reporting, writes Brennan Center Fellow Walter Shapiro. // Read More

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A California Ballot Measure on Voting Rights

Last week in California, a bipartisan state senate vote placed a constitutional amendment on the November ballot that would restore the right to vote to people on parole. A win would grant voting rights back to over 50,000 Californians, most of whom are living in communities working, paying taxes, and seeking a path forward. Disenfranchising people on parole “disproportionately mutes the political voices of communities of color, further marginalizing those that are already underrepresented,” write Patrick Berry and Stuart Baum. // Read More

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7 Years Since Shelby County

Seven years ago last week, the Supreme Court gutted Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 — the nation’s most effective civil rights law. Previously, states with a history of racial discrimination in voting had to get “pre-clearance” from the Justice Department before changing voting laws and practices. In 2013, the Brennan Center warned that without Section 5’s protections, states might seek to push a wave of discriminatory voting measures, threatening the rights of minority voters. “Unfortunately, that’s exactly what happened,” writes Myrna Pérez. // Read More

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Justice

Justice Department’s Covid-19 Response Highlights Flaws in First Step Act Implementation

The First Step Act aimed to do two things: cut unnecessarily long federal sentences and improve conditions in federal prison. More than a year after it was enacted, key parts of the law are working as promised, restoring a modicum of fairness to sentencing and helping to reduce the country’s unconscionably large federal prison population. But other parts are not. Ames Grawert describes how the Justice Department’s handling of prisoner releases during the coronavirus pandemic gives some insight into what’s wrong. // Read More

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Constitution

The FBI Targets a New Generation of Black Activists

Throughout its history, the FBI has viewed Black activism as a potential national security threat, using its investigative powers to inhibit the speech and association rights of Black activists. And its reaction to the protests following the police killings of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd shows little has changed, even though the most apparent protest violence that falls within the FBI’s jurisdiction is coming from police. The FBI “would put its investigative authorities to better use by holding those officers accountable,” writes Brennan Center Fellow Michael German. // Read More

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Trump’s Latest Abuse of Emergency Powers Highlights a Dangerous Law in Need of Change

After years of threats, President Trump declared a national emergency this month so he could impose sanctions against the International Criminal Court. The president wants to intimidate the court and stop its investigations of Americans accused of war crimes in Afghanistan. Trump’s move is a gross abuse of power, undermines core American values of human rights and rule of law, and weakens our country’s international standing. “If there were a prize for actions that simultaneously affront both domestic and international law, this executive order would certainly be a contender,” writes Andrew Boyle. // Read More

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Coming Up

VIRTUAL EVENT: Pandemic Propaganda: A New Electoral Crisis

Thursday, July 9 | 12:00 p.m. EDT | RSVP Today

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This event is produced in partnership with Foreign Affairs and New York University's John Brademas Center.

How will the misinformation pandemic inflamed by the coronavirus crisis reshape the political landscape? And how might domestic and foreign actors weaponize rumors, conspiracy theories, and disinformation about Covid-19 against American voters in the lead-up to the November election? A distinguished panel, including experts from Brennan Center and Foreign Affairs, will discuss measures that can address these challenges in the upcoming months and help ensure the 2020 election is free, fair, and safe.

Speakers: Laura Rosenberger, Director, Alliance for Securing Democracy; Ian Vandewalker, Senior Counsel, Democracy Program, Brennan Center for Justice; Ángel Díaz, Counsel, Liberty & National Security Program, Brennan Center for Justice; Daniel Kurtz-Phelan, Executive Editor, Foreign Affairs (Presider)


News

Michael German on the militarization of police // Al Jazeera

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Taryn Merkl on qualified immunity // MarketWatch

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Lawrence Norden on the Kentucky primary // Washington Post

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Harsha Panduranga on police monitoring social media // Law and Disorder Radio

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Faiza Patel on police surveillance of protesters // New York Magazine

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Myrna Pérez on the importance of widespread voting by mail // CBS News

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Wendy Weiser on the GOP’s strategic deployment of voter suppression // FiveThirtyEight

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Thomas Wolf on the Census Bureau’s political appointments // ABC News

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Have an issue you'd like us to cover? Feedback on this newsletter? Email us at [email protected]

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The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law is a nonpartisan law and policy institute that works to reform, revitalize – and when necessary defend – our country’s systems of democracy and justice.

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