Election Law and Voting Rights

Catalog description

This is a basic survey course in the laws regulating elections and voting rights in the United States. Coverage of specific topics will vary from year to year, but will include many of the following: the right to vote, Bush v. Gore, campaign finance, the Voting Rights Act, districting and apportionment, political parties, ballot initiatives, ‘nuts-and bolts’ mechanics of election administration, and alternative electoral systems. A survey of election law is necessarily interdisciplinary, drawing on political science, history, and democratic theory as well as case law and statutes. A recurring theme will be the pros and cons of the choice to regulate the electoral process through judicial decision, ordinary legislation, constitution, or popular initiative. Students will be encouraged to think through these issues ‘in role’ from the perspective of interested players in the legislative and adjudicative process.