Latest news with #votersuppression
New York Times
5 days ago
- Politics
- New York Times
Hispanic Democratic Officials in Texas Plead Not Guilty to Voter Fraud
Nine Latino Democratic officials and political operatives pleaded not guilty on Wednesday in South Texas to charges of criminal voter fraud, accusations that their defenders called blatant voter suppression and political intimidation by the state's Republican attorney general. Gerry Goldstein, a lawyer for the most prominent defendant, told the presiding judge that he had filed a motion Wednesday morning to dismiss the charges and challenge the constitutionality of the state law used to prosecute his client, Juan Manuel Medina, a former chairman of the Democratic Party of Bexar County, the fourth largest in the state. Gabriel Rosales, the director of the Texas chapter of the League of United Latin American Citizens, or LULAC, called the charges 'a complete attack on democracy.' 'This is voter suppression 101,' Mr. Rosales said. The nine defendants, including Mr. Medina, were indicted last month by a South Texas district attorney working with the state's famously conservative attorney general, Ken Paxton. Six of the defendants appeared in person in a courtroom in Pearsall, Texas, while three others, including Mr. Medina, appeared via Zoom. A state judge is expected to consider the motion to dismiss the case in early October. It was the second time in less than four months that Mr. Paxton has charged prominent Latino Democratic officials with criminal 'ballot harvesting,' the usually routine act of collecting absentee ballots and bringing them to drop boxes or polling sites to be counted. A half-dozen people, including a county judge, two City Council members and a former county election administrator, were charged with voter fraud in May. The indictments stem from Mr. Paxton's 'election integrity unit,' which launched a sprawling voter fraud inquiry in Latino enclaves near San Antonio and in South Texas. Mr. Paxton has claimed that several Latino officials engaged in vote harvesting to benefit local Latino candidates. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Wall Street Journal
06-08-2025
- Politics
- Wall Street Journal
Gerrymandering and JB Pritzker's Inferno
As Gov. JB Pritzker welcomed Democratic Texas state representatives to Illinois, where they'd fled to deny a quorum in Austin, he denounced the GOP plan to redraw the Lone Star State's congressional boundaries. He assailed Republicans for 'a corrupt, middecade redistricting plan that would steal five congressional seats, silencing millions of voters, especially Black and Latino voters.' New York's Gov. Kathy Hochul called the Texas Republican plan 'nothing short of a legal insurrection.' She pledged to redraw her state's congressional lines 'as soon as possible,' declaring that 'we are at war' and that 'all is fair in love and war.' California Gov. Gavin Newsom, said he would 'fight fire with fire' and override the provision in California's Constitution requiring that a nonpartisan commission set the state's congressional lines. Instead, he would urge the Legislature to draw a map offsetting any gains the GOP makes in Texas. Welcome to the sixth ditch of the eighth circle of hell, where in the 'Divine Comedy' Dante met the hypocrites, condemned for eternity to wear gold-plated lead cloaks.
Forbes
31-07-2025
- Politics
- Forbes
The 'I Don't Do Politics' Epidemic
'I don't do politics.' It's a phrase I have consistently heard from my peers, particularly since I started college in Fall 2024 leading up to the presidential election. On the surface, it may seem that my peers are indifferent or apathetic. Rather, it is the result of a harmful behavior that is deeply ingrained in our generation, one that will affect us for years to come if we don't take action. It's not that young people don't care — it's that we have been taught that we shouldn't and can't care about politics. This narrative is dangerous. It's strategic. And it's worked for far too long. Just over six months after election day in North Carolina, the longest ongoing election finally ended – and laid bare extensive coordinated efforts to suppress the youth vote. One of the candidates running for a Supreme Court seat challenged over 60,000 votes, including mine. According to research from the Student Voting Rights Lab at Duke and North Carolina Central University, those aged 18 to 25 had their votes disproportionately challenged, with these voters being 3.4 times more likely to be targeted than voters over the age of 65. Excruciating frustration is an understatement for how I felt about my vote being at risk — and that is coming from someone who is actively engaged in our democracy. Beyond that feeling, I fear what this may mean for young people's faith in the electoral system and their plans to vote in the future. Although the challenge was ultimately unsuccessful, it sent the message to youth voters that our voices should not and may not be counted. We're entering adulthood in a system that questions the validity of our voice. This isn't only happening in North Carolina — it's part of a national trend targeting youth voters. Strict voter ID laws create unnecessary barriers to voting for students in states like Arizona, North Dakota, Indiana, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas where student identification is not considered a valid form of voter ID. Beyond these states, many others have confusing or convoluted laws that make it harder for students to vote. These laws send a clear message to youth voters: your vote is not welcome here. So when I hear fellow students say 'I don't do politics,' what I really hear is 'no one has ever taught me how.' And even worse: 'My voice doesn't matter. I don't matter.' But we do matter. So much so that the efforts to silence our voices and impact have become highly coordinated and well-funded. To combat these attacks, we must address the misinformation being spread and change this narrative. Because while us students may say we don't 'do politics,' it affects every facet of our lives: tuition, healthcare, housing, the economy, foreign policy, safety, the environment, the job market — the list is endless. Ultimately, we are all impacted by the outcomes of elections, so we should all have a say in our future. So what can we do? We start with each other. The best way to break through this barrier of youth disengagement is through peer-to-peer organizing. Not political ads or celebrity endorsements. Students talking to students, and more importantly, students listening to students. Face-to-face, one-on-one, in big groups, at the student union, in group chats, wherever and everywhere we gather. That's where the change happens: in our everyday lives. There is a dire need for students to spearhead this effort, and we don't need to ask for permission; we can start right now. We can have these conversations and listen to one another. That's where engagement starts, but it does not end there. Here are your next steps to stop this epidemic from spreading further. Together, we can unlearn that phrase and way of life, and replace it with something more fitting for the power that our generation has. We must unlearn this belief that "we don't do politics" — because politics is already shaping our lives. It's time we shaped it back.
Associated Press
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Consultant on trial for AI-generated robocalls mimicking Biden says he has no regrets
LACONIA, N.H. (AP) — A political consultant told a New Hampshire jury Wednesday that he doesn't regret sending voters robocalls that used artificial intelligence to mimic former President Joe Biden and that he's confident he didn't break the law. Steven Kramer, 56, of New Orleans, has long admitted to orchestrating a message sent to thousands of voters two days before New Hampshire's Jan. 23, 2024, presidential primary. Recipients heard an AI-generated voice similar to the Democratic president's that used his catchphrase 'What a bunch of malarkey' and, as prosecutors allege, suggested that voting in the primary would preclude voters from casting ballots in November. 'It's important that you save your vote for the November election,' voters were told. 'Your votes make a difference in November, not this Tuesday.' Kramer, who faces decades in prison if convicted of voter suppression and impersonating a candidate, said his goal was to send a wake-up call about the potential dangers of AI when he paid a New Orleans magician $150 to create the recording. He was getting frequent calls from people using AI in campaigns, and, worried about the lack of regulations, made it his New Year's resolution to take action. 'This is going to be my one good deed this year,' he recalled while testifying in Belknap County Superior Court. He said his goal wasn't to influence an election, because he didn't consider the primary a real election. At Biden's request, the Democratic National Committee dislodged New Hampshire from its traditional early spot in the 2024 nominating calendar but later dropped its threat not to seat the state's national convention delegates. Biden did not put his name on the ballot or campaign there but won as a write-in. Kramer, who owns a firm specializing in get-out-the-vote projects, argued that the primary was a meaningless straw poll unsanctioned by the DNC. At the time the calls went out, voters were disenfranchised, he said. Asked by his attorney, Tom Reid, whether he did anything illegal, Kramer said, 'I'm positive I did not.' Later, he said he had no regrets and that his actions likely spurred AI regulations in multiple states. Kramer, who will be questioned by prosecutors Thursday, also faces a $6 million fine by the Federal Communications Commission but told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he won't pay it. Lingo Telecom, the company that transmitted the calls, agreed to pay $1 million in a settlement in August. The robocalls appeared to come from a former New Hampshire Democratic Party chair, Kathy Sullivan, and told voters to call her number to be removed from the call list. On the witness stand earlier Wednesday, Sullivan said she was confused and then outraged after speaking to one of the recipients and later hearing the message. 'I hung up the phone and said, 'There is something really crazy going on,'' she said. 'Someone is trying to suppress the vote for Biden. I can't believe this is happening.' Months later, she got a call from Kramer in which he said he used her number because he knew she would contact law enforcement and the media. He also described his motive — highlighting AI's potential dangers — but she didn't believe him, she testified. 'My sense was he was trying to convince me that he'd done this defensible, good thing,' she said. 'I'm listening to this thinking to myself, 'What does he thing I am, stupid?' He tried to suppress the vote.'
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
SAVE Act protesters in Willmar, Minnesota, say law would restrict voting access
May 22---- Demonstrators gathered under rainy skies to rally in favor of voting rights Wednesday in Willmar. In lieu of a planned march on First Street, about 50 demonstrators who came to Rice Park in their coats and rain ponchos instead occupied the picnic shelter at the park for approximately one hour Wednesday evening. Karen Kraemer, president of the Willmar Area League of Women Voters, said in her opening statement: "We work very hard to be non-partisan, but we are not neutral," characterizing the as a dangerous step toward voter suppression. The SAVE Act is sponsored by Rep. Chip Roy, a Texas Republican. The bill would require people to provide documentary proof of their U.S. citizenship, such as a birth certificate or U.S. passport, in order to vote in federal elections. The bill passed in the U.S. House in March on a mostly party-line vote and has since been sent to the U.S. Senate. Republicans, including Trump, have campaigned on and continue to press the idea that there is widespread voting by non-citizens, falsely claiming that it could unfairly swing elections despite the fact that multiple studies, including one at Minnesota's University of St. Thomas, have shown Voting rights advocates say the legislation seeks to fix a "non-issue," as it is already illegal for non-citizens to vote and doing so could result in criminal charges and possible deportation. Critics of the SAVE Act also say the bill as written would disenfranchise millions of legitimate American voters, ultimately leading to fewer people being able to vote in the same elections. Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon told a Senate Rules Committee spotlight hearing on May 14 that the legislation "poses one of the greatest threats to the freedom to vote in our lifetime," according to his prepared remarks. He said it would keep millions of eligible Americans from the polls. Kraemer referenced information shared by Secretary Simon and Deirdre Schiefling, a national political advocacy director with the American Civil Liberties Union, who spoke in a May 20 co-hosted by the Minnesota League of Women Voters, ACLU of Minnesota and others. For example, Kraemer stated that had the SAVE Act been in place last year, she would have had trouble helping her 96-year-old mother register to vote. Kraemer said she had to help her mother move from a house to an apartment in 2024. Though all states in the U.S. had their own method of keeping birth records since about 1919, there was no standardized version of these records until the 1930s, according to a 2012 published in the "Journal of Perinatology." Kraemer's mother was born in 1928. Even if Kraemer could have obtained a birth certificate for her mother, it may not have met the standard set by the SAVE Act. Kraemer also stated that, due to her mother's age, both her driver's license and passport are expired and would not have been sufficient to allow her to register if the provisions of the SAVE Act were in force. "The real issue is that 90 million people did not vote in the last election," Kraemer said. "And 72 million people are eligible to vote but are not registered. Our goal should be to get people registered to vote, that's always been the goal of the League of Women Voters." One protester, Dr. Kathy Nelson-Hund, felt compelled to speak among the demonstrators, urging them to reach out to young people and get them involved stating, "They are our future. They need to know what is happening before it is too late," she said. A family medicine physician who practiced in Willmar until her recent retirement, Nelson-Hund told the West Central Tribune that while she was at Wednesday's rally she thought about the discrimination she faced early in her career being one of few women practicing medicine at the time. "My medical opinions were questioned a lot by my colleagues just because I was a woman," she said. Nelson-Hund said she remembers when married women would still need permission from their husbands to open credit card accounts. She thinks the SAVE Act could very well be another hoop that young women will have to jump through in order to secure their right to vote. "They just don't know how frightening that can be," she said.
