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Articles by Eric Kashdan
What Happens After Election Day? Canvassing, Certification and Seating Members of Congress
With the 2026 midterms rapidly approaching, voters across the country are preparing to make their voices heard at the ballot box. But voting is only one part of the process, and many voters wonder: “What happens after I vote?” After Election Day, a carefully structured and proven system of ballot canvassing, results certification and transition procedures helps ensure every vote is counted and members of Congress take office according to the will of the voters.
CLC Endorses Congressional Legislation to End the Pay-To-Play Pardon System
On August 3, 2026, U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senator Richard Blumenthal, and Representative Joe Morelle introduced the No Payoffs For Pardons Act, a bill that will mandate transparency to curb corruption in the presidential pardon process. The Constitution's pardon power was designed to give the president a tool to correct injustice. This is an important ideal, but the president’s broad pardon power has also led to some questionable acts of clemency in American history.
Key Priorities Members of Congress Should Focus on Now
From protecting the freedom to vote to ensuring ethical governance and guarding against abuses of power, Congress has the tools to ensure our government is working for the people. Now is the time to use them. At Campaign Legal Center (CLC), we work every day to advance solutions to the various challenges facing our democracy, including advocating for policymakers to adopt key changes to the law.
Campaign Legal Center Defeats Anti-Democracy Provisions in President Trump’s Budget Bill
As Congress debated the so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” two little-known and dangerous provisions quietly emerged as serious threats to our core democratic safeguards. Thankfully, both have now been resoundingly defeated. Because of Campaign Legal Center’s efforts, alongside the tireless work of many of our partners, both threats were removed from the legislation before the U.S. Senate’s final vote.
These Hidden Provisions in the Budget Bill Undermine Our Democracy
President Donald Trump’s so-called “One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act” passed in the U.S. House of Representatives by a narrow vote of 215-214. This massive legislation — totaling more than 1,000 pages — uses a complicated congressional procedure known as “budget reconciliation” to allow the Senate to pass it with fewer votes than would normally be required, and without bipartisan support. Most attention on this budget bill has centered around issues like the tax code, Medicaid and immigration.
What Are Executive Orders and How Do They Work?
Although executive orders have been used by presidents as far back as George Washington, they have become the subject of much discussion since the start of the second Trump administration. Immediately upon reassuming office, Trump issued a flurry of executive orders that could be consequential for millions of Americans. But the president is not a king nor dictator, and executive orders are not a blank check for the president to exercise his will without Constitutional checks and balances.
First Election Certification Under Updated Law Was a Success
The 2024 presidential election did not end in the early hours of November 6, when major news networks called the race for President-elect Donald Trump. Instead, the full process actually ended on January 6, when Congress officially counted each state’s electoral votes. Our democracy includes a comprehensive set of checks and balances to ensure all votes are counted and election results are honored.
A Peaceful Transition: First Election Certification Under Updated Law Was a Success
The 2024 presidential election did not end in the early hours of November 6, when major news networks called the race for President-elect Donald Trump. Instead, the full process actually ended on January 6, when Congress officially counted each state’s electoral votes. Our democracy includes a comprehensive set of checks and balances to ensure all votes are counted and election results are honored.
First Election Under Updated Law Was a Success
The 2024 presidential election did not end in the early hours of November 6, when major news networks called the race for President-elect Donald Trump. Instead, the full process actually ended today, when Congress officially counted each state’s electoral votes. Our democracy includes a comprehensive set of checks and balances to ensure all votes are counted and election results are honored.
A Peaceful Transition: First Election Under Updated Law Was a Success
The 2024 presidential election did not end in the early hours of November 6, when major news networks called the race for President-elect Donald Trump. Instead, with electoral votes officially counted by Congress, today marks the end of the formal process of electing the president. With Congress’ joint session coming to an end, the peaceful transfer of power from President Biden to President-elect Donald Trump is well underway.
What Is Public Financing? How Small-Dollar Democracy Combats Big-Money Elections
Wealthy special interests have increasingly dominated the financing of our elections, threatening to drown out the voices of everyday Americans. Running an electoral campaign for public office can come with an exorbitant cost, which helps explain why megadonors — or the outside groups they bankroll — routinely end up footing the bill and, in the process, discourage those without wealthy networks from running.
SCOTUS Preserves Campaign Finance Transparency for San Francisco Voters
The U.S. Supreme Court delivered a win for San Francisco voters by declining to accept a case brought by plaintiffs against a local campaign finance transparency law for further review. This decision leaves in place disclosure requirements that will provide San Francisco voters with important information on who is spending money to influence their vote, a key step toward increasing transparency in elections.
CLC Op-Ed Urges Congress: Act on Artificial Intelligence Before Election Day
This fall will host the first presidential election where artificial intelligence (AI) will play a major role. From the campaign trail to the ballot box, bad actors have already found ways to use AI as a tool to mislead voters and misrepresent political entities in campaign communications. Federal agencies, like the Federal Election Commission (FEC), are looking at how existing laws can help curb these potential impacts, but further action is necessary.
We Voted, Now What? How the President Is Elected
Every four years in November, Americans head to the polls to elect a president and vice president of the United States. But what happens between the time everyone’s votes are cast and when the next president takes the oath of office on Jan. 20? A federal law, the Electoral Count Reform Act (ECRA), lays out the procedures for finalizing the election during this period.
Voters Need to Know About New Legislation to Prevent “Redboxing” in Campaigns
In recent years, Campaign Legal Center (CLC) has worked hard to shine a bright light on “redboxing,” an unacceptable practice in which political campaigns publish content that signals to supportive super PACs what materials and strategies they should use in their own ads.
Victory: Tennessee Voters Strike Blow Against Tennessee’s Unequal, Inaccessible Felony Disenfranchisement Policies
In a major legal victory, a federal judge just struck a blow against Tennessee’s unequal and inaccessible felony disenfranchisement regime, ruling that Tennessee election officials cannot wrongly deny Tennesseans with past felony convictions their freedom to vote if they are eligible and the state must fully inform potential voters with past felony convictions of their eligibility.
The Barriers to Voting Faced by Americans with Disabilities
Free and fair elections rely on every voter having the ability to make their voice heard. Unfortunately, voters with disabilities are often met with a range of disproportionately burdensome barriers — from polling locations without ramps to restrictions on accessible voting options like vote-by-mail — that limit their ability to access the ballot and ultimately undermine their freedom to vote. Increasing accessible voting options helps all Americans make their voices heard.
Cruz’s Podcast Deal Appears to Have Illegally Funneled Soft Money into Elections
When Senator Ted Cruz made a deal in 2022 with a major media corporation, iHeartMedia, to help produce and more widely distribute his podcast, “Verdict with Ted Cruz,” he insisted that he wasn’t personally benefiting from the podcast deal and that he was volunteering his time, comparing his work hosting the now thrice-weekly podcast to his appearances on cable or network television shows. iHeartMedia also asserted that Cruz was not being paid to appear on the podcast under the deal.
In Alabama, Voters and Nonpartisan Civic Engagement Groups Deserve a Voice
Our democracy works best when every voter can participate, and civic engagement groups help make that possible by helping more people engage in our democracy and assisting those who need it. But Alabamians are now confronted with a new law that restricts their ability to help their neighbors vote and make their voices heard. On March 20, 2024, Alabama enacted a law, SB 1, that would impose significant consequences for anyone who assists voters in the absentee ballot application process.
Transparency for Arizona Voters Gets a Win in Federal Court
The Federal District Court for the District of Arizona has dismissed a lawsuit brought by Americans for Prosperity (AFP) and the Americans for Prosperity Foundation (AFPF) challenging the constitutionality of Proposition 211, also known as the Voters’ Right to Know Act. The ballot measure was approved by 72% of Arizona voters in November 2022 after many years of hard work by Voters’ Right to Know (VRTK), the ballot measure committee represented by Campaign Legal Center Action (CLCA) in this case.
Congress Should Pass Bipartisan Bills to Safeguard Elections from AI
As the 2024 election rapidly approaches, the risk that artificial intelligence (AI) could be used to deceive voters or manipulate our democratic process continues to grow. Thankfully, there are promising signs in Congress for a bipartisan path to safeguard elections from the emerging threat this technology presents. AI is a game-changer due to its unprecedented ability to create realistic false content.
How Does the Citizens United Decision Still Affect Us in 2024?
Voters have a right to know which wealthy special interests are spending big money to influence our vote and our government to rig the political system in their favor, but as the 2024 elections approach, a case decided by the U.S. Supreme Court over a decade ago continues to threaten that fundamental right. On Jan. 21, 2010, in the case Citizens United v.
How to Prevent Unfair Voter Purges
Our democracy works best when every voter can participate in it, but eligible voters can be removed from the voter rolls due to an unfair practice called voter purging. Voter purges, or efforts to remove a significant number of voters from the registration rolls all at once, ultimately threaten Americans’ freedom to vote and tend to disproportionately target people with past felony convictions, voters of color, low-income voters and young voters.
Members of Congress Are Refusing To Cooperate With Ethics Investigations
As an independent, nonpartisan entity, the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) investigates allegations of ethical misconduct made against members of the House of Representatives and their staff. The OCE is essential to both actual enforcement of the law and maintaining transparency regarding these investigations. But a problematic trend has emerged among lawmakers under investigation.
How Can You Know if Your Senator Is Behaving Ethically?
The U.S. Senate has a well-established ethics enforcement problem. Campaign Legal Center has been highlighting the Senate Ethics Committee’s inadequacies since 2014, when we found the committee’s enforcement process limited and opaque. In early 2021, CLC conducted a comparative study to evaluate 10 years of ethics enforcement in the U.S. House and Senate.
The Menendez Indictment Reveals Exactly How Senate Ethics Enforcement is Broken
When Senator Robert Menendez was indicted on federal corruption charges on September 22, 2023, the shocking details revealed by the allegations seemingly had no end. Wads of cash totaling almost half a million dollars stuffed into clothing pockets and closets. A $60,000 car gifted in the aftermath of a fatal crash caused by Senator Menendez’s wife.
The Menendez Indictment Reveals the Straw Man of Senate Ethics Enforcement
When Senator Robert Menendez was indicted on federal corruption charges on September 22, 2023, the shocking details revealed by the allegations seemingly had no end. Wads of cash totaling almost half a million dollars stuffed into clothing pockets and closets. A $60,000 car gifted in the aftermath of a fatal crash caused by Senator Menendez’s wife.
Enhancing Ethics Enforcement in the U.S. Senate
To ensure integrity in Congress, the U.S. Constitution gives the House and the Senate authority to establish ethics rules and impose discipline for improper behavior in each chamber. This broad mandate has produced numerous laws that provide guardrails against corruption, including mandatory financial disclosures, limitations on fundraising practices, restrictions on gifts, and more.
Arizona’s Proposition 211 and the Fight for the Voters’ Right to Know
In 2022, Arizona voters overwhelmingly passed a ballot initiative establishing the nation's most comprehensive election spending transparency law: Proposition 211 (Prop 211), or the Voters’ Right to Know Act. Campaign Legal Center (CLC) played a crucial leadership role in the formulation of Prop 211 and is now defending the law in court.
How Straw Donor Schemes Undermine Transparency in Elections
Voters have a right to know who is spending to influence their vote and their government. Federal campaign finance laws protect this right by requiring federal candidates and committees to disclose their contributors.
Congress Should Pass the Protecting Our Democracy Act
A healthy democracy needs institutions that are free of corruption and safeguarded against abuses of power. Fulfilling these goals requires that we enhance checks and balances between our branches of government, promote transparency and accountability for officials entrusted with the public good, and protect our elections from improper interference by bad actors—both foreign and domestic.
FEC Waves the White Flag on Yet Another Issue: Leadership PAC Abuse
It’s no secret that leadership PACs have long been a source of abuse in our campaign finance system. These committees were first permitted more than forty years ago to enable federal officeholders and candidates to raise money to support congressional colleagues and gain support for their efforts to secure leadership roles. But in recent years, leadership PACs have often been used as slush funds, to pay for all kinds of personal expenses that have little to no official or electoral purpose.
What the Electoral Count Reform Act Means for States
Late last year, Congress delivered a major victory for democracy by passing the Electoral Count Reform Act of 2022 (ECRA). This bipartisan legislation, included as part of an omnibus appropriations and policy package, updates the archaic Electoral Count Act (ECA) of 1887. The ECA, as updated by the ECRA, provides the primary legal framework for casting and counting Electoral College votes in presidential elections.
Vote By Mail: A Secure and Accessible Way to Cast Your Ballot
Written by Lica Porcile, a legal intern at Campaign Legal Center Our democracy works best when every voter can participate, which is why every citizen should have a convenient way to vote in our elections and make their voice heard. Vote-by-mail – sometimes called absentee voting – is a safe, secure and accessible way to vote that has existed since the Civil War and is used in red states and blue states alike.
Secret Spending Keeps Popping Up in Our Elections
Every election cycle, voters see, hear, and scroll past countless political ads that support or attack candidates vying for public office. Indeed, candidates generally spend a major share of their campaign funds on such ads. But in recent years, political ads have increasingly been financed by outside groups like super PACs, which spend hundreds of millions of dollars each election to promote and attack candidates.
Frivolous Mass Challenges to Voter Eligibility Damaging to Democracy
Election officials across the country are extraordinarily busy in the weeks leading up to the general election, with many administrative and logistical tasks to complete to ensure that elections in their communities run smoothly and securely.
Following Senate Hearing, Congress Must Update the Electoral Count Act Without Delay
The U.S. Senate Committee on Rules and Administration held a hearing on the urgent need to update the Electoral Count Act (ECA), an outdated law from 1887 that outlines procedures for casting and counting Electoral College votes in presidential elections. This hearing follows last month’s introduction of bipartisan legislation – the Electoral Count Reform Act of 2022 (ECRA) – that would modernize the ECA and help prevent attempts to sabotage the results of presidential elections.
Can People Vote in Jail? Yes, But It's Very Challenging
By Matthew Peljovich, a Summer 2022 CLC intern The freedom to vote is one of our most fundamental rights, and our democracy is strongest when every voter can freely participate in it — including those who are serving time in jail. Two out of every three people currently in U.S. jails, or roughly half a million people, are being held in jail while they await their trial. These Americans have not been convicted of a crime, so there should be no restrictions on their right to vote.
SCOTUS Takes Up Case That Could Allow State Legislatures to Sabotage Elections
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear Moore v. Harper, a North Carolina redistricting case that could fundamentally alter the role of state courts in protecting voters. It’s based on the fringe “independent state legislature” theory. This could pave the way for bad faith politicians to manipulate election maps and laws to suit their political interests instead of the interests of voters.
January 6th Congressional Hearings Highlight the Urgency of Updating Electoral Count Act
A bipartisan, select committee in the U.S. House of Representatives continued a series of hearings this month about the January 6th attack on our country. The third hearing shined a light on the need for Congress to update the Electoral Count Act of 1887 (ECA), which provides the primary legal framework for how presidential votes are cast and confirmed. Because the next presidential election could be one of the most contentious ever, the time to act is now.
CLC Sues Secret Money Group, Heritage Action, for Violating Disclosure Laws
Campaign Legal Center (CLC) filed suit against Heritage Action for America, a political arm of the Heritage Foundation, which spent over $1 million in the 2018 election cycle to help elect numerous Republican candidates for Congress. The lawsuit alleges that Heritage Action failed to make mandatory disclosures of the donors who contributed to fund Heritage Action’s election spending.
CLC Files Brief in Pursuit of Voting Rights for Tennessee Citizen
Campaign Legal Center (CLC) has filed an application at the Tennessee Supreme Court to appeal the case of Ernest Falls, who has been denied the right to vote for failure to prove that he does not owe court costs related to a 1986 felony conviction in Virginia. Having faced setbacks at both the Chancery Court and the Court of Appeals of Tennessee at Nashville, Falls now seeks to appeal the decision of the Tennessee Court of Appeals.
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