Tag Archives: Elections

Are we witnessing revolution in Georgia? Pro-EU protests sweep the nation

The Georgian Dream government tried shifting to Russia – but now faces a popular uprising and constitutional crisis

By Stephen Jones. Published 12-3-2024 by openDemocracy

*Protests on October 28, 2024 against the official results of the Georgian parliamentary elections of October 26, 2024.. Photo: Jelger Groeneveld/flickr/CC*

Constitutional upheavals are rare but in Georgia, they come repeatedly (1992, 2003, and as of this week, now 2024). We might even call them revolutions, not ideologically, but in the broad sense of mass mobilisation, a forced transfer of power, and the passing of sovereignty to a new group of rulers.

Over the past three decades, these types of revolutions have become endemic in the Georgian political system. Persistently, democratic breakthroughs in the country lead not to institutionalised democracy, but to corrupt and unaccountable governance.

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What would it mean if President-elect Trump dismantled the US Department of Education?

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By Kevin Welner. Published 11-21-2024 by The Conversation

*Republicans have sought to destroy the Education Department almost since its inception*. *Photo: Thomas Hawk/flickr/CC*

In her role as former chief executive of World Wrestling Entertainment, Linda McMahon oversaw an enterprise that popularized the “takedown” for millions of wrestling fans. But as President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of education, the Trump loyalist may be tasked with taking down the very department Trump has asked her to lead.

If Trump does dismantle the Department of Education as he has promised to do, he will have succeeded at something that President Ronald Reagan vowed to do in 1980. Just like Trump, Reagan campaigned on abolishing the department, which at the time was only a year old. Since then, the Republican Party platform has repeatedly called for eliminating the Education Department, which oversees a range of programs and initiatives. These include special funding for schools in low-income communities – known as Title I – and safeguarding the rights of students with disabilities.

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Pakistani Authorities Accused of Trying to Cover Up Killings of Protesters

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“All records of dead and injured have been confiscated by authorities,” said one doctor. “We are not allowed to talk. Senior government officials are visiting the hospital to hide the records.”

By Jessica Corbett. Published 11-27-2024 by Common Dreams

The Guardian reported Wednesday that at least 17 civilians in Pakistan were killed and hundreds more were wounded by army and paramilitary gunfire at protesters and one doctor in Islamabad claimed that authorities were attempting to cover up deaths.

“At least seven have died and four are in critical condition in the hospital,” according to the unnamed doctor, who said that on Tuesday night he treated over 40 patients, many injured by gunfire. “Eight more have been admitted to the hospital with bullet wounds.”

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After $16 Billion Election, Nonprofit Tracking Money in Politics Lays Off 1/3 of Staff

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“This is an absolutely devastating development on the precipice of the next administration,” said one journalist.

By Jessica Corbett. Published 11-8-2024 by Common Dreams

Journalists and other critics of how money influences U.S. politics expressed alarm and disappointment in response to Friday reporting that shortly after the nation’s latest election, the research nonprofit OpenSecrets had to lay off a third of its staff.

Citing a current staffer, Politico‘s Daniel Lippman revealed that OpenSecrets “laid off 10 employees yesterday due to financial difficulties” and “much of the research team were among the casualties, which constituted around a third of the group’s total headcount.”

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In Tiny State of Maine, a Big Election Day Win Against Dark Money in Politics

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“Our greatest hope is to restore people’s faith in our democracy and increase participation across the board,” said the chair of the campaign behind the measure likely bound for the U.S. Supreme Court.

By Jessica Corbett. Published 11-6-2024 by Common Dreams

*A sign in Maine promotes Question 1, which aims to get big money out of politics. (Photo: Maine Citizens to End Super PACs/Facebook)*

As billionaire-backed Republicans dominated U.S. elections on Tuesday, voters in Maine—among the top 10 states in terms of smallest populations—overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure to limit political spending, an initiative that could reach the country’s top court.

Maine Question 1 targets super political action committees (PACs), dark money groups that, for the most part, are barred from directly contributing or coordinating with a candidate but can raise and spend unlimited amounts of funds.

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What poll watchers can − and can’t − do on Election Day

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By Mollie J. Cohen and Geoffrey D. Sheagley. Published 11-4-2024 by The Conversation

When most people think of their experience of voting in person, they may remember other voters at the polls, or the hardworking election officials checking people in and helping people submit their ballots. But in many elections, a third group is often present: poll watchers.

Poll watchers are ordinary citizens who volunteer to observe elections on behalf of an organization. Many of them do so on behalf of a specific political party. Other volunteers are nonpartisan poll watchers; they observe the action at polling places on behalf of nonpartisan organizations, including domestic groups and international election watchdogs such as the Carter Center or the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.

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For one survivor, the 1920 Election Day massacre in Florida was ‘the night the devil got loose’

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By Jerald Podair, Lawrence University. Published 11-1-2024 by The Conversation

*A historical marker memorializing July Perry’s lynching Screenshot: YouTube*

Mose Norman, a Black registered voter, was ready to cast his ballot for presidential candidate Warren G. Harding.

But when he arrived at his polling place on Election Day, Nov. 2, 1920, in the orange grove town of Ocoee, Florida, near Orlando, Norman was turned away by white election officials because of supposed unpaid poll taxes. His name and the names of hundreds of other registered Black voters had been removed from the rolls by white poll workers.

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‘BIG Victory for PA Voters’: US Supreme Court Denies GOP Bid to Block Thousands of Ballots

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“This is a win for democracy and the rule of law,” said one ACLU attorney. “The bottom line is that voters deserve to have their voices heard.”

By Jessica Corbett. Published 11-1-2024 by Common Dreams

After allowing Virginia Republicans’ voter registration purge earlier this week, the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday rejected a GOP effort to block thousands of ballots for the November 5 election from being counted in the key swing state of Pennsylvania.

Democratic elections lawyer and Democracy Docket founder Mark Elias called the decision “a BIG victory for PA voters.”

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Fearing More ‘Blatant Corruption’ in Second Trump Term, Watchdog Issues Ethics Blueprint

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“Should the flagrant disregard of ethics rules return, the political opposition must use all tools at their disposal to advance ethics reforms and neutralize as much harm as possible.”

By Brett Wilkins. Published 10-31-2024 by Common Dreams

*Chicago welcomes Donald Trump to town Chicago Illinois 10-28-19. Photo: Charles Edward Miller/flickr/CC*

A leading U.S. watchdog group on Thursday published what it called “a blueprint for strengthening the federal government’s ethics programs across the executive, legislative, and judicial branches” amid Democrats’ inadequate reforms and the prospect of more “outright scandals and blatant corruption” under a possible second administration of former Republican President Donald Trump.

The Revolving Door Project publication—titled Rebuilding Public Trust: Six Principles to Guide Reform—notes that “Americans’ trust in government is near historic lows, a trend that both preceded and continued after the blatant corruption of the Trump administration.”

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‘Dark Omen’: Supreme Court Allows Virginia Voter Purge Just Days Before Election

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Although eligible voters can still participate thanks to same-day registration, critics called the decision “outrageous.”

By Jessica Corbett. Published 10-30-2024 by Common Dreams

Democracy defenders responded with alarm on Wednesday to a decision from the U.S. Supreme Court’s right-wing majority allowing Virginia to resume its purge of state voter registration rolls while early voting is underway for next Tuesday’s election.

Stand Up America managing director of policy and political affairs Brett Edkins framed the court’s decision as a gift to former Republican President Donald Trump, who appointed half of the conservative justices and is facing Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in the November 5 contest for the White House.

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Occupy World Writes

The Movement Continues – Globally

Tag Archives: Elections