We cover the nuts and bolts of power and political change, from the local up.
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Assigned to a prison job paying $0.13 per hour, Abron Arrington refused to work, figuring his time could be better spent learning physics.
The DOC punished him with bouts of solitary confinement. boltsmag.org/colorado-prison…
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A Pennsylvania pastor was fired by his church for a pro-LGTB message. He decided to run for a local office to denounce the deadly conditions in the local jail.
He scored a shock upset and flipped a county government, after running a shoestring campaign. boltsmag.org/dauphin-county-…
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Michigan automatically registers people to vote when they get a driver's license.
This year, it adopted a new law to also register people automatically when they sign up for Medicaid, obtain a Native American tribal ID, or are released from prison. boltsmag.org/michigan-automa…
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RESULT: In a judicial race in Kentucky with outsized importance, a local judge defeats a conservative challenger with support from Mitch McConnell.
His win helps preserve one of the state's few paths for civil rights litigation. Background in Bolts: boltsmag.org/judicial-electi…
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As a result of the 2022 midterms, an additional 26 million Americans will live in states run by Democratic trifectas. Seven million fewer Americans will live in states run by GOP trifectas. boltsmag.org/legislative-ele…
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“When the 8 African American sheriffs took over the largest counties in North Carolina, it became a threat to the good ol’ boy system,” says Charlotte’s sheriff.
GOP lawmakers this week passed a bill cracking down on their policies of standing up to ICE: boltsmag.org/north-carolina-…
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“When the eight African American sheriffs took over the largest counties in North Carolina, it became a threat to the good ol’ boy system.”
Now comes the Republican backlash:
boltsmag.org/north-carolina-…
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Andy Moore is scared of voting in Nebraska. Decisions by GOP officials have him fearing they'll say he broke election law.
“I do not plan on voting, which is really sad because it’s a pretty critical year. I’m that concerned about going back to prison.” boltsmag.org/nebraska-voting…
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Students at Texas A&M asked county officials to open an additional polling location on campus.
Instead, county officials shut down the only polling site on campus during the entire early voting period. boltsmag.org/texas-students-…
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In California, DA Keith Fagundes prosecuted two women over stillbirths, which sparked backlash from Attorney General Rob Bonta and legislation to stop future investigations into pregnancy loss.
Fagundes lost his re-election bid yesterday. boltsmag.org/california-preg…
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Tennessee has added new steps for residents who've lost their voting rights and want to regain them.
The steps cost money. Resident of Nashville would have to pay $159.50 to petition a judge to regain their rights. boltsmag.org/tennessee-restr…
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The national GOP's platform endorses the idea that embryos and fetuses are full legal persons under the 14th Amendment.
“I can’t overstate how impactful this would be,” says @profgracehoward, an expert on the policing of pregnancy. boltsmag.org/how-pregnancy-i…
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A group in San Diego is patrolling neighborhoods to identify potential ICE presence. They keep watch for vehicles that may belong to federal agencies, and use livestreams, radios, and social media to keep communities informed. boltsmag.org/how-volunteer-p…
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Prosecutors in Tennessee are dropping all charges against Pamela Moses, who had been sentenced to six years in prison for trying to register to vote after a state agency told her she could. The case captured national attention. theguardian.com/us-news/2022…
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BREAKING: Democratic candidate Donna Deegan has won the mayoral election in Jacksonville, Florida, tonight, defeating Republican Daniel Davis.
The result flips the most populous city presently governed by Republicans to a Democrat. jaxtrib.org/2023/05/16/donna…
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Four Republican county commissioners were recalled by Michigan voters in special elections tonight.
Three were in Delta County, and one in Ottawa County. The races were decided by margins ranging from 20 to 50 percentage points. boltsmag.org/whats-on-the-ba…
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New Mexico adopted a law this year that established Election Day as a state holiday. boltsmag.org/new-mexico-voti…
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NEW: Two Rhode Islanders who have experienced the criminal legal system from the inside were elected to the state legislature. And they're eager to join forces. "They know we’re going to start good trouble."
boltsmag.org/rhode-island-le…
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Kimberly Graham, who is the Democratic nominee for prosecutor in the largest county of Iowa, vows to not prosecute cases that involve abortions. She confirmed her position in an interview with Bolts. boltsmag.org/reformer-wins-p…
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Michigan lawmakers passed a bill to allow 16 and 17-year-olds to preregister, so that they’re already on the rolls to cast votes once they become eligible at 18. Proponents say this helps build civic habits early and encourages youth turnout. boltsmag.org/michigan-voting…
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Assigned to a prison job paying $0.13 per hour, Abron Arrington refused to work, figuring his time could be better spent learning physics.
The DOC punished him with bouts of solitary confinement: boltsmag.org/colorado-prison…
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California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed into law a bill that will make it easier for farmworkers to organize, despite earlier signaling he may veto it. The bill, a union priority, also expands voting options for farmworkers in union elections: latimes.com/california/story…
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A police stop is enough to make someone less likely to vote, recent research found. "Voting is a reflection of our belief that we’re part of the system, that our voice matters." boltsmag.org/a-police-stop-i…
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In San Francisco and in Boulder, Colorado, voters approved proposals on Tuesday to move city elections from odd-numbered to even-numbered years so that they coincide with federal and statewide elections. The idea is to boost turnout. boltsmag.org/ballot-measures…
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NEW: Kelly Ruh, a Wisconsin official who two years ago posed as a presidential elector for Donald Trump as part of an attempt to overturn the 2020 election, lost her re-election bid tonight. boltsmag.org/wisconsin-elect…
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Incarcerated workers produce more than $2 billion each year in goods and commodities, and over $9 billion in services for the maintenance of the very prisons that confine them –– all while being paid pennies an hour or nothing at all. boltsmag.org/colorado-prison…
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Voters will elect dozens of supreme court justices this year, deciding these courts’ viability as a counter-weight to federal judges and as an alternative path to civil rights litigation.
Our guide walks you through these elections, in every single state: boltsmag.org/your-state-by-s…
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A criminal justice reformer wins in Iowa: Kimberly Graham has gained the prosecutor's office in Polk County (home to Des Moines).
In June, she told Bolts that she was inspired to run by hearing Rachael Rollins, Boston's former reform DA. boltsmag.org/reformer-wins-p…
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NEW: In early results tonight, a local initiative to decriminalize marijuana and end no-knock warrants in Austin, Texas, is ahead by an overwhelming margin.
Proposition A is up 84% to 16% with early votes and mail ballots counted.
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In a landmark ruling, the Utah Supreme Court safeguarded the people’s right to direct democracy, stating that lawmakers can't simply override voter-approved initiatives. boltsmag.org/utah-supreme-co…
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In August, the Florida Supreme Court, largely filled with judges appointed by Ron DeSantis, upheld his decision to remove Orlando prosecutor Monique Worrell from office by a 6-1 vote. On Tuesday, Worrell won her election to reclaim the position. boltsmag.org/tampa-orlando-p…
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Governor Greg Abbott appointed an Austin police officer to a state police commission following his indictment on charges of assaulting protesters during the demonstrations that followed George Floyd’s murder in 2020. boltsmag.org/texas-crime-sto…
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Under Sheriff Waybourn, Tarrant County has paid millions to settle lawsuits over mistreatment in its jail. In one case, a pregnant woman with mental illness deteriorated until she was non-verbal and gave birth alone in her cell. Her baby died 10 days later.boltsmag.org/jail-crisis-loo…
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JUST IN: Waukesha, Wisconsin, has re-elected Shawn Reilly as its mayor tonight.
Reilly (who left the Republican Party immediately after Jan. 6 last year) faced a challenger who amplified claims about widespread fraud in the 2020 election: boltsmag.org/fake-trump-elec…
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RESULTS: Voters in Missouri and Colorado have passed amendments codifying abortion access in their state constitutions.
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In a major win for immigrants' rights activists in Massachusetts, the new sheriff of Barnstable County, home to Cape Cod, announced today that she would terminate the county's 287(g) contract with ICE.
heraldnews.com/story/news/lo…
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Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed a first-in-the-nation law to automatically register people to vote as they leave prison: boltsmag.org/michigan-automa…
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The Supreme Court ruling today could lead to an increase in criminal charges filed for all sorts of pregnancy outcomes, including stillbirths, miscarriages, and treatment for dangerous or unviable pregnancies.
Two recent California prosecutions show how: boltsmag.org/california-preg…
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JUST IN: All four members of a progressive slate of candidates who ran on promoting decarceration from the bench in Los Angeles are moving on to November runoffs. (Los Angeles released the final results of its June elections today.)
Read @PiperSFrench:
boltsmag.org/the-movement-to…
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Kedron Bardwell, a professor who helped expose one election denier’s social media posts after he was chosen to head the local election office, is surprised how forcefully voters rejected him: “The pushback was stronger than even I had thought.”boltsmag.org/iowa-warren-cou…
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France became the first EU country to legalize AI video surveillance, just as the European Parliament attempts to regulate and even ban aspects of the technology. The justification: the Olympics are coming.
Los Angeles activists are watching warily.
New: boltsmag.org/france-enables-…
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By winning New Hampshire’s sole legislative race in a special election on Tuesday, Democrat Paige Beauchemin pulled her party within just 1 seat of erasing the GOP’s majority in the state House. Democrats now have 197 seats to the GOP’s 198.
NEW in Bolts:boltsmag.org/election-night-…
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The sheriff of the East Baton Rouge jail has blamed recent tragedies on the building and wants a new facility.
Family members and advocates are pushing back: “A facility didn’t kill my uncle. Three deputies tased him while he was having a heart attack.”boltsmag.org/east-baton-roug…
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Public utilities commissions are critical for climate policy, with the ability to set clean energy goals and more.
But in Georgia, voters are unable to cast a ballot for climate conscious candidates—or *any* candidate—because elections have been canceled:boltsmag.org/georgia-utility…
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Former members of Alabama's parole board blame declining prison releases on pressure from the governor and attorney general.
“There were cases where I did not vote to parole even though I knew I needed to because I was afraid of losing my job.” boltsmag.org/alabama-parole-…
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Democrats have held a swing congressional seat in New York. In Florida, a local judge who drew national headlines for an anti-abortion decision was ousted.
Our cheat sheet has the latest results to track tonight. boltsmag.org/whats-on-the-ba…
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JUST IN: Austin has passed Prop A, a local initiative to ban no-knock warrants by the police and to decriminalize low amounts of marijuana. fox7austin.com/election/prop…
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Some prosecutors in Arizona say it's their duty to prosecute abortions if a ban is on the books. But one Democratic lawmaker points out that adultery is still illegal in Arizona, but prosecutors aren’t going around charging spouses who cheat. boltsmag.org/arizona-abortio…
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A public defender is set to become Minneapolis prosecutor. “I thought, people who really value public safety and a fair and just system need to... present options that aren’t the same old things we’ve had for decades, which haven’t kept us safer.” boltsmag.org/minneapolis-pub…
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Michigan became the first state to adopt a law to automatically register people to vote as they leave prison. boltsmag.org/michigan-automa…
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A nurse is running for sheriff in Massachusetts, and she is pointing out that most people in the local jail have mental health or substance use issues. “Those are not law enforcement issues. Those are nursing issues. Those are social service issues.”
boltsmag.org/massachusetts-s…
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Nebraska organizer Aaron Pettes was thrilled that he could tell thousands of people that their rights were restored ahead of next month's election: “The big thing here is getting people bought back into a process that essentially booted them out.”
boltsmag.org/nebraska-voting…
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Massachusetts recently eliminated the exorbitant charges that incarcerated people and their families encounter just trying to stay in touch with each other.
“Children deserve to hear ‘I love you’ whether or not their parent can afford a phone call.” boltsmag.org/massachusetts-p…
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Michigan automatically registers people to vote when they get driver's licenses.
It adopted a new law last fall that will also register people automatically when they sign up for Medicaid, obtain a Native American tribal ID, or are released from prison. boltsmag.org/michigan-automa…
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Michigan is on the verge of adopting a law that would automatically register people to vote as they leave prison.
The bill, adopted this month by lawmakers, would be a national first. boltsmag.org/michigan-automa…
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JUST IN: Democrat Catelin Drey has won a state Senate seat in Iowa tonight in a special election, flipping the seat from the GOP. Drey’s win breaks the Republican supermajority in the chamber.
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Republicans in Arizona have placed a constitutional amendment on the November ballot that'd squash future citizen-led initiatives. boltsmag.org/arizona-ballot-…
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The jail population of Cook County has declined by 13% since Illinois abolished cash bail last year. Now reformers across the state are pushing for more support services for those on pretrial release. boltsmag.org/illinois-pretri…
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NEWS: Gretchen Whitmer has signed the bill that will allow 16 and 17-year-olds to preregister. They would then already be on voter rolls once they become eligible at 18. Proponents say this helps build civic habits early and encourages youth turnout. boltsmag.org/michigan-voting…
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A study released this year shows that when a state slashes Medicaid, crime rates go up.
“You might save some dollars,” one of the authors told Bolts, “but that may lead to some other problems with other objectives, like promoting public safety.” boltsmag.org/medicaid-covera…
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When New Orleans officials said they wouldn't prioritize enforcing criminal restrictions on abortion, Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry, now the governor-elect, responded by trying to withhold flood protection funds.
boltsmag.org/jeff-landry-gov…
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JUST IN: The Texas Senate passed a bill today that'd let sheriffs investigate themselves for deaths under their custody.
It would roll back key provisions of the Sandra Bland Act, which brought more transparency into jails.
Bolts covered it last month: boltsmag.org/texas-bill-jail…
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New research shows how low-level interactions with the police can undercut democracy by reducing the number of people who participate in elections: the study documents how traffic stops by police stops in Florida reduced voter turnout.
New at @boltsmag. boltsmag.org/a-police-stop-i…
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Reformers in Massachusetts are jubilant following the defeat of a far-right sheriff, who is known for overseeing dangerous jails and draws comparisons to the notorious Arizona strongman Joe Arpaio. boltsmag.org/massachusetts-v…
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Research by the American Psychological Association found that people perceive Black youth as older than they are, making judges more prone to treating Black defendants as full adults than they are with white defendants. boltsmag.org/life-without-pa…
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Minnesota earlier this month restored voting rights to tens of thousands. “Society has basically told me I’m locked away from having the most basic engagement with democracy. Now, I will be engaged in the democratic experience.” boltsmag.org/minnesota-votin…
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In its first prosecutor race since George Floyd's murder, Minneapolis elected a career public defender on Tuesday as its prosecutor.
Mary Moriarty easily prevailed in Hennepin County, one of several new reform prosecutors to win. boltsmag.org/minneapolis-pub…
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John Fetterman won the Pennsylvania Senate race after heavy attacks over his views on clemency and life sentences.
In February, Bolts talked to Celeste Trusty, whom he named to work at the board of pardons, about why they are working to expand clemency. boltsmag.org/pennsylvania-pa…
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JUST IN: Democrat Daniel McCaffery has been elected to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, the @AP has called.
He faced Republican Carolyn Carluccio in the race for an open seat in this key swing state. boltsmag.org/pennsylvania-su…
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JUST IN: The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case that involves the independent legislature doctrine. That is the feverish idea that state legislatures should have unfettered control over how elections are run and regulated. Read our explainer: boltsmag.org/independent-sta…
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An unwritten convention gives New Jersey senators virtual veto powers over gubernatorial nominees. A GOP senator has blocked the nomination of a former ACLU advocate to the supreme court for more than a year, with little response from Democratic leaders.
boltsmag.org/the-unwritten-s…
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Democrats have gained trifectas in two states tonight: Maryland and Massachusetts. In both states, the governor's office just flipped red to blue, according to the Associated Press.
The Bolts big board is updated. boltsmag.org/whats-on-the-ba…
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We asked a prominent election official in Arizona for her reaction to Tuesday’s GOP primaries, which saw a string of wins for election deniers.
“Are you allowed to print expletives?” she replied. boltsmag.org/maricopa-county…
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After being appointed by Governor DeSantis, the Tampa prosecutor rescinded a policy to not prosecute bicyclists and pedestrians for certain traffic charges. The @TB_Times has exposed the police’s relentless ticketing of Black cyclists in the city. boltsmag.org/a-police-stop-i…
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Vermont is one of the few places in the U.S. that allows incarcerated people to vote. The state's likely next secretary of state is a strong supporter of that approach. "Why would they not be allowed to vote? They’re citizens of our country." boltsmag.org/vermont-secreta…
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Louisiana House Bill 321 would have made some children's criminal record's public—but only in 3 parishes with some of the highest concentration of Black residents in the state.
“If you think this is a good thing, why wouldn't you do it in your own town?”boltsmag.org/jeff-landry-gov…
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Mississippi is a rare state with no in-person early voting, and it also makes it difficult to vote by mail. “If you’re not there from between 7am and 7pm on Election Day, it’s going to be pretty difficult for you to vote,” says the head of the state ACLU. boltsmag.org/mississippi-kee…
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Throughout 2023, @BoltsMag’s @Alex_Burness has reported on the people with felony convictions who are blocked from voting this fall — and how they are fighting back. boltsmag.org/felony-disenfra…
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Arizona Republicans are proposing to expand their state's court of appeals by adding six judges. This comes after they expanded the state Supreme Court in 2016. news.azpm.org/p/news-article…
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Since Denver officials set up in-person voting in the city's jail, voter turnout has occasionally surpassed turnout in the city overall.
Now, a new law mandates that polling places be instituted in jails across the rest of Colorado:
boltsmag.org/colorado-voting…
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Researchers analyzed the autopsies of dozens of people who died in Los Angeles jails. In most deaths classified as “natural,” there were signs of violence on the body.
“What we're looking at is really capital punishment through other means.” boltsmag.org/los-angeles-cou…
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Across red states, state officials are rejecting ballot initiatives on abortion and other issues; they're citing technicalities, such as a problem with a ballot title.
The initiatives' organizers say politics, not procedure, is fueling these decisions. boltsmag.org/attorneys-gener…
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Since Denver officials set up in-person voting in the city's jail, voter turnout has occasionally surpassed turnout in the city overall.
Now, a new law mandates that polling places be instituted in jails across the rest of Colorado. boltsmag.org/colorado-voting…
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RESULT: Democrat Tobias Read has won Oregon’s secretary of state race against Republican Dennis Linthicum, the AP has just called. Linthicum had advocated for overturning the 2020 election and for banning mail voting. boltsmag.org/oregon-secretar…
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Joe Biden has expanded who is making it on the federal bench, getting more former public defenders confirmed to circuit courts in two years than Barack Obama did in eight, let alone Donald Trump.
Some governors are following suit for state courts. boltsmag.org/new-jersey-firs…
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We are live! Starting today, we are covering the nuts and bolts of power and political change, from the local up.
Visit us at boltsmag.org and follow us here for reporting on the politics that are shaping criminal justice and voting rights across the country.
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Wendy Rogers, a state senator in Arizona who spoke at a white supremacist conference and is a member of the Oath Keepers, was censured by her fellow Republicans two years ago after she called for public hangings. She is up for reelection on Tuesday. boltsmag.org/whats-on-the-ba…
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NEW: Los Angeles voters last week took every opportunity at their disposal to challenge the scandal-ridden Los Angeles County’s sheriff department and push for change.
They fired their sheriff. And then they just kept going. boltsmag.org/los-angeles-she…
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Some Democrats in Florida say they feel trepidation that their governor will continue removing Democratic politicians from local office, regardless of election results: “Sometimes it feels like a set up—or it’s all just theater.” boltsmag.org/hillsborough-co…
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Kenneth Mejia, frontrunner for L.A. city controller, wants Angelenos to engage in the city's budget process and grapple with how their money is being spent on policing. It's a campaign that builds on years of activism and organizing for reform in the city: boltsmag.org/los-angeles-cit…
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North Carolina's Democratic Governor Roy Cooper has appointed Allison Riggs, a voting rights lawyer who has worked as the chief counsel of the Southern Coalition for Social Justice, as the newest member of the state supreme court: newsobserver.com/news/politi…
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Minnesota this year eliminated prison gerrymandering.
A new law, signed by Tim Walz in the spring, will end the practice of counting incarcerated people where prisons are located, which skews political power within the state. boltsmag.org/minnesota-ends-…
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Incarcerated people and their advocates are trying to push Louisiana to end forced prison labor.
“People were like, ‘No, slavery was abolished in 1865!’ Meanwhile, I’m over here pickin’ cotton.” boltsmag.org/colorado-prison…
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A Michigan ‘constitutional’ sheriff tied with far-right groups has refused to enforce state laws and kept investigating the 2020 election. His tenure could come to an end if he is ousted in Tuesday's GOP primary. boltsmag.org/sheriff-dar-lea…
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San Francisco averages 43 percent turnout in off-cycle years but 80 percent in presidential election years. The city just moved its local elections to match the national cycle.
boltsmag.org/even-year-local…
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Mark Finchem introduced legislation earlier this year to decertify Arizona's last election and “set aside” the ballots in three counties. If he wins his secretary of state race in November, he would oversee the 2024 elections in a critical wing state. boltsmag.org/guide-to-2022-s…
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We worked with legal scholar Quinn Yeargain this year to publish a guide that breaks down the structure, selection procedures, and functions of every single state’s highest court!
You can explore one of our biggest projects yet:
boltsmag.org/whats-on-the-ba…
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A Vermont progressive is using the office of high bailiff to assail sheriffs: “What we’re seeing across the country, but also here in Vermont, is that the entire construct of elected sheriffs is dangerously prone to corruption and serious abuse.”
boltsmag.org/whats-on-your-l…
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Pennsylvania tosses thousands of ballots over small errors. A county official told us in February he wanted to create an “ice cream truck” for voting, sending out election workers to help people correct mistakes.
His county unveiled this van on Saturday:
boltsmag.org/mobile-ballot-c…
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When she called the police to report domestic violence decades ago, Pamela Price was arrested and then prosecuted by the Alameda County DA's office, which she was just elected to lead. boltsmag.org/pamela-price-wi…
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