common cause

November 18, 2022 - The kind of large-scale disruptions that many election observers feared didn't materialize during this year's general election in Southern states, but systemic barriers continue to impair voters' ability to cast a ballot.

February 12, 2021 - How could such an extremist end up in Congress? Consider Georgia's congressional district map, which like all state congressional and legislative maps is set to be redrawn later this year. A new report out this week finds that Georgia and a handful of other Southern states remain at risk for more extreme partisan gerrymandering.

October 27, 2020 - The national nonpartisan Election Protection coalition, now almost two decades old, is mobilizing like never before to help voters cast ballots in an election season beset by a pandemic and widespread threats of voter suppression, intimidation, and disinformation.

June 28, 2019 - Despite the U.S. Supreme Court's refusal to address partisan gerrymandering, North Carolina courts this summer could decide if the extreme partisan manipulation of legislative districts violates the state constitution. Files that belonged to a deceased redistricting guru could shed light on the process, but the parties to the lawsuit are arguing over access to them. 

November 15, 2018 - Voters in states across the South faced difficulties including long lines, closed polling places, malfunctioning machines, and voter intimidation. There were also registration issues that forced some voters to cast provisional ballots, which aren't necessarily counted.

April 25, 2018 - The first peer-reviewed study of ads bought on Facebook to influence the 2016 election is renewing calls for Congress to pass the Honest Ads Act, which would close disclosure loopholes for political ads on social media. The stalled bill is opposed by groups including Americans for Prosperity and an anti-regulatory think tank with a connection to Senate leader Mitch McConnell.

April 6, 2018 - Election watchdogs have accused the British political consulting firm of violating limits on foreign involvement in elections and of facilitating illegal coordination between super PACs and campaigns in its work to elect candidates including U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina.