Pro-Life Advocates File Lawsuit Requesting Ohio Supreme Court Block November Abortion Amendment

A group of pro-life advocates has filed a lawsuit requesting that the Ohio Supreme Court block a proposal that aims to enshrine abortion into the state constitution.

The Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom, a coalition of radical pro-abortion activists that includes Planned Parenthood, Pro-Choice Ohio, the Abortion Fund of Ohio, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Ohio, along with the Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights has proposed “The Right to Reproductive Freedom with Protections for Health and Safety” which would add a Section 22 to Article 1 of the state constitution.

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Ohio Lt. Governor Jon Husted Names Aaron Crooks as New Chief of Staff

Ohio Lt. Governor Jon Husted announced on Tuesday that he named Aaron Crooks, former director of Legislative Affairs for Governor Mike DeWine, to serve as his new chief of staff.

Crooks, of Upper Arlington, has served as DeWine’s director of legislative affairs since 2021. As director of legislative affairs, he oversaw the development and promotion of the administration’s legislative agenda with the General Assembly and other stakeholders in that capacity. He worked for CareSource, OhioHealth, and the Office of Health Transformation before joining the DeWine-Husted administration. In 2002, he took a position with the Ohio Senate.

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Ohio Adult-Use Marijuana Activists Fail to Collect Enough Signatures for November Ballot

On Tuesday, the Ohio Secretary of State’s office ruled that the petitions submitted by a coalition to legalize the purchase and sale of marijuana by Ohio residents aged 21 and older did not collect enough valid signatures to be put on the November ballot.

The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol has proposed an initiative to impose a 10 percent tax on the sale of all cannabis products, permit adults to grow up to six plants per person or 12 per household, and legalize the possession, purchase, and sale of marijuana by Ohio residents aged 21 and older.

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Georgia’s Republican Secretary of State Foils Democrats’ ‘Diverse’ Primary Plans

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has set the Peach State’s 2024 party primary elections for March 12, foiling the Democratic National Committee’s plans to move Georgia’s vote toward the front of the presidential nominating line.

Raffensperger says the DNC acted “unilaterally” in its bid to make their nominating process more “diverse” by bumping predominantly white states like Iowa and New Hampshire back and pushing more “racially inclusive” states like Georgia and Michigan to the front of the primary line. 

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Long-Serving Wisconsin Secretary of State La Follette About to Cash in on Lucrative Taxpayer-Subsidized Pension

Secretary of State Doug La Follette’s sudden retirement from the post he’s held for nearly half a century raised questions, particularly when Governor Tony Evers swiftly appointed former state treasurer and Democratic Party political climber Sarah Godlewski to take La Follette’s place. 

But it’s the millions of dollars La Follette — and his survivors — could take home in retirement benefits that may really raise eyebrows. 

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Wisconsin Legislature Passes Key Crime Bills, Stops Evers Administration Rule on ‘Conversion Therapy’

In a busy and divisive day, the Republican-led Legislature on Wednesday passed several crime bills, a measure blocking what some say is the Evers administration’s assault on the First Amendment, and a resolution demanding the governor call an election for Secretary of State.

Many of the measures passed mostly along party lines, including a bill that defines “serious harm” and “violent crime” in state law. The proposal is tied to a bail reform constitutional amendment on next month’s spring election ballot. Under the amendment, judges would be allowed to consider expanded factors when issuing bail to violent offenders, beyond whether the defendant would show up for his court date.

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Governor Tony Evers Quickly Names Liberal Political Climber Godlewski Wisconsin Secretary of State after Long-Serving La Follette Retires

In a surprise move Friday, Governor Tony Evers hastily appointed former Democrat State Treasurer Sarah Godlewski Secretary of State after Doug La Follette suddenly resigned the post he’s held for nearly half a century. 

Consider it a gift to the far left Godlewski, who ceded last year’s Democratic Party nomination for U.S. Senate to former Lt. Governor Mandela Barnes in his losing campaign against Wisconsin’s Republican senior U.S. Senator Ron Johnson. 

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New Bill from Rep. Rachel Jones Would Bar an Arizona Secretary of State from Certifying Their Own Election

One of Arizona’s newest Republican State Representatives, Rachel Jones (R-Tucson), introduced a new bill that would prevent a Secretary of State from certifying an election in which they participated.

“So, I think it is pretty clear what the intent of this bill is. It is basically saying if a current Secretary of State is running for another office, such as happened in the 2022 election with Katie Hobbs running for governor, this is just getting rid of any potential conflicts of interests with that individual,” Jones said while introducing her bill to the House Municipal Oversight and Elections Committee.

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Judge Denies Motion for Sanctions Against Kari Lake, Will Still Require Awarding of Taxable Costs

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter Thompson has officially ruled against the defendant’s motions for sanctions against Kari Lake in her election challenge, stating that her claims were not made in bad faith.

“Plaintiff failed to meet the burden of clear and convincing evidence required for each clement of AR.S. § 16-672 does not equate 10 a finding that her claims were, or were not, ‘groundless and presented in bad faith,” wrote Thompson.

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Arizona Attorney General’s Office Issued Warnings Months Before the Election About Maricopa County Ballot Signature Verification

Correspondence from Arizona’s Office of the Attorney General months before the November 2022 general election warned of issues with Maricopa County’s signature verification of mail-in ballots.

The first letter came from Attorney General Mark Brnovich on April 16, 2022, and was directed to Senate President Karen Fann as an interim report of the Maricopa County November 3, 2020, general election.

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Mohave County Supervisor Ron Gould Was Told He Must Certify Election by County Attorney and Secretary of State’s Office

Ron Gould, a Mohave County Board of Supervisors (MCBOS) member, appeared in a video shared by the Kari Lake Campaign Monday, saying that he had been threatened with being arrested and facing a felony should he vote against canvassing the 2022 General Election. Gould told The Arizona Sun Times via the phone that this warning came to him partially from an official within his county.

“Actually, our county attorney [Matthew Smith] advised us that if we did not canvass by the deadline, that we would be in violation of ARS § [16]-642,” Gould said.

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Arizona County Refuses to Certify Election, Could Face Potential Lawsuit

The Cochise County Board of Supervisors in Arizona voted 2-1 to delay the certification of the 2022 election results Monday, which may result in a lawsuit from the state.

Arizona’s deadline for counties to certify election results is Nov. 28 and Cochise County may be sued for missing the deadline. The Board of Supervisors is scheduled to have another meeting Friday and has demanded the state of Arizona prove that voter tabulation machines were certified for accuracy, local media reports.

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Minnesota Secretary of State Simon Calls Voter ID Laws ‘Draconian’ in First Debate

The top candidates for Minnesota secretary of state squared off in their first debate Sunday night on WCCO Radio and the gloves came off almost immediately.

“My mission as secretary of state has been to protect the freedom to vote for every eligible Minnesotan. I’ve been proud to do that work with fairness, impartiality, and integrity, leading to results that we can all be really proud of,” said Secretary Steve Simon, a Democrat seeking a third term as Minnesota’s chief elections official.

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Commentary: State Secretaries of State Play a Critical Role in Elections

Most state residents think of their secretary of state as someone who is in charge of their department of motor vehicles. Few realize that the decisions of secretaries of state could determine who becomes president. Dozens of states will hold elections this fall that will determine the officials who will run state elections in 2024 – and these officials could play crucial roles in the next presidential vote count.  

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Brad Raffensperger Calls for Federal Amendment on Election Security

In a follow-up tweet that expounded on his letter penned in January on election reform, Georgia Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger, reiterated his call for a federal Constitutional amendment on U.S. citizenship and election integrity.

“A citizenship amendment is a necessary security measure that will ensure that only American citizens are voting in our elections. We need an amendment now,” Raffensperger said.

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Gwinnett County Ballot-Harvesting Cases Dismissed at Georgia State Election Board Meeting

ATLANTA, Georgia – The Georgia State Election Board held a meeting on Tuesday regarding alleged ballot harvesting in Gwinnett County during the 2020 election cycle. 

“We will give this a fair look. We’ll call balls and strikes as fairly as we see them, and the chips will fall where they may, but it’s not going to be a witch hunt” said Matthew Mashburn, the senior-most member of the board before the meeting.

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Commentary: The 25th Amendment Won’t Fix Our Biden Problem

Joe Biden waving on a stage

Despite widespread concern about his cognitive health, President Biden won’t be removed from office pursuant to the 25th Amendment. It would require an unlikely display of integrity from his Vice President and Cabinet, plus an implausible level of bipartisanship in Congress. Moreover, the claims of politicians and pundits aside, the involuntary ouster of an unfit president isn’t the purpose of the amendment. Its principal function is to guarantee that the executive branch of the government is at all times led by an official who is conscious and able to communicate. Thus, the first 3 of its 4 sections focus on keeping the presidency continuously occupied.

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Connecticut Secretary of State: Multilingual ‘Virtual Poll Worker’ System to ‘Eliminate Language and Cultural Barriers’ for Voters

Denise Merrill

Connecticut Secretary of State Denise Merrill announced the launch of a Multilingual Virtual Poll Worker system in a Tuesday press release. The system, according to Merrill, will “eliminate language and cultural barriers and make it easier for people to cast their ballots and make their voices heard.”

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Congressman Jody Hice: Brad Raffensperger’s Mailing of Absentee Ballot Applications to Everyone on the “Grossly Inaccurate” Georgia Voter File for the November 2020 Election Was a “Horrible Decision That Majorly Impacted Our Election Process”

Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s mailing of absentee ballot requests to everyone on the Georgia voter rolls for the November 3, 2020, presidential election, was a “a horrible decision that majorly impacted our election process,” Congressman Jody Hice (R-GA-10) told The Georgia Star News in a telephone interview Thursday, calling the voter registration file “grossly inaccurate.”

The November 3, 2020 presidential election results certified by Raffensperger and Governor Brian Kemp had Democratic candidate Joe Biden ahead of President Donald Trump by less than 12,000 votes out of 5 million votes cast, of which 1.3 million were fraud-prone absentee ballots.

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Colin Powell, First Black Secretary of State, Dead at 84 of COVID-19 Complications

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell died Monday morning due to complication from COVID-19, according to his family. He was 84.

Powell was the first black U.S. secretary of state, serving in the second Bush administration from 2001-2005. From 1989-1993, he served as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the presidency of George H.W. Bush.

He was fully vaccinated, the family said.

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11 Months After 2020 Election Georgia Secretary of State Missing Chain of Custody Documents for 6,995 Absentee Ballots Deposited in Fulton County Drop Boxes

A review of transfer forms provided to The Georgia Star News in response to an open records request reveals that the Secretary of State’s office in Georgia is missing chain of custody documents for 6,995 absentee ballots deposited in drop boxes in Fulton County during the November 2020 election.

The number of absentee ballots for which the office has no evidence of the origination of the ballots represents 9 percent of the 79,460 total that Fulton County has recorded as being deposited into drop boxes during the more than month-long early voting and election day period.

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‘They Lied to Us’: Hundreds of American Citizens and Others with Green Cards Were Left in Afghanistan

Hundreds of American citizens and people with green cards were left in Afghanistan after U.S. forces withdrew from the country, the Associated Press reported Thursday.

U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents who were left in Afghanistan were reportedly told after the last American flight took off from the Kabul international airport to expect information about routes out of the country, Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland said, according to the AP.

“We will communicate directly to them personalized instructions on what they should do, when they should do it, and how the United States government feels we are best positioned to help them do that,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said, the AP reported.

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Kari Lake Calls for Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs to Recuse Herself from Overseeing Gubernatorial Race

Kari Lake AZ

Arizona Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake is calling for “the most partisan Secretary of State in the history of Arizona,” Democrat Katie Hobbs, to recuse herself from overseeing the governor’s race. Hobbs is also running for governor. Lake cited Hobbs’ behavior during the 2020 election and aftermath, her “history of irrational bias and disdain toward Republicans in addition to what election investigators have reported to the public about serious issues affecting tens-of-thousands of ballots and voters.” She said, “Arizona voters have lost confidence in Katie Hobbs to run another election.”

Lake is concerned that Hobbs will not conduct the election fairly for Republicans like herself in the race. She asked other candidates to join her demand. She cited a tweet from Hobbs in 2017, where Hobbs said, “.@realDonaldTrump has made it abundantly clear he’s more interested in pandering to his neo-nazi base than being @POTUS for all Americans.” Hobbs did not delete the tweet.

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Georgia Public Broadcasting Reveals Secretary of State Raffensperger Delivered Some Fulton County Absentee Ballot Chain of Custody Documents to Them in April

An interview between The Georgia Star News and Georgia Public Broadcasting (GPB) News revealed that they had received Fulton County’s drop box absentee ballot transfer forms from the Secretary of State’s office in April.  GPB News, however, did not report on their findings until after The Star News report in June.

Stephen Fowler of Georgia Public Broadcasting (GPB) News requested an interview with John Fredericks, which also included Laura Baigert, of The Georgia Star News, as part of his fact-check for a story and to get comments from everyone involved.

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Georgia Secretary of State Says He Wants Fulton County Elections Taken Over by State

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger told Just the News on Wednesday that he wants Fulton County elections taken over by the state under a new law that addresses localities with habitual problems counting ballots, dramatically escalating his battle with the state’s largest urban center in the aftermath of the 2020 election.

“I think people are saying, enough is enough,” Raffensperger said in a podcast interview in which he discussed using the new election integrity law known as Senate Bill 202 to have the State Elections Board take over the Atlanta-area election counting in time for the 2022 elections.

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Conservative Sues Twitter, California Officials, and Biden Campaign Consultants For Colluding to Deplatform Him

Screen cap of Fox News interview

Conservative political commentator and attorney Rogan O’Handley is suing former California Secretary of State and now U.S. Senator Alex Padilla, current Calif. SoS Shirley Weber, Twitter, Team Biden campaign consultants SKDK, and others, for coordinating to deplatform him from Twitter after he tweeted his concerns about the 2020 election.

The Center for American Liberty in conjunction with the Dhillon Law Group, Inc. filed the federal civil rights lawsuit on Thursday in the United States District Court in Central California.

O’Handley spent years developing a verified Twitter account with 440,000 followers only to find his account permanently suspended at the direction of the Secretary of State’s office, according to a press release from Center for American Liberty.

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Michigan Bills Aim to Give $25 Million to SOS Office to Clear Months-Long Backlog

Michigan Democrat leaders are pushing for bills to allocate $25 million to the Secretary of State’s (SOS) office to clear an expanding 15-month backlog caused by the COVID-19 pandemic as well as government orders to shut down walk-in service.

The legislation includes allocation of $5 million in overtime costs and $20 million of federal stimulus money to hire 200 more workers.

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New Georgia Bill Would Demand More Detailed Vote Reporting System from Secretary of State

Georgia legislators have submitted a bill that would require the secretary of state create a far more detailed election reporting system for general primaries, general elections, and runoffs from general primaries and general elections. “Such system shall provide for the entry of the number of ballots cast by type in each precinct, the results of state and federal races by precinct, the number of absentee ballots issued and returned, the number of absentee ballots certified, the number of absentee ballots rejected, the number of provisional ballots cast, and such other information which the Secretary of State deems relevant and useful to the citizens of this state,” according to the language of the bill.

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Fifteen Secretaries of State Endorse Keep Nine Amendment

A group of 15 secretaries of state this week issued their support for the “Keep Nine Amendment” recently introduced in Congress, marking the latest victory for the organization seeking to preserve the independence of the U.S. Supreme Court.

The Keep Nine Amendment said in a statement that the 15 sent the letter to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, and House Minority Leader of the House Kevin McCarthy.

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Georgians Demand Answers from Department of Labor on Missed Payments

Georgians are circulating petitions demanding that the state government, particularly the Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) begins responding to their requests for information. 

“This petition was started and organized by residents all throughout the State of Georgia that have filed claims with the Georgia Department of Labor,” says a Change.org petition started by Felicia Primus. “Many of Georgia Residents [sic] haven’t received any updates on claims or they’re missing payments from the Department of Labor. GDOL has not provided better Self-service [sic] options for its website or phone support to help with the increasing demand of unemployment claims, during the COVID-19 pandemic.”

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Biden’s Secretary of State Pick Led ‘Biden Center’ at UPenn, as School Allegedly Accepted Millions in ‘Anonymous’ Donations from China

Antony Blinken

Antony Blinken — former Vice President Joe Biden’s choice to become Secretary of State if he is inaugurated president in January — was the director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement, which recently faced criticism for accepting $22 million in “anonymous” funds originating in China.

The Biden Center, which the University of Pennsylvania officially launched in February 2018, “engages Penn’s students and partners with its faculty and global centers to convene world leaders, develop and advance smart policy, and strengthen the national debate for continued American global leadership in the 21st century.” It is located in Washington, D.C.

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Georgia State House Republicans Continue Push for Change Ahead of U.S. Senate January Runoff Elections

Republican Georgia lawmakers increased their push for election changes Friday ahead of the Jan. 5 runoff elections for U.S. Senate.

House Majority Leader Jon Burns (R-Newington) sent a second letter to Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on Friday asking him to respond to an initial letter calling for two specific changes to the election process.

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Trump Pulls Out of Military Transparency Treaty with Russia, Europe

The Trump administration officially withdrew from the Open Skies Treaty, a 2002 agreement to promote military transparency signed by more than 30 countries including Russia.

The Department of State said Sunday that the U.S. had officially withdrawn from the Open Skies Treaty, which went into effect nearly two decades ago. President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo both announced on May 21 that the U.S. intended to exit the agreement, according to The Associated Press.

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State Board Meets Today to Decide if Ohio Secretary of State May Spend Up to $3M to Prepay Absentee Ballot Postage

A state board is meeting today to decide if Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose can spend up to $3 million to pay for absentee ballot postage for the November elections.

The Ohio Controlling Board will consider LaRose’s request today. Their agenda is here, and more information about LaRose’s request is here.

This appropriation of state funds will be used by the Ohio Secretary of State to pay the cost of returning absentee ballots on behalf of any Ohio voter who opts to use that manner of voting in the November 3, 2020 General Election. This will not expand Ohio’s existing absentee voting opportunities and will not permit universal vote by mail. There will still be in-person voting at polling locations on Election Day, November 3, 2020. 

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Tennessee General Assembly Primary Results

While there were 115 Tennessee General Assembly seats open for Thursday’s primary, most went uncontested.  In fact, there was just a fractional 36 primaries yielding some surprising results.

In the Senate, all of the incumbents won their primary bid.

In the House, Representatives Micah Van Huss and Matthew Hill both lost their primaries.  Coupled with Representative Timothy Hill leaving the House to run in the U.S. House District 1 Republican primary, which he also lost, the representation of the northeast corner of the state will undergo dramatic changes.

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LaRose Draws Heat for Moving Primary Election Date, a Move Called ‘Anarchy’ and ‘Executive Fiat’

Skeptics are calling Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s June 2 primary election date theoretical, saying the Legislature, not he, has the power to move the date.

Adjectives that are being thrown around include “anarchy” and “executive fiat.”

LaRose is already dictating the rules 88 county boards of elections should follow, the Ohio Capital Journal said. These LaRose rules include the dictate that county boards of election should not accept any new voter registrations ahead of the not-yet-official June 2 election.

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