Election Law Explainers

The Democracy Canon The “democracy canon” is a term coined in a 2009 law review article by UC Irvine election law scholar, Richard Hasen, to describe the principle that courts should liberally interpret election statutes in favor of enfranchising more voters and maximizing voter choice --  particularly when legislative language that limits the right to vote is ambiguous or unclear. The underlying idea is that the right to vote is so fundamental to a democracy that courts should avoid overly narrow interpretations of legislation that result in restricting this right. Hasen...

The Purcell principle: A presumption against last-minute changes to election procedures Under the Purcell principle, courts should not change election rules during the period of time just prior to an election because doing so could confuse voters and create problems for officials administering the election. The principle takes its name from Purcell v. Gonzalez, in which the Supreme Court reversed an October 2006 decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit blocking an Arizona voter ID law during that year’s midterm election. The district court had initially denied...