Elections and Voting

Poll Confirms That A Weiner Campaign Would Shake Up Mayoral Race

When word spread last week that former Representative Anthony Weiner was contemplating a mayoral run, the questions of what it meant for the electoral future immediately arose. How would his candidacy affect the race? Would the Democratic primary become a showdown between Weiner and Quinn? Could peo ... More >>

Supreme Court Hears Arguments Against California's Same-Sex Marriage Ban, Punts

At approximately 10:15 this morning, the U.S. Supreme Court started hearing arguments on Proposition 8, the 2008 California initiative that banned same-sex marriage in the state. It was the court's first major hearing of gay rights in 10 years, and will be followed by consideration of the Defense of ... More >>

NY GOP Confident, Arrogant at Midtown "Victory Party"

The New York State Republican Party is holding its election night "victory party" on the third floor of the Westin Grand Central in Midtown right now, and spirits are high amongst GOPers as their horse in this year's presidential election appears to stand a chance at pulling off a victory."I think i ... More >>

SWING STATE UPDATE: The Iowa Decision

MSNBC has just called Iowa, with a total of six electoral votes, for Barack Obama. The incumbent is now 14 electoral votes away from winning the 2012 presidential election, up on Romney 256-203.

Presidential Election Night Party

Barack Obama Opened Three New Campaign Offices In New York. But Why?

In the 2008 presidential election, President Barack Obama mopped the floor with Senator John McCain in New York, beating the GOP challenger by more than two million votes.In fact, a Republican presidential candidate hasn't won the Empire State in nearly 30 years, when President Ronald Reagan absolut ... More >>

I Couldn't Watch Last Night's Debate

The presidential one that preceded it was one of the most painful experiences I've ever had. I cringed watching slick Mitt, with all his lies and flip flops, wipe the floor with Obama, who came off like a nice uncle who'd wandered in for some tea and some chit chat. I felt like I was watching my f ... More >>

While Florida and Pennsylvania Make Voter Registration Harder, New York Makes It Easier Online

The states of Florida and Pennsylvania have been trying to make it harder to register to vote in 2012. While the former's efforts have been stalled somewhat and the latter's have been upheld in court, New York State has taken the radical step of actually making it a bit easier to register to vote. ... More >>

Welcome Back, Jim Crow

New laws in dozens of states could take out Barack Obama this fall

Happy New York Republican Primary Day; GOPers Still Pretending Primary Matters, Which Is Adorable

Happy Republican primary day, New York! Now make sure and get out there and vote because your vote really (ahem) matters -- according to the New York State Republican Party, anyway. In reality, however, your vote means precisely nothing.The New York State Republican Party issued a press release last ... More >>

Mo' Money, No Problems: Kirsten Gillibrand's Loaded And Killin' It In the Polls

There's bad news for Congressman Bob Turner, Manhattan attorney Wendy Long, and Nassau County Comptroller George Maragos: Senator Kirsten Gillibrand's campaign coffers are filling up quickly -- and her poll numbers are the best they've ever been.Turner, Long, and Maragos are squaring off to see whic ... More >>

California Supreme Court Grants Standing in Prop 8 Case to Opponents of Same-Sex Marriage

​The California Supreme Court ruled today that opponents who sued to appeal U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker's 2010 ruling, which found Prop 8 to be unconstitutional, have "standing" to do so. Walker's ruling in the case Perry v. Schwarzenegger would have, effectively, allowed same-sex marri ... More >>

Scientology and Proposition 8: Debunking the Church Myth That It Stays Out of Politics

Kirstie Alley, ballot neutral.​One of the most interesting things about Lawrence Wright's recent article about Scientology in the New Yorker was the way he exposed the hypocrisies and outright lies of the wacky organization's top members and spokespeople. But there's a key assertion peddled ... More >>

Sidebar: Fantasy Voter Fraud

Acorn's Long Rise and Fast Fall

The GOP's other election victory

Joe Bruno, Other Pols Use Campaign Funds to Pay Legal Expenses

Joe BrunoBy Adam Schwartzman Five prominent New York politicians have dipped into their campaign funds to pay for nearly $3 million in legal expenses associated with investigations of their possible misconduct, a Voice examination of campaign disclosure reports has revealed. While it's unclear if t ... More >>

California's Proposition 8 Ruled Unconstitutional

U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker ruled today that Proposition 8 is unconstitutional. The long awaited decision was just released from the U.S. District Courthouse for Northern California in San Francisco. The case, Perry vs. Schwarzenegger, was a lawsuit in which two gay couples sued that Propo ... More >>

Mike Bloomberg Wants To Make Sure No One Ever Again Pulls a Mike Bloomberg

​No one wants to read about the city charter. It's too important. Yet, every couple of decades a mayor decides that the city's constitution requires a top-to-bottom rewriting. That's what Mike Bloomberg did in March. He's appointed a 15-member commission and told it to do anything ... More >>

7 Political Ads That Might Be Weirder Than Carly Fiorina's "Demon Sheep"

The internet gazed in wonder yesterday at the "Demon Sheep" campaign ad put out by Carly Fiorina, Republican candidate for the Senate in California. It has many brain-searing qualities: a tortured sheep metaphor (teased out with pigs, an alpha sheep that tumbles from a pedestal through a storm-rip ... More >>

NYC Voters Still Pulling Levers On Those Ancient Machines

Sure, it's 2009, well into the new century, but as us New Yorkers head to the polls today, we're still using the same clunky, decades old lever voting machines we always have. That's because an effort to purchase newer, more technologically advanced machines is still bogged down in Albany. The sta ... More >>

Bloomy Flack Changes Speeds on Campaign Spending

This weekend brought a good reminder about how campaign spokespeople are just hired guns, spinning the message for whoever is picking up the tab. When papers reported on Saturday that Mayor Bloomberg - who has refused to participate in the city's public campaign finance system that caps spending - h ... More >>

Primary Results: Vance In; Comptroller and P.A. Go to Runoffs; Council Incumbents Suffer; Rose Romps in Staten Island

Primary Day led to expected results, for the most part. For the Democratic mayoral nomination, Thompson romped, 70 to 21 percent, over Tony Avella. (Also someone named Roland Rogers got eight percent. Clearly a name to watch!) With no comptroller candidate making the 40 percent mark, John Liu and Da ... More >>

Gerson 2nd City Candidate Thrown Off Ballot for Typo

​Another New York City elected official has been kicked off the ballot for apparently trivial reasons. First it was city councilmember Bill de Blasio, who was running a heady campaign for public advocate until last Thursday, when election officials found that the cover sheet on his packet of p ... More >>

Barrett: Schumer Protects Gillibrand from a Primary Challenge Citing His Record On Such Matters -- So We Checked That Record

Image from Howie Klein's "Down With Tyranny" blog (downwithtyranny.blogspot.com)As my colleague Tom Robbins explained last month, Chuck Schumer has been flexing his  considerable muscle to make sure that no elected Democrat challenges Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, the accidental incumbent, in a 2 ... More >>

Special Elections, Paper Ballots Today

Today's Brooklyn/Staten Island special city council election, to fill the vacated seat of Michael McMahon, has two late changes: first, the addition of John Tabacco to the ballot, as his candidacy was finally reinstated yesterday; and second, no voting machines -- they couldn't be altered in time to ... More >>

Inside Mayor Bloomberg's Hiring of Hillary Clinton Aide Howard Wolfson

Election Story: "Patience" in NYT, "Chaos" in the Post

Daily Flog: Monkey-wrenching the vote -- count on it

Ask a Mexican! Voting Is Gay

And everyone should be doing it—particularly in California

Liveblogging the Term Limits Vote Part II (Referendumania! Amendment Defeated)

Liveblogging the Term Limits Vote Part III -- (UPDATE: Bill Passes)

Ex-Felons For Obama

Bloomberg Withdraws From Va. Ballot, Board Says

NY State's Latest Electronic Voting Machine Debacle

Former Senator Gravel Backs NYC 9/11 Commission

The End of the Road? Hillary Clinton's Visit to Mt. Rushmore

Hans Off! Scourge of Voters is Booted Off FEC

Living the Political Life Fantastic

Surf, turf, and doughnuts: A state senator dines out on his campaign war chest

Obama Supporters in Brooklyn Warn the Superdelegates: 'Make Our Votes Count'

Way down in the grassroots, small-D democrats take on the big-D Democrats and their superdelegates

The Revolt of the Superdelegates?

Obama in Harlem

Barack's troops are undeterred, but even black voters may need some convincing

How $2 Million Could Derail Open-Source Voting Machines in NY Elections

Tally Ho!: The GOP's Hounding of Voters

Feds Charge Hsu in 'Massive Ponzi Scheme'

Election Countdown: 40 Days to Go!

Serph's Up

Friendly Democrats forget muscle, fumble state senate again

Poll's Particulars Hedge Mike's Lead

Dialing Hillary

Hurting at home, Freddy Ferrer turns to national stars for help

Freddy Voting Off the Island?

Freddy's Surprising Black Base