virginia
July 19, 2018 -
A campaign to encourage politicians to reject contributions from electric utility monopolies aims to recast Virginia politics-as-usual as unethical. Though the pledge effort is meeting opposition from those who benefit under the current conflict-ridden system, it's still going strong — and has spread beyond the state.
June 18, 2018 -
Once deemed among the most restrictive states for ballot access, North Carolina changed its law recently and will have two new parties on this year's ballot. But other Southern states are less welcoming to political newcomers.
May 24, 2018 -
A key permit voided. An environmental justice complaint. Accusations of fraud. In recent weeks, Dominion and Duke Energy's proposed pipeline to carry fracked gas from West Virginia at least as far south as North Carolina has faced several setbacks. But the developers plan on moving ahead with the $6.5 billion project anyway — and they're investing in creating a political climate favorable to those plans.
May 11, 2018 -
With protests ongoing over the planned Bayou Bridge oil pipeline, the Louisiana legislature advanced a bill this week creating new crimes with stiff penalties for conspiracy to trespass on pipeline property — part of a broader trend of states and the federal government targeting protest actions.
April 27, 2018 -
A federal appeals court recently ruled that Florida can keep its harsh re-enfranchisement system in place. But a November ballot referendum there could lead to reforms, which have also recently come to states including Alabama and Virginia.
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 19, 2018 -
A law targeting white-supremacist terrorism is being used to sue a conservative Virginia activist who falsely accused people of voting illegally — the latest example of how the Reconstruction-era statute remains relevant today.
