Review by Choice Review
Hasen (Univ. of California, Irvine School of Law) has written extensively on US elections and election law, including The Supreme Court and Election Law (CH, May'04, 41-5567) and the textbook Election Law: Cases and Materials with Daniel Hays Lowenstein and Daniel P. Tokaji. Hasen begins by reviewing the electoral "perfect storm" of the 2000 presidential election. Rather than things getting better (as was the intent behind the Help America Vote Act), they have deteriorated. Hasan contends that the increased politicization of election procedures, the explosion in election law litigation, and the Internet have created the potential for a more serious crisis when the next "Florida" occurs. While offering some remedies, Hasen is not particularly optimistic about their adoption. A cautionary tale for those concerned about the future of US elections. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above. J. F. Kraus Wagner College
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In his well-drawn analysis, UC-Irvine law and political science professor Hasen considers unwieldy procedures, conflicting state laws, politically motivated election challenges, and legal follies that undermine public confidence in the voting process. Election integrity is fundamental to democratic government, Hasen observes, and at risk if citizens lose faith in it. The disputed Bush-Gore election results of 2000 hang over this book like a bad chad. As Hasen writes, "Florida mainly taught political operatives the benefits of manipulating the rules, controlling election machinery, and litigating early and often." Hasen reviews several ugly elections that didn't end on Election Day, notably the 2008 Coleman-Franken Senate race in Minnesota, illustrated in the book with a "Lizard People" write-in ballot. Hasen focuses on the GOP attack machine he calls the "Fraudulent Fraud Squad" and its push for voter ID laws, while sidestepping voter registration fraud and waffling on Democratic claims of voter suppression.Hasen's timely and factually rich account merits attention from jurists, policy specialists, and government reformers of all political stripes. (Aug.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Choice Review
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
