Description
Book SynopsisIn the wake of the 2000 Florida election controversy, many Americans have questioned how the Supreme Court should decide election law disputes. Presenting a study of the issue, this book rethinks the Supreme Court's role in regulating elections. It shows that it should leave contested questions of political equality to the political process.
Trade Review"A major contribution to the field of election law." -- Thomas E. Mann,The Brookings Institution
"A pioneering study of the Court's increasing efforts to regulate the US political system. Hasen addresses both issues of legal doctrine and political science in his sweeping look at the Court's positions on such issues as the status of political parties, voting rights, redistricting, balloting procedures, and campaign finance reform." -- Bruce Cain,University of California, Berkeley
"Hasen engagingly draws on internal Court deliberations, as well as political science and legal theory, to assess and criticize dramatic transformations in the role of constitutional law in overseeing the structure of democracy. The Supreme Court and Election Law will interest all those concerned with understanding the relationship between constitutional law and democracy in struggles over how contested ideals of political equality should inform the design of democratic institutions." -- Richard H. Pildes,NYU School of Law
"Hasen masterfully distills complex legal doctrines and sophisticated political theory into a succinct analysis filled with practical wisdom. Challenging the prevailing view of Bush v. Gore as an aberration, he shows that it is simply another patch in the crazy-quilt constitutional law of elections. Anyone who cares about American democracy should read this original, important, and thought-provoking book." -- Robert J. Pushaw,Pepperdine University School of Law
"Hasen provides a citizen's guide to the Court's decisions and offers an innovative proposal, contrary to many lawyers predispositions, saying why (and when) the Court should intervene but give little guidance to the people devising the laws that regulate our elections. This is a provocative analysis that deserves thorough consideration." -- Mark Tushnet,Georgetown University Law Center
Table of ContentsPrefaceAcknowledgments Introduction: Mighty Platonic Guardians 1 The Supreme Court of Political Equality 2 Judicial Unmanageability and Political Equality 3 Protecting the Core of Political Equality 4 Deferring to Political Branches on Contested Equality Claims 5 Equality, Not Structure Conclusion: Political Equality and a Minimalist Court Appendix 1: Twentieth-Century Election Law Cases Decided by the Supreme Court in a Written Opinion Appendix 2: Justice Goldberg's Proposed Dissent to a Per Curiam Summary Af?rmance in Harper v. Virginia State Board of Elections NotesIndex About the Author
