electioneering – 1. The solicitation of votes. A criminal offense where conducted at certain times and places on election day. 26 Am J2d Elect § 374. [2] 1. The solicitation of votes. It is a criminal offense when conducted at certain times and places on election day. [3]
gerrymandering – manipulating the boundary lines of a political district to give an unfair advantage to one political party or to dilute the political strength of voters of a particular race, color, or national origin, often by using techniques called cracking, stacking, and packing. — aka political gerrymandering; partisan gerrymandering; jurisdictional gerrymandering.
corrupt practices acts – federal and state statutes that regulate expenditures by candidates for election, and contributions to their election campaigns.
lobbying – addressing or soliciting members of a legislative body, in the lobby off the chamber or elsewhere, for the purpose of influencing their votes.
Laws pertaining to Election Crimes:
United States Code
Title 42 – THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
CHAPTER 21 – CIVIL RIGHTS
SUBCHAPTER I – GENERALLY
§1985. Conspiracy to interfere with civil rights
(3) Depriving persons of rights or privileges
If two or more persons in any State or Territory conspire or go in disguise on the highway or on the premises of another, for the purpose of depriving, either directly or indirectly, any person or class of persons of the equal protection of the laws, or of equal privileges and immunities under the laws; or for the purpose of preventing or hindering the constituted authorities of any State or Territory from giving or securing to all persons within such State or Territory the equal protection of the laws; or if two or more persons conspire to prevent by force, intimidation, or threat, any citizen who is lawfully entitled to vote, from giving his support or advocacy in a legal manner, toward or in favor of the election of any lawfully qualified person as an elector for President or Vice President, or as a Member of Congress of the United States; or to injure any citizen in person or property on account of such support or advocacy; in any case of conspiracy set forth in this section, if one or more persons engaged therein do, or cause to be done, any act in furtherance of the object of such conspiracy, whereby another is injured in his person or property, or deprived of having and exercising any right or privilege of a citizen of the United States, the party so injured or deprived may have an action for the recovery of damages occasioned by such injury or deprivation, against any one or more of the conspirators. [4]
Federal election crimes fall into three broad categories:
- Campaign finance crimes, such as when candidates accept donations that violate the amounts or sources permitted under the law
- Civil rights violations, involving cases of voter intimidation, coercion, threats and other tactics aimed at suppressing a person’s ability to vote
- Voter fraud and voter registration fraud, such as when a vote is illegally cast in the name of a dead person or someone who’s moved. [5]
References:
Disclaimer: All material throughout this website is compiled in accordance with Fair Use.
[1]: Black’s Law Dictionary Deluxe Tenth Edition by Henry Campbell Black & Editor in Chief Bryan A. Garner. ISBN: 978-0-314-62130-6
[2]: Ballantine’s Law Dictionary with Pronunciations
Third Edition by James A. Ballantine (James Arthur 1871-1949). Edited by William S. Anderson. © 1969 by THE LAWYER’S CO-OPERATIVE PUBLISHING COMPANY. Library of Congress Catalog Card No. 68-30931
[3]: Ballantine’s Law Dictionary Legal Assistant Edition
by Jack Ballantine (James Arthur 1871-1949). Doctored by Jack G. Handler, J.D. © 1994 Delmar by Thomson Learning. ISBN 0-8273-4874-6.
[4]: U.S. House of Representatives’ Office of Law Revision Counsel, “United States Code — Title 42 – THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE — CHAPTER 21 – CIVIL RIGHTS — SUBCHAPTER I – GENERALLY — §1985. Conspiracy to interfere with civil rights — (3) Depriving persons of rights or privileges”: http://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=conspiracy+to+interfere+with+civil+rights&f=treesort&fq=true&num=4&hl=true&edition=prelim&granuleId=USC-prelim-title42-section1985
[4]: USA.gov, “Voting and Election Laws”: – https://www.usa.gov/voting-laws#item-36047
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