Michael Barajas

1 month ago | thefacts.com | Daniel Nichanian |Michael Barajas

Washington, DC (Bolts)After losing his reelection bid last summer, Georgia State Court Judge Stephen Yekel turned to a loophole in state law that could have erased the result and blocked the winner from taking office. kAmx? v6@C8:2[ :7 ;F586D 2??@F?46 E96JV== BF:E 2E D@>6 A@:?E 367@C6 E96 6?5 @7 E96:C E6C>[ E96J 92?5 E96 8@G6C?@C E96 23:=:EJ E@ 49@@D6 E96:C C6A=246>6?E 7@C E96 ?6IE EH@ J62CD] tG6? :7 2? 6=64E:@? H2D 23@FE E@ 36 96=5 7@C E96:C D62E[ E92E C246 86ED 42?46=65 2?5 <:4<65 J62CD 5@H?

1 month ago | boltsmag.org | Michael Barajas |Alex Burness

Tiffany Lee, the county clerk and top elections official in southwestern Colorado’s La Plata County, wasn’t sold at first on the state’s new law requiring every jail to create an in-person polling place for incarcerated voters. Lee, who was elected as a Republican but is now unaffiliated, said she and the local sheriff didn’t appreciate a new mandate and felt it was too one-size-fits-all to work for a diverse state. But Lee’s apprehension melted away on Oct.

1 month ago | boltsmag.org | Michael Barajas |Daniel Nichanian

Daniel Jenkins has volunteered to boost voter turnout on Indiana University’s Bloomington campus since becoming a student there in 2022. Jenkins, now a junior studying political science, has spent years helping other students fill out voter registration forms and walking them through information about polling places and hours. He also reminds them they’ll need to bring an ID to vote.

2 months ago | messenger-inquirer.com | Daniel Nichanian |Michael Barajas

Washington, DC (Bolts)As executive director of the New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice, Amy Torres cheered on state officials in recent years for passing new protections to shield immigrants from arrest and detention. In 2019, she supported the Democratic attorney general's directive to restrict how local law enforcement can partner with federal immigration services.

2 months ago | boltsmag.org | Michael Barajas |Lauren Gill

After two Connecticut businesses were found to have played a large role in U.S. executions in the past five years, lawmakers are proposing a bill that would make it illegal for state companies to participate in the death penalty. Sponsors of the bill, the first of its kind in the country, hope to inspire other states to enact similar legislation to cut off the supply of drugs and devices used to carry out death sentences. “Our goal is not even just to have the immediate impact,” state Rep.