My latest for Bolts looks at the twists & turns of the Oklahoma Survivors’ Act, which gives incarcerated abuse survivors a new chance at freedom: boltsmag.org/oklahoma-survi…

NEW: Oklahoma just passed a new law: It gives a new chance at release to domestic violence survivors who were incarcerated for their response to the abuse.

Here's why it's a big deal, from VictoriaLaw who talked to people who are waiting for help: boltsmag.org/oklahoma-survi…

Less than five months into 2024, deaths at the Clayton County Jail in the Atlanta suburbs have already surpassed last year’s total. The local sheriff’s lack of transparency has only compounded the pain for grieving families. Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg 🇵🇸 reports: theappeal.org/clayton-county…

Minnesota has ended prison gerrymandering. This will shift some political power away from (often rural, conservative) prison towns and back to the places incarcerated people lived before prison.

More in Bolts: boltsmag.org/minnesota-ends…

Terrific Texas Tribune deep dive into how Texas GOP has gotten increasingly extreme as its reliance on a handful of wealthy right-wing donors has increased. Helps explain fixation on school vouchers despite lack of popularity w/ public or even GOP voters texastribune.org/2024/05/23/tex…

In hugely populated areas, getting absolutely routed still means you’ll get a ton of votes. Trump got 67K votes in the Bronx in 2020, & 145K in Westchester just above, & 87K in Manhattan and 212K in Queens a touch south.

That’s more votes than Trump got in the Dakotas combined!

read this interview with Joanna Schwartz in Bolts on qualified immunity and the many other mechanisms that keep police shielded from accountability: boltsmag.org/police-shielde…

6-3 SCOTUS decision (authored by Alito of course) upholds South Carolina's map, reversing a lower court ruling that had found it to be an unconstitutional racial gerrymander.

Thomas says he'd have gone further against racial gerrymander claims.

washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/…

This may make a big timing difference come November: If you follow me for a while, you'll remember that Nevada held a lot of the suspense through the Friday after election night in 2022.

New BSG/GS polls are, overall, similar to the NYT/Siena polls (up to Nevada being the most striking Trump lead), even if tighter overall.

Many many countries are part of ICC — and in so doing accept to hold themselves accountable. Per this tweet, it’s just definitionally beyond the pale for Pompeo to envision any American leader should be held accountable for war crimes. (Explain another immunity case going on…)

checking in on this bill: it still sits on the governor's desk

Arizona Republicans have put a constitutional amendment on the ballot that’d squash future ballot initiatives. I talked with organizers & abortion access advocates on how it’d make their already grueling & expensive work nearly impossible.
My latest: buff.ly/3WNRzvF

Prison gerrymandering inflates population totals in conservative areas with prisons and reduces counts in communities of color.

“It’s undemocratic and predatory,” says one advocate for reform. “You leave the pain here, but you put the dollars there.” boltsmag.org/minnesota-ends…

holy shit. this is awesome. more of this, blue states!

one group had to spend more than $1 million just to get its canvassers to appear in court...!

remember Democrats have just a *one* seat edge in their state Senate

Which doesn't line up with a universe in which Trump is winning NV by 13% (the margin in Siena) or anything close to that. (Trump would likely sweep the state's CDs if he wins NV by above 7%.)