Coloradans voted in 2018 to amend their state constitution to ban forced labor in prison. Years later, incarcerated people are still being punished for refusing work assignments.

Pastor and activist Justin Douglas will soon be plunged into an insider role, helping run the state’s capital county. Can he leverage his new power to change Harrisburg

The legislature passed a bill that will also expand automatic voter registration in other ways, including applying it at Medicaid offices, and likely add many new Michiganders to voter rolls.

A conservative gain in a small Kentucky county this year could further narrow one of the remaining paths for civil rights litigation in the state. 

The GOP’s seat gains are minuscule by the standards of past midterms, a state-by-state analysis by Bolts finds. And only Democrats flipped chambers.

Boosted by new supermajorities, Republicans are closing in on legislation to mandate more collaboration with ICE and preempt local policies hard-won by immigrants’ rights advocates.

Local officials’ decision to eliminate early voting at one of the nation’s largest universities underscores the perennial fight to get or keep campus polling places in Texas.

The charges over two stillbirths are a window into a country where pregnancy outcomes are already policed.

The state made an infamously difficult process of restoring voting rights for people leaving prison even harder, now requiring that they plead for approval from a governor or judge.

In a historic first, Donna Deegan will be the first woman ever to serve as mayor of Jacksonville, the 12th most populous city in the U.S.

The state adopts a bill to restore voting rights to thousands on probation and parole. It will also strengthen ballot access for Native voters and further automate voter registration.

Cherie Cruz and Leonela Felix are joining forces to give people impacted by the system a voice in lawmaking.

Kimberly Graham prevailed in the Democratic primary to replace the prosecutor of Polk County, home to Des Moines, who sparked outrage in 2020 for targeting a journalist.

Important bills remained on the table, though, and Democrats will have lost their House majority for months when the legislature reconvenes next year.

Coloradans voted in 2018 to amend their state constitution to ban forced labor in prison. Years later, incarcerated people are still being punished for refusing work assignments.

After weeks of pressure and a 24-day march by farmworkers and supporters, California's governor signed legislation he previously hinted he'd veto.

Voters approved initiatives expanding early voting and ranked choice voting on Tuesday, and approved many other expansive changes to election systems.

Kelly Ruh was part of a string of candidates running for local office today after casting doubt on Biden’s win—or attempting to actively thwart it.

Coloradans voted in 2018 to amend their state constitution to ban forced labor in prison. Years later, incarcerated people are still being punished for refusing work assignments.

Voters will shape the future of civil and voting rights when they elect dozens of state justices this year.

Kimberly Graham prevailed in the Democratic primary to replace the prosecutor of Polk County, home to Des Moines, who sparked outrage in 2020 for targeting a journalist.

Governor Greg Abbott nominated Andy Kahan, a victim’s advocate and longtime champion for more incarceration, to the state’s commission on judicial conduct.

Conservative efforts to gain local power over election administration are on the ballot tomorrow in one the nation’s premier swing states.

The charges over two stillbirths are a window into a country where pregnancy outcomes are already policed.

The Barnstable County Sheriff's Office in Massachusetts is ending an agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement that gave deputies the authority to enforce federal immigration laws

The legislature passed a bill that will also expand automatic voter registration in other ways, including applying it at Medicaid offices, and likely add many new Michiganders to voter rolls.

A four-candidate progressive slate is running to shift county courts toward a less punitive outlook.

Voters ousted a conspiracy theorist on Tuesday, in the first test for Trumpian conspiracies since the former president was indicted for trying to steal the 2020 election.

Critics of the 2028 games in Los Angeles worry their city may be next.

A years-long fight by Black voters for equal representation on the body regulating Georgia utilities has put a harsh spotlight on an often overlooked corner of government.

Voters decided who will run the state government in four states on Tuesday, with Democrats also making gains in New Jersey and the GOP keeping hold of Mississippi.

Harsh treatment of protesters led to more activism against the notorious Louisiana jail, which has long been overseen by a sheriff facing reelection this year.

After pressure from the governor and attorney general, denials from Alabama’s parole board have skyrocketed, blocking a key mechanism for release from the state’s overcrowded prisons.

As of 9:27 p.m. the Travis County Clerk's Office's unofficial results show the proposition passing with nearly 47,000 voters, or just over 85 percent, saying yes.

Mary Moriarty easily prevailed in Hennepin County over a former judge who ran on law-and-order. She will be one of several new reform prosecutors.

The recent ruling by the state supreme court has heightened tensions in the county attorney race in populous Maricopa County, with one candidate pledging to not prosecute abortions.

The legislature passed a bill that will also expand automatic voter registration in other ways, including applying it at Medicaid offices, and likely add many new Michiganders to voter rolls.

A social worker and a nurse are challenging incumbent sheriffs in Tuesday’s primaries and pushing a new approach to managing local lockups, the primary responsibility for sheriffs in the state.

The legislature passed a bill that will also expand automatic voter registration in other ways, including applying it at Medicaid offices, and likely add many new Michiganders to voter rolls.

Florida, New York, and Oklahoma head to the polls on Tuesday to settle their primaries.

The legislature passed a bill that will also expand automatic voter registration in other ways, including applying it at Medicaid offices, and likely add many new Michiganders to voter rolls.

Important bills remained on the table, though, and Democrats will have lost their House majority for months when the legislature reconvenes next year.

As attorney general, Landry has relentlessly targeted New Orleans and other largely Black cities, and shielded its police from reforms. Now he’s bringing that message to his campaign.

New research shows how the communities that are most heavily policed are pushed away from politics and from having a say in changing policy.

A new proposal could let sheriffs investigate themselves, undermining the Sandra Bland Act that helped expose the state’s deadly jail conditions.

Celeste Trusty, a longtime activist for sentencing reform, speaks with Bolts about her recent appointment to the state’s clemency system, and her desire to “help liberate people.”

Thomas Hodgson, the Bristol County sheriff who became notorious for dangerous and dehumanizing jail conditions on his watch, lost after years of local activists organizing against him.

The state adopted a bill to narrow felony disenfranchisement. “That’s going to allow me to feel my humanity so much more,” said one Minnesotan.

Massachusetts banned sentences of life without parole for “emerging adults” up to age 21, the latest in a series of states revisiting who counts as young in the eyes of the law.

Mary Moriarty easily prevailed in Hennepin County over a former judge who ran on law-and-order. She will be one of several new reform prosecutors.

Republicans are pushing the independent state legislature doctrine, which would bolster unfettered gerrymandering and Trump’s efforts to undercut democracy.

Candidates for an open seat on the court would take election law in divergent directions, as disputes loom over mail voting, gerrymandering, and ballot counting in this key swing state.

The governor’s nominee for the state supreme court has not been seated for more than a year over the objections of a Republican senator.

Our guide to hundreds of elections to watch closely up and down the ballot, from judges and senators to secretaries of state and mayors.

As attorney general, Landry has relentlessly targeted New Orleans and other largely Black cities, and shielded its police from reforms. Now he’s bringing that message to his campaign.

Three years after the state supreme court voided direct democracy in Mississippi, all legislative proposals to revive it died again this week.

New research shows how the communities that are most heavily policed are pushed away from politics and from having a say in changing policy.

Bolts talks to Sarah Copeland Hanzas about voting rights and registration in Vermont, a state that is pushing the boundaries of who is eligible to vote.

Kentucky, Mississippi, and Virginia are selecting their state officials on Nov. 7. But hundreds of thousands of people with felony convictions are barred from voting in these states, which have......

Democrats accuse GOP of court packing.

Former Sheriff Alex Villanueva, who oversaw a string of deaths in custody, is now running to join the Board of Supervisors, which has also done little to alleviate the crisis.

Organizers say state officials have stretched their powers by stonewalling proposed ballot measures on abortion, voting rights, and government transparency.

Governor Phil Murphy nominated Michael Noriega to the state supreme court, amid a nationwide progressive push for more public defenders and civil rights lawyers on the bench.

Bolts is a digital publication that covers the nuts and bolts of power and political change, from the local up.

Alex Villanueva lost re-election, one in a series of victories for local organizers seeking accountability from the sheriff’s office and alternatives to policing and punishment.

Kenneth Mejia designed his bid for city controller to engage Angelenos in how their money is spent on policing.

Cooper’s appointee will be the youngest woman ever to serve on the NC Supreme Court, the governor said.

San Francisco and Boulder were among several places that voted to move elections from odd to even-numbered years. Advocates hope it will create electorates more reflective of city populations.

Coloradans voted in 2018 to amend their state constitution to ban forced labor in prison. Years later, incarcerated people are still being punished for refusing work assignments.

Trump-aligned election deniers running for chief election posts could sow chaos, while other candidates push for expanding voting access.

Bolts breaks down the structure, selection procedures, and functions of each state’s highest court.

Pamela Price, a civil rights attorney, won the DA race in California’s Alameda County after a campaign that promised to combat racial disparities and harsh sentencing.

The state adopts a bill to restore voting rights to thousands on probation and parole. It will also strengthen ballot access for Native voters and further automate voter registration.

As threats to the integrity of elections intensify, a new Bolts database maps out the complex patchwork of local officials responsible for voting systems across the country.

The charges over two stillbirths are a window into a country where pregnancy outcomes are already policed.

A new study found that when people lose health insurance, crime rates go up. Bolts spoke to one of the authors about the implications, at a time of a nationwide drop-off in Medicaid.

The state’s last Republican governor revoked an executive order that restored people’s voting rights. Advocates worry the GOP nominee in November’s election may do the same thing.

Massachusetts also voted to provide driver’s licenses to undocumented immigrants, while some notoriously ICE-friendly sheriffs are ahead in more rural areas.

The state adopts a bill to restore voting rights to thousands on probation and parole. It will also strengthen ballot access for Native voters and further automate voter registration.

José Garza, Travis County’s reform-minded DA, prevailed on Tuesday. In Harris County, Democratic voters ousted DA Kim Ogg, who battled with her party in recent years.

Despite a state program that distributes life-saving fentanyl test strips, state law classifies them as drug paraphernalia. One lawmaker wants to change that.

Republicans rushed an Aug. 8 election to change the rules for constitutional amendment referendums in advance of a potential fall vote on abortion.

While incarcerated people in France have had the right to vote since 1994, outside pressure and new reforms have made it easier for them to exercise their rights.

Glenn Youngkin ends automatic rights restoration, replacing it with an opaque system that leaves Virginia with one of the nation’s harshest policies.

Bolts’ overview of 2023 DA races continues in Kentucky, Mississippi, and Virginia, amid escalating efforts to undermine the results of prosecutor elections in the region.

Pastor and activist Justin Douglas will soon be plunged into an insider role, helping run the state’s capital county. Can he leverage his new power to change Harrisburg

Candidates for an open seat on the court would take election law in divergent directions, as disputes loom over mail voting, gerrymandering, and ballot counting in this key swing state.

The Fraternal Order of Police hoped to oust several Democrats in last week’s primaries as retaliation for a reform bill adopted in 2021.

Governor Phil Murphy nominated Michael Noriega to the state supreme court, amid a nationwide progressive push for more public defenders and civil rights lawyers on the bench.

The high court’s new majority may strike down the state’s abortion ban and gerrymanders, but Republicans have already signaled they’ll try impeaching judges.

Few people leave prison under California’s compassionate release program, but a new measure could allow more incarcerated people to live out their final days at home.

Tennessee Republicans’ latest intervention in Memphis and Nashville affairs comes months after Tyre Nichols’s killing and weeks after they expelled lawmakers from the two cities.

Coloradans voted in 2018 to amend their state constitution to ban forced labor in prison. Years later, incarcerated people are still being punished for refusing work assignments.

Citizen oversight of police remains weak in Dallas and across Texas despite reforms sparked by tragedy.

People detained in local jails are often eligible to vote but have routinely been denied access by sheriffs and jail officials.

People convicted of a felony in Virginia lose their rights to vote, serve on a jury and run for office.

The measure would have enabled tens of thousands of residents to seek an expungement. It came amid Republican efforts to restrict the popular initiative process.