Join the LWV of Moscow for a Speaker Series event, The "Independent State Legislature" - Fringe Political Theory or Constitutional Mandate?, with Don Burnett on Wednesday September 28 at 6:30 p.m. in the Lecompte Auditorium at the 1912 Center. 

The United States Constitution says “the times, places and manner” of electing U.S. Senators and Representatives “shall be prescribed in each state by the Legislature thereof” (subject to alteration by Congress). The Constitution also says each state’s members of the Electoral College, who select the President, shall be appointed “in such manner as the Legislature thereof may direct.”

In our current hyper-partisan political climate, questions have arisen about the extent of these powers. Could a state legislature appoint the state’s Electoral College delegates independently from the popular vote in that state? Could a state legislature draw congressional district boundary maps, and impose voting registration requirements and voting procedures, free of input or review by the executive branch or the state courts -- or even a citizen referendum?

The United States Supreme Court has agreed to hear this fall a case from North Carolina testing the constitutional validity of the “independent state legislature” theory. Professor Burnett will discuss the controversy and its potential implications.

Don Burnett is a retired professor and past dean of the University of Idaho College of Law. The views expressed in this program are solely his own.