The UK’s independent elections regulatory agency and watchdog, the Electoral Commission, Monday urged the government to reconsider proposed changes to its oversight arrangements in a public letter. The Electoral Commission warned that the new changes will impact the agency’s independence. The Electoral Commission issued the letter in response to a controversial elections bill, which is currently [...]

The European Union imposed new sanctions Monday on five Russian individuals involved in elections concerning the annexed Ukraine Crimean peninsula in September 2021. With the new sanctions in place, the EU has now issued a total of 241 sanctions against persons and entities involved in attacks on Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty. The existing EU sanction framework [...]

The Spain Attorney General’s Office announced Wednesday that it is investigating 68 cases of alleged sexual abuse of minors by Catholic church staff members. This is the first release of such official data. The Spanish Catholic Church has been under heavy scrutiny since allegations of sexual abuse of minors within the church surfaced in December [...]

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken released a statement Wednesday condemning the Russia Duma’s resolution to recognize the independence of “so-called” Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) and Luhansk People’s Republics (LPR) as “independent.” The statement follows a Tuesday vote by the Russia Duma asking President Vladimir Putin to recognize the independence of the two quasi-states in [...]

Kansas Democrats filed a lawsuit Monday suing top Republican state officials over Kansas’s recently enacted US congressional district map. Democrats allege that Republicans gerrymandered the map to prevent the state’s only Democrat-represented district from being competitive in future elections. Last week, the Republican-controlled Kansas legislature passed Substitute Senate Bill 355. The bill contained the state’s [...]

President Biden announced Monday a renewed push to curb gun violence through legislation and congressional spending in a statement mourning the four-year anniversary of the Parkland shooting. The Parkland shooting occurred in 2018 at Stoneman Douglas High School. A gunman shot and killed 17 people and injured 17 others. The shooting spurred a period of [...]

The Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ or CJEU) ruled Thursday that companies need to make accommodations for employees who become disabled, even if those employees are in temporary training programs. A press release from the court explains that the case originated with a worker dispute in Belgium. In 2016, Belgium railway HR [...]

Arizona Senate committee members voted Thursday to advance two election reform bills which would prohibit the use of drop boxes and add a precinct tally requirement prior to county tallying. Arizona Senate Bill 1058, reference title “drive-up voting; prohibition,” amends a portion of the Arizona Revised Statutes relating to elections and electors. The new section, [...]

International leaders and advocacy groups recognized Sunday the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). Responding to a UNICEF report released earlier this week which found COVID-19 slowed progress towards ending FGM, the international community banded together to show continuing support to end FGM across the globe. World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General [...]

The Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, Sunday proposed the country’s ombudsman lead an independent official investigation into Catholic Church sexual abuse of minors, according to El País. This is the latest step towards justice for Spain minors who suffered abuse at the hands of the Catholic Church’s clergy. Spain’s Catholic Church has been under [...]