Zagarri on The Historian’s Case Against the Independent State Legislature Theory @rzhist @BCLawReview

Rosemarie Zagarri, George Mason University Department of History, is publishing The Historian’s Case Against the Independent State Legislature Theory in the Boston College Law Review (2023). Here is the abstract.

This Essay explores historical evidence from the Founding Era underlying Art. 1, Sec. 4 of the US Constitution (and related clauses) that delegate certain powers to state legislatures in making federal election laws. The article shows that far from empowering the state legislatures, the US Constitution was meant to curb state legislative supremacy and confirm the subordination of state legislatures to the checks and balances embedded in the individual state constitutions. It shows that the Independent State Legislature Theory is contrary to both the theory of constitutional government and the practices of state legislatures in making federal election laws.

Download the essay from SSRN at the link.