Democrats prep for potential election chaos and Lindsay Clancy attorney calls out juror: Morning Rundown

Democrats prepare to thwart potential disruption of midterm elections. Judge refuses defense request to remove juror in Lindsay Clancy trial. And a look at the cultural legacy of Gloria Steinem’s Ms. magazine.

Democrats mobilize an unprecedented defense to combat potential election disruption

At an August gathering in Washington, D.C., more than three dozen people — including legal experts, elected officials, members of pro-democracy and labor organizations, cable news figures and influencers — ran through hypothetical scenarios of election chaos and how they would respond. The person who convened them was former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

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The exercise was just the tip of the iceberg in what’s unfolding across the country. Interviews with more than a dozen party leaders, attorneys, democracy groups and elected officials reveal an unprecedented Democratic effort to prepare for and combat potential disruption of the midterm elections.

The preparations include drafted legal briefs and plans for litigation covering nearly every conceivable scenario. Democrats are also readying a major push to encourage voters to cast their ballots early and in person. Perhaps the most comprehensive effort underway is the New Battlefield Project, which aims to train tens of thousands of “democracy protectors” to monitor polling places.

In his second term, President Donald Trump has moved to assert greater control over the election process. The administration yesterday asked the Supreme Court to green-light a new Postal Service rule governing mail-in ballots ahead of the midterm elections. The first ballots of this year’s general election are due to go out today , leaving voters facing uncertainty over the rules that will govern them.

Inside Democrats’ election preparations.

More politics news:

August jobs report could show another weak month for hiring

The federal government’s August jobs report, due this morning, is expected to show a gain of 53,000 jobs — a continuation of this summer’s weak hiring — and just one month after the labor market shed 23,000 jobs.

Economists surveyed by Dow Jones also expect the unemployment rate to hold steady at 4.1%. If those forecasts prove accurate, August would be the third-weakest month for hiring so far this year.

These indicators have economists bracing for weak numbers.

Lindsay Clancy defense wants to remove juror

The Massachusetts judge overseeing the trial of Lindsay Clancy declined to remove a juror after Clancy’s lawyer asked that a lone holdout on the panel of nine women and three men be dismissed. “I don’t feel it’s appropriate for me to say I agree with one juror or the 11,” Massachusetts Superior Court Judge William Sullivan said.

The jury is deadlocked over whether Clancy is criminally responsible for the killings of her three children. It handed Sullivan two deadlock notices this week, and if jurors return with a third, Sullivan will likely declare a mistrial.

Yesterday, the jury submitted a question to Sullivan, prompting him to repeat his instructions on the definition of reasonable doubt. After the jurors were sent back to continue deliberations, defense attorney Kevin Reddington called for the juror’s removal, alleging that the juror “refuses to listen to the law.”

How Gloria Steinem’s Ms. magazine became the voice of the women’s movement

When the preview issue of Ms. magazine hit newsstands in 1971, it posed a question that seemed radical at the time: What if women defined their own lives? That idea became the spiritual bedrock of one of the most consequential publications of the American women’s movement. It was also key to the legacy of feminist trailblazer Gloria Steinem, who died Wednesday at 92 .

Steinem co-founded Ms. as feminism moved from the margins of American life into the cultural mainstream. Its pages featured reporting and commentary on issues often overlooked by traditional media, including abortion, economic inequality, gender discrimination, and the everyday realities of motherhood and marriage. But as the magazine’s influence grew, it also drew criticism and resistance from parts of the establishment.

A look at the cultural impact of Ms. magazine.

Staff Pick: Colorado smolders as climate change showdown looms

Can energy companies be sued for climate change contribution?

I spent several days in Colorado this summer to explore what is at stake in a major Supreme Court climate change case, the first the justices will hear when their new term begins in October.

It was important to show how climate change is affecting residents of a state grappling with drought, recurring wildfires and extreme heat, while also making clear that Boulder’s novel lawsuit seeking damages from oil companies faces significant skepticism.

To do that, I spoke with a range of people, from survivors of the 2021 Marshall Fire to a Republican county commissioner who opposes the lawsuit.

The story also touches upon the broader debate about what action, if any, to take on climate change , with the Trump administration particularly hostile to the idea of addressing what the president has called a hoax. — Lawrence Hurley , senior Supreme Court reporter

NBC Selected: 129+ best early Labor Day sales happening now

NBC Selected’s editors rounded up all the best early Labor Day sales from brands like Old Navy, Levi’s, Land’s End and more. Now is also a great time to stock up on household essentials with discounts on dishwasher tabs, batteries, toilet bowl cleaner and more up to 50% off.

Plus, make sure to check your grill brush ahead of your Labor Day BBQ because Cuisinart just recalled another 1.9 million of them.

Sign up to The Selection newsletter for hands-on product reviews, expert shopping tips and a look at the best deals and sales each week.

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