Clay Pigeons: How Lobbyists Secretly Woo Top Election Officials

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Secretaries of state, who oversee ballot measures on topics from gun control to the minimum wage, are increasingly courted by interest groups and industries with billions of dollars at stake.

This story was co-published with The New York Times.

Big-money corporate lobbying has reached into one of the most obscure corners of state government: the offices of secretaries of state, the people charged with running elections impartially.

The targeting of secretaries of state with campaign donations, corporate-funded weekend outings and secret meetings with industry lobbyists reflects an intense focus on often overlooked ballot questions, which the secretaries frequently help write.
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Secretaries of state from Washington, Ohio, Colorado and Nevada — all Republicans — participated in closed-door meetings in May with representatives from Reynolds American, the nation’s second-largest tobacco company; the National Restaurant Association; and the National Rifle Association, while ballot initiative signatures in those states were still being collected, documents obtained through open records requests show. - ProPublica.org

Ohio SoS http://www.sos.state.oh.us/SOS/agency.aspx
Colorado SoS https://www.sos.state.co.us/
Nevada @SOSCegavske https://twitter.com/SOSCegavske

All REPUBLICANS. All carrying out secret meetings with lobbyists.

[AmericanActivist]

1. Sickening this is. It seems this issue gets worse and worse. nm