Kathryn Peters

Trump administration investigating reports Tufts shared student voting data The Education Department said it received complaints Tufts University and the National Student Clearinghouse shared private student data with political groups to influence elections.

I shared some context with the Washington Post (whose education team survived the mass layoffs) on the Trump administration's efforts to go after the National Student Clearinghouse and NSLVE. I expect red-state publics to drop out of what used to be a bipartisan effort.

Every journalist whose theat model includes this administration/the federal government needs to be aware of this. Signal for desktop + touch ID + they have a warrant = the feds can read any of your signal messages that haven't disappeared.

Leveraging Data Resources for Civic Organizing Pluralistic, democratic ideals are under direct threat from disinformation, authoritarianism, and polarization. While the scale of these challenges is global, thinking locally remains vital.

My new column examines how thinking locally—and leveraging free data resources for civic organizing—is one of the most effective avenues for responding to the current threats to democracy.

andrewwhitehead.substack.com/p/leveraging...

When we speak of democracy only as a mechanical thing — as process and systems, not soul and values — I think we miss a large part of the point. Democracy is nothing short of a profound expression of love and faith in each other. The notion of human dignity of all individuals, as embedded in almost all faith traditions, forms a bedrock of individual rights and the rule of law.

Religious mobilization is critical and having a profound impact on our current struggle for democracy. Why?
1️⃣ The struggle to maintain, and ultimately improve, our systems of self-government is a profoundly moral quest. Read the other two reasons here: https://protdem.org/3YDyBYo

It’s got it about right, details and stakes .

This move puts me and all my colleagues at risk of doxxing and threatening disruptions in the workplace. Please sign and share.

Immigrants kept from Faneuil Hall citizenship ceremony as feds crackdown nationwide Trump administration is pausing naturalizations for immigrants from 19 countries.

“She showed up as scheduled, and when she arrived, officers were asking everyone what country they were from, and if they said a certain country, they were told to step out of line and that their oath ceremonies were canceled.”

www.wgbh.org/news/local/2... @gbhnews.bsky.social

I'm not exaggerating when I say following @boltsmag.org rn will unlock money for our journalism.

A generous reader, @russ41.bsky.social, has offered to donate $1 for every 1-person increase to our follower count.

If you're not following @boltsmag.org yet, it'll directly help fund our reporting!

I'm seeing people wonder why ICE is going after Charlotte.

ICE has been at war with Charlotte's sheriff ever since he won in 2018.

We'd covered this at Bolts back in the day; this quote is from that sheriff:

More on ICE/CBP trespassing at a church to abduct a father in front of his family while the congregation did landscaping work, from an eyewitness. Reporting by @charlotteobserver.com
www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/a...

"Ojo Obrero”: nuevo mapa que rastrea operativos de inmigración en Carolina del Norte Noticias en español sobre política, inmigración y asuntos comunitarios para los latinos en Carolina del Norte.

“Ojo Obrero”: nuevo mapa que rastrea operativos de inmigración en Carolina del Norte

IRS Direct File dies a sad, quick death after only a brief time among the living.

Why? It's not because it's a bad idea or that it didn't work.

It's because TurboTax's parent company spent decades trying to make sure they controlled the e-filing market:

Your Cheat Sheet to the 2025 General Elections - Bolts Four contests have come to largely define the 2025 elections this fall: the elections to lead New Jersey, Virginia, and New York City, plus California’s redistricting measure. But there’s so... Read M...

Today is Election Day! If you’re looking for updates this evening, make sure you’re following @boltsmag.org. We’ll be sharing results on here as they come in.

You can also follow along with our guide to 190+ elections across the country that we will be updating live.

boltsmag.org/whats-on-the...

It's (Municipal) Election Day in NC. Here's What's Happening & Why You Should Care

It's (Municipal) Election Day in NC, by @chriscooperwcu.bsky.social

open.substack.com/pub/chriscoo...

#ncpol

☀️TODAY (Tuesday, Nov. 4) is Election Day 2025 for many towns and cities across North Carolina!

🗳️Polls are open NOW - 7:30pm. If you're in line by 7:30pm, you will be able to vote.

▶️Visit NCVoterGuide.org to:
🔎 see if your town or city has an election
🔎 find your polling place
🔎 get info on voting

Not sure what might be on the ballot in your town? Turbovote.org has those details. There’s still time to do some quick reading and say your part!

It can often feel like there's a whole lot outside our control.

But if there's any kind of election in your town today, that's a way to make a meaningful difference in your state or local affairs.

Sure big city mayors (helloooo Minneapolis and also the city they call “big east coast Minneapolis”) and off year states (hellloooo Virginia!) and props and stuff are bigger. But vote for school boards. Local really matters.

Democracy is a give and take between voting for leaders who share your views AND being informed, inspired, & persuaded by leaders who help you see a vision of the future.

North Carolina Is the Canary in the Election Coal Mine Americans don’t have to imagine what attempts to subvert an election could look like, because it’s already happening in one state.

On the cover of the December @theatlantic.com, I lay out some nightmare scenarios for the 2026 election. But you don't need hypotheticals to grasp what it might be like: Just look at North Carolina. www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/... #ncpol

They Called Their Shot: The Babe Ruth Era of Redistricting Is Here GOP leaders appear to have achieved their stated goal of shifting one congressional district from a swing seat to reliably Republican.

New piece for @theassemblync.bsky.social about North Carolina’s newly passed congressional map.

www.theassemblync.com/politics/nc-...

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Column: Information is the most human thing you can study "This detective work, this human ability to read between the lines and see what’s missing as well as what’s there, is the real work of information and library science. The information is all the littl...

www.dailytarheel.com/article/opin...

Thelonious Monk, Mary Lou Williams, Randy Weston, Alice Coltrane-Turiyasangitananda, McCoy Tyner, Geri Allen

In other news, I couldn’t be more excited about my spring course, “Creative Music: Composer-Pianists.”

Thelonious Monk, Mary Lou Williams, Randy Weston, Alice Coltrane-Turiyasangitananda, McCoy Tyner, Geri Allen

🤩🤩🤩

Six percent of *all children* in America are US citizens who have at least one undocumented parent.

(Not a typo, source in thread)

“What do we want?”

“Mixed member proportional representation with a 5% threshold & a subordinated second chamber of parliament ”

“When do we want it?”

“Well, 1949, but we’ll settle for MMDs, a much enlarged House, abolishing the EC & the filibuster, adding DC/PR/USVI & a SCOTUS grand bargain”

The cover page for a discussion paper called "Questions, Answers, and Some Cautionary Updates Regarding the 3.5% Rule" by Erica Chenoweth. In the image, peaceful protesters can be seen in front of the US Capitol building.

Lately I've seen many references to the 3.5% rule. A few years ago I pulled together this Q&A on potential uses and misuses of this statistic. www.hks.harvard.edu/sites/defaul...

I honestly love the human quirks that break poorly designed tech… even if I spent many years wrestling with polling place data in Queens to get any of it to map.

Queens seems designed to break address and mapping tech—see also the hyphenated building numbers.

North Carolina Republicans Plan to Redraw Congressional Map to Add a Seat The Trump administration has pushed Republican leaders to redraw House district maps before the midterm elections next year. His party already holds 10 of North Carolina’s 14 congressional seats.

Republican lawmakers in North Carolina announced plans on Monday to redraw the state’s already gerrymandered congressional maps to further favor their party. The most likely target is the First Congressional District, which has the state’s only competitive House seat.

Breaking: We’ve talked to multiple individuals who have confirmed that UNC-CH is merging SILS (library and information science) and SDSS (data science and society). Announcement will be tomorrow morning. Faculty were not consulted.