Yulia Navalnaya not first to fill a dissident husband's shoes

+ GOP's flawed primary math US Edition - Today's top story: Yulia Navalnaya, widow of Alexei Navalny, steps forward to lead the Russian opposition – 3 points to understand [View in browser]( US Edition | 29 February 2024 [The Conversation] [The Conversation]( Normally, I highlight one story in this politics newsletter out of the dozen or more we published in the past week. But this week has been so full of news, and that news has been so varied, that I have been compelled to do two things: first, put on my baseball cap emblazoned with the initials “TMN,” for “Too Much News,” and second, use this newsletter to run through a number of stories you should definitely pay attention to. The sudden and tragic prominence of Alexei Navalny’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, in the wake of her husband’s suspicious death in a Russian penal colony [was analyzed by Farida Jalalzai](. Jalalzai, a political scientist at Virginia Tech, writes that “Navalnaya’s story fits squarely within a larger pattern of other female political leaders and activists who become publicly prominent after their husbands die or are imprisoned for their opposition to an authoritarian regime.” While political primaries have provided much of the breaking news over the past few weeks, Wellesley College mathematician Ismar Volić tabulates just how bad the math is that underlies the result of those primaries − the doling out of delegates. Turns out that when politicians do math, Volić writes, they produce “[a mess of flawed mathematics]( that can end up delivering a result that’s in conflict with the person most voters actually support.” And, finally, College of Charleston political scientist Claire Wofford and I juggled dinner, children and various other responsibilities to produce a Q&A for readers (I did the Q, she did the A) on the Supreme Court’s decision to consider the momentous question of whether former President Donald Trump can be criminally prosecuted for his actions aimed at overturning the results of the 2020 election. As Wofford says, the decision “will likely make both [legal and political history](.” But that didn’t stop either of us from grousing a bit when the court announced at 5 p.m. its decision to take the case. That’s when I put on my “Too Much News” hat. Naomi Schalit Senior Editor, Politics + Democracy Yulia Navalnaya, the wife of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, attends the Munich Security Conference on Feb. 16, 2024, the day it was announced Navalny was dead. Kai Pfaffenbach/Pool/AFP via Getty Images [Yulia Navalnaya, widow of Alexei Navalny, steps forward to lead the Russian opposition – 3 points to understand]( Farida Jalalzai, Virginia Tech The quick rise of Yulia Navalnaya in Russian politics closely mirrors the story of other female politicians who gain prominence after their husbands or fathers are no longer able to lead. How people vote isn’t always reflected in how elections are decided. bamlou/DigitalVision Vectors via Getty Images [GOP primary elections use flawed math to pick nominees]( Ismar Volić, Wellesley College There are many ways bad mathematics interferes with our democracy. Assigning delegates is just one example. Former President Donald Trump speaks to the media following his appearance at the District Court in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 9, 2024. Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images [Can Trump be prosecuted? Supreme Court will take up precedent-setting case to define the limits of presidential immunity]( Claire Wofford, College of Charleston In a case that will make legal and political history, the US Supreme Court will consider whether Donald Trump is immune from criminal prosecution for his alleged effort to undermine the 2020 election. [This is Texas hold ‘em – why Texas is fighting the US government to secure its border with Mexico]( Mark P Jones, Rice University Texans’ belief in their state’s exceptionalism has helped fuel support for the Republican state government trying to take border security and immigration enforcement into its own hands. [Belief in the myth of outlaw heroes partly explains Donald Trump’s die-hard support]( David G. Bromley, Virginia Commonwealth University From Robin Hood to Al Capone, outlaw heroes have played a significant role in American culture. Trump claims he is one of them. [Sen. Mitch McConnell’s legacy is the current Supreme Court and a judiciary reshaped by his ‘calculated audacity’]( Al Cross, University of Kentucky Mitch McConnell, who has announced he will step down from his role as Senate GOP leader, was an uncharismatic Kentucky lawyer who came to rule the Senate and remake the US Supreme Court. [Yes, Trump’s PACs really can pay his legal fees]( Richard Briffault, Columbia University Trump-aligned political action committees have paid lawyers for the former president tens of millions of dollars. Are there any limits on how much, or on what, they can spend? - [What does a state’s secretary of state do? Most run elections, a once-routine job facing increasing scrutiny]( John J. Martin, University of Virginia There are dozens of secretaries of state in the US. Only one deals with foreign affairs. The majority of the rest, state secretaries of state, have powerful positions running elections in each state. - [I went to CPAC as an anthropologist to understand Trump’s base − they believe, more than ever, he is a savior]( Alexander Hinton, Rutgers University - Newark While Ronald Reagan is closely tied to this conservative conference’s origins, it has become a multiday event for die-hard Trump supporters. - [More than 100K Michigan voters pick ‘uncommitted’ over Biden − does that matter for November?]( Michael Traugott, University of Michigan Organizers of the protest had set a goal of 11,000 uncommitted votes to show dissatisfaction with Biden’s support of Israel in the Israel-Hamas war. - [How media coverage of presidential primaries fails voters and has helped Trump]( Karyn Amira, College of Charleston In a general election, most people will vote for their party’s candidate. But in a primary, voters rely on media coverage to help them choose among candidates. And that gives the media influence. Like this newsletter? You might be interested in our other weekly emails: [Science Editors' Picks]( • [This Week in Religion]( • [Weekly Highlights]( [The Conversation]( You’re receiving this newsletter from [The Conversation]( 303 Wyman Street, Suite 300 Waltham, MA 02451 [Forward to a friend]( • [Unsubscribe](