United States of America - November 2024

On 21 November, the House of Representatives passed the “Stop Terror-Financing and Tax Penalties on American Hostages” bill. Among other aspects, the bill would enable the Treasury Secretary to strip tax-exempt status from non-profit organizations that are deemed to support terrorism. The fact that Treasury would not have to disclose the reasoning or evidence in support of its decisions, and that non-profits would have 90 days to provide evidence to disprove accusations against them, has raised concerns over potential due process violations, including shifting the burden of proof. Experts and hundreds of civil society organizations worry that, if passed, the bill would have a chilling effect on civil society, news outlets, universities and any other tax-exempt organizations, in addition to considering many of its provisions redundant, as support for terrorism is already a felony in the United States. The bill has now been received in the Senate for discussion.

Sources: U.S. Congress, ACLU, AP News, The Conversation, Council on Foundations

On 5 November Donald Trump was elected president after winning 312 electoral votes (and 49.9 per cent of the popular vote), compared to the Democratic candidate Kamala Harris’s 226 electoral votes (and 48.4 per cent of the popular vote). The latest data suggests voter turnout was high, at 63.8 per cent, but lower than the 2020 election (66.8 per cent).

The Republican Party won a majority in the Senate, with 53 out of 100 seats. Republicans further won a slim majority in the House of Representatives, with 220 seats to the Democrats’ 215. Women’s representation in Congress has not significantly changed. The number of women in the Senate is expected to be maintained at 25, and in the House between 124 and 127 representatives will be women (currently, 127 representatives are women).

Sources: AP News, CNN, NY Times, Carnegie Endowment, NPR, U.S. Census Bureau