Category Archives: court decisions

“The American Law Institute Launches Restatement of the Law, Election Litigation”

January 20, 2023, 7:33 amcourt decisions, election administrationDerek Muller

I’m thrilled to share the details about this new project from the ALI: The American Law Institute’s Council voted today to approve the launch of a Restatement of the Law project on Election Litigation. The project will be led… Continue reading

Ninth Circuit upholds California’s two-step recall process

November 30, 2022, 6:10 amcourt decisions, recall electionsDerek Muller

The Ninth Circuit issued its decision in Clark v. Weber, approving California’s two-step recall process. In the recall, voters first vote “yes” or “no” on the recall; after that, they may vote on a new candidate for governor, but… Continue reading

11th Circuit finds eligibility challenge to Marjorie Taylor Greene moot, but one judge finds Georgia had no power to adjudicate her qualifications

November 3, 2022, 9:57 amcourt decisions, legislation and legislaturesDerek Muller

From Greene v. Secretary of State (disclosure: I filed an amicus brief in the case), a per curiam opinion (Judges Wilson, Branch, and Lagoa): As explained, in this federal lawsuit, Rep. Greene is seeking to enjoin the application of the… Continue reading

Third Circuit Rules Undated mail ballots should be counted. Error was immaterial.

May 20, 2022, 6:49 pmabsentee ballots, court decisions, votingDecisionTabatha Abu El-Haj

United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled to today, in Migliori et al v. Lehigh County Board of Elections–a case brought by the American Civil Liberties Union–that 257 mail-in ballots that had been excluded from the 2021… Continue reading

Intraparty Fights Taken to Court

May 16, 2022, 4:02 pmcourt decisions, political parties, political polarization, primariesTabatha Abu El-Haj

Just a few days before Idaho’s May 17 primaries, Republicans took their internal fights to court. “In the virtual hearing [last] Friday afternoon, Fourth District Court Judge Jason Scott heard arguments from intertwined Republican organizations — one suing the… Continue reading

Judge Sutton’s new book

February 28, 2022, 4:55 pmalternative voting systems, court decisions, redistrictingNed Foley

This essay focus on the election law implications of the new book by Jeffrey Sutton, Chief Judge of the Sixth Circuit. Bottom line: given all the challenges confronting the operation of the electoral process in the United States currently, now… Continue reading

Election subversion and writs of mandamus

February 2, 2022, 7:08 amcourt decisions, election subversion riskDerek Muller

Election subversion is, perhaps unsurprisingly, one of the hottest topics in election law. It’s a term that can apply to many things, but I wanted to focus on one risk: some election administrator or board of elections refusing to certify… Continue reading

“Kansas Voter Suppression Law Blocked by Court”

November 20, 2021, 4:49 amcourt decisions, votingTabatha Abu El-Haj

Democracy Alerts Federal court grants preliminary injunction in case challenging Kansas’s new voter suppression law. “The lawsuit, filed on behalf of VoteAmerica and Voter Participation Center in June, is challenging House Bill 2332, which restricts nonpartisan out-of-state organizations from providing… Continue reading

Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals Rejects New Challenge to Michigan’s Legislative Term Limits

November 18, 2021, 3:31 pmcourt decisionsTabatha Abu El-Haj

In a refreshingly short opinion, the 6th Circuit upheld Michigan’s term limits. The court’s primary argument is that the claim is barred by precedent. But it does revisit the merits, rejecting the invitation to apply Anderson-Burdick. Kowall v. Benson, No. … Continue reading

Maine’s Minor Parties Secure Victory

November 18, 2021, 3:15 pmballot access, court decisions, third partiesTabatha Abu El-Haj

The U.S. District Court in Maine struck down two ballot access provisions that make it more difficult for minor parties to gain access to Maine’s ballot. Richard Winger offers a clear synopsis of the case, Baines v. Bellows, No. 1:19-cv-00509-LEW … Continue reading

Newsom recall lawsuit

August 17, 2021, 6:42 amcourt decisions, political equality, recall elections, Supreme Court, theoryNed Foley

Politico has a story on a new federal lawsuit raising a constitutional challenge to the procedures that California uses for its gubernatorial recall. The lawsuit follows upon a NY Times op-ed from last week by Erwin Chemerinsky and Aaron Edlin,… Continue reading

“Purcell in Pandemic”

August 7, 2021, 7:17 amcourt decisions, election administrationDerek Muller

I hope to highlight a few academic pieces this weekend. First up, a piece from Wilfred U. Codrington III forthcoming in the NYU Law Review on SSRN. From the opening of the abstract: Given the major events in the… Continue reading

USA Today analyzes potential impact of Brnovich

July 29, 2021, 11:19 amcourt decisions, Supreme Court, Voting Rights ActNed Foley

Behind a paywall. A snippet: “At a time when more than a dozen conservative states have enacted new voting limitations and no evidence of substantial fraud has emerged from the 2020 presidential contest, election law experts say the lower… Continue reading

Wrangling over info in NC continues

July 28, 2021, 8:05 amcourt decisions, Department of Justice, The Voting WarsNed Foley

Raleigh News & Observer on the latest court ruling in the tug-of-war between federal and state officials, as well as the press, over voting records in North Carolina.