Category Archives: absentee ballots

Breaking: Divided 9th Circuit Agrees to Hear AZ Ballot Harvesting Case En Banc, But J. Reinhardt Predicts Plaintiffs Will Lose

November 2, 2016, 2:04 pmabsentee ballots, election administration, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

On October 30 I wrote the following post: Arizona passed a law limiting who is allowed to collect a completed absentee ballot from voters (so called “ballot harvesting”). Democrats and others filed suit claiming that the law was unconstitutional… Continue reading

Read the Supplemental 9th Cir. Briefs in AZ “Ballot Harvesting” Case

November 1, 2016, 10:00 amabsentee ballots, election administration, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

This is the one that might go en banc: 10/31/2016 Supplemental Brief – Republican Party 10/31/2016 Supplemental Brief – Plaintiffs-Appellants 10/31/2016 Supplemental Brief – Arizona-Appellees

“Seminole elections office receives five stolen, forged absentee ballots”

November 1, 2016, 7:57 amabsentee ballots, chicanery, election administrationRick Hasen

The Orlando Sentinel reports.

Divided 9th Circuit Rejects Dems’ Voting Challenge to AZ “Ballot Harvesting” Law, But En Banc May Be Coming

October 30, 2016, 10:00 amabsentee ballots, election administration, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

Arizona passed a law limiting who is allowed to collect a completed absentee ballot from voters (so called “ballot harvesting”). Democrats and others filed suit claiming that the law was unconstitutional and a Voting Rights Act violation. A divided … Continue reading

Ballot Selfies, Ice Cream, Civic Virtue, and Election Integrity

October 26, 2016, 4:17 pmabsentee ballots, campaignsRick Hasen

In the fight over the constitutionality of bans on ballot selfies, I’m having a definite sense of deja vu. Back in 2008, I noted that Ben and Jerry’s, in an act of civic virtue, promised free Ice Cream on election… Continue reading

Ohio Homeless Advocates File Emergency #SCOTUS Petition on OH Absentee/Provisional Voting Rules

October 26, 2016, 8:06 amabsentee ballots, election administration, Supreme Court, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

You can find the petition here. From the petition: The Sixth Circuit’s decision left in place only the prohibition on requiring full and accurate completion of two fields (address and birthdate) on the absentee ID envelope. It disregarded the identical… Continue reading

“Voting wars continue over ballot collection law in Arizona”

October 17, 2016, 8:21 amabsentee ballots, election administration, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

Ariane de Vogue for CNN: Arizona Democrats will ask a federal appeals court on Monday to put on hold a state law that criminalizes the practice of ballot collection, arguing that the law could disenfranchise thousands of voters — particularly… Continue reading

“US voters in Israel say iVoteIsrael flubbed absentee ballot requests”

October 13, 2016, 10:46 amabsentee ballots, campaigns, election administrationRick Hasen

Jerusalem Post: Several US citizens in Israel complained that get-out-the-vote organization iVoteIsrael did not mail in their ballots ahead of deadline. Absentee ballot requests must be postmarked by Friday at the latest in order to be accepted in New York,… Continue reading

“Thousands of Wisconsin Absentee Ballots at Risk of Rejection”–New Lawsuit May Be Coming

October 11, 2016, 12:09 pmabsentee ballots, election administration, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

Press release about another Wisconsin election issue to watch closely: Today, the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin and the Fair Elections Legal Network submitted a letter to the Wisconsin Elections Commission requesting they take swift action so thousands of… Continue reading

WI: “Absentee ballots at risk of being tossed”

October 7, 2016, 9:04 amabsentee ballots, election administration, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

Little noticed Scott Walker change leading to disenfranchised voters. Patrick Marley: Thousands of mailed absentee ballots could be thrown out because witnesses for the voters did not provide their full addresses. With only a fraction of absentee ballots mailed… Continue reading

“Democrats sue Florida over vote-by-mail verification”

October 4, 2016, 5:09 pmabsentee ballots, election administrationRick Hasen

Politico: Democrats are suing Florida’s top election official in federal court to stop the practice of election officials tossing vote by mail ballots if the signature on the ballot envelope does not match the one on file. The lawsuit was… Continue reading

“Texas lawmakers take up issue of voter fraud”

September 21, 2016, 8:19 pmabsentee ballots, chicaneryRick Hasen

Interesting turn of tables at CBS Austin, with Democrat raising voter fraud concerns: “Voting by mail is extremely important,” said Bill Maxey with the Texas Democratic Party. Mail in ballots are meant to help senior citizens, people with disabilities and… Continue reading

Another OH Voting Rights Loss: Divided 6th Cir. Mostly Rejects Order Easing Absentee/Provisional Balloting

September 13, 2016, 3:24 pmabsentee ballots, election administration, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

Over an impassioned dissent recounting the disparate racial effects of its decision, a 6th Circuit panel has voted 2-1 to mostly reject a district court order rejecting some Ohio voting rules which make it harder for voters voting absentee… Continue reading

“1 in 7 Ohio registered voters won’t receive an invitation to vote absentee”

September 13, 2016, 7:20 amabsentee ballots, election administration, The Voting WarsRick Hasen

Important story from OH: In an online ad, a smiling Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted holds up a letter with his name in large print and the promise, “Your absentee ballot request form is in the mail.” But for… Continue reading