South Carolina Election Officials, Republican Party Go to Supreme Court Seeking to Reinstate Absentee Ballot Witness Requirement Relaxed Thanks to Covid
The brief relies heavily on the Purcell Principle.
Category Archives: absentee ballots
“Republicans Are Slowing Down Mailed-In Vote Counts in Key Swing States”
Washington Monthly:
The bad news is that Republican officials in three swing states, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin, are blocking legislation that could allow for the early processing of absentee ballots—purposefully making it take longer to get the election results.… Continue reading
“Early surge of Democratic mail voting sparks worry inside GOP”
WaPo:
Democratic voters who have requested mail ballots — and returned them — greatly outnumber Republicans so far in key battleground states, causing alarm among GOP party leaders and strategists that President Trump’s attacks on mail voting could be hurting… Continue reading
“Exclusive: As States Prepared Mail-in Ballots, Postal Service Failed to Update at Least 1.8 Million Addresses”
Time:
For three weeks in August, as election officials across the country were preparing to send out mail-in ballots to tens of millions of voters, the U.S. Postal Service stopped fully updating a national change of address system that… Continue reading
PA legislators ask SCOTUS to stay mail deadline ruling
(Cross-posted at Take Care)
The state Senate leadership in Pennsylvania, intervenors in litigation over the deadline to receive ballots cast by mail, has just asked the U.S. Supreme Court to stay a Sept. 17 decision of the Pennsylvania Supreme … Continue reading
“Courts view GOP fraud claims skeptically as Democrats score key legal victories over mail voting”
WaPo:
For six months, the rules for how Americans can vote during the coronavirus pandemic have been locked in court battles while states across the country rushed to embrace mail ballots.Now, with just weeks to go before the Nov. 3… Continue reading
“Federal judge rules against voting-rights activists’ challenge of Ohio signature-matching rules on absentee ballot applications”
Cleveland.com:
A federal judge has ruled Ohio’s system of verifying signatures on absentee ballot applications is not burdensome enough to be struck down as illegal, rejecting arguments made by a coalition of voting-rights groups that sued the state.U.S. District Judge… Continue reading
“On-again, off again: Court nixes SC witness requirement on absentee ballots — for now”
The State:
The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond has, at least temporarily, reinstated a ruling by a South Carolina federal judge that would allow S.C. voters who vote absentee to do it without having a witness signature.The ruling… Continue reading
“Republican party sues to stop late ballot ruling”
Detroit News reports.
“Special Report: Will your mail ballot count in the U.S. presidential election? It may depend on who’s counting and where”
“Michigan lawmakers give clerks more time to process ballots”
Very good bipartisan news:
The Michigan Legislature gave final approvals Thursday to a bill that would give local clerks 10 hours extra before the election to begin processing absentee ballots, a nod to the expected uptick in absentee voting… Continue reading
“Pennsylvania election officials warn of 2000 Florida redux; A court ruling on so-called naked ballots ‘is going to cause electoral chaos’ in one of the nation’s biggest swing states.”
“America’s Electorate is Increasingly Polarized Along Partisan Lines About Voting by Mail During the COVID-19 Crisis,
The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences has just published a new paper, “America’s Electorate is Increasingly Polarized Along Partisan Lines About Voting by Mail During the COVID-19 Crisis,” by Mackenzie Lockhart, Seth J. Hill, Jennifer Merolla,… Continue reading
Twenty (Republican-led) States File Amicus Brief Urging 9th Circuit to Stay District Court Order Easing Missing Signature Cure Provisions for Absentee Ballots
The states make an argument on the merits under Anderson-Burdick balancing and argue it is too late to make changes to election rules under the Purcell Principle.
I expect Purcell to be invoked more and more as we proceed… Continue reading