My latest data crunching of a sample of election law cases shows a steep drop in the rate of election litigation, with litigation averaging 257 .5 cases per year in the 2021-22 midterm election period, down almost 19 percent compared to a 339-per-year case average during the last midterm period of 2017-18.

But there are reasons to believe the drop may be short-lived. Derek Muller reports a 30 percent increase in the amount raised by the political parties for election litigation. Derek Muller, Democratic, Republican fundraising for election litigation tops $154 Million in 2021-22 cycle, 30 percent increase over 2020 Presidential Cycle, Election Law Blog, Apr. 3, 2023.

More generally, with the Trump factor and covid, it is difficult to discern overall trends of election litigation in recent years. The year 2020 saw the highest rate of election litigation at least since 1996, and probably ever. See Richard L. Hasen, Research Note: Record Election Litigation Rates in the 2020 Election: An Aberration or a Sign of Things to Come?, Election Law Journal, https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/epdf/10.1089/elj.2021.0050 (2022).

Note: This post originally appeared April 25, 2023 and was posted as corrected on April 26, 2023.