Legislative Updates

Delaware: Lawmakers have filed Legislation that would Allow for Vote-by-Mail in the 2020 Delaware Primary and General Elections. The Measure, an Amendment sponsored by Rep. David Bentz (D-18th District), would Eliminate an Enactment Date on an Existing Vote-by-Mail Bill. Currently, House Bill 175, sponsored by Rep. Gerald Brady (D-4th District), would Allow Voters to Vote-by-Mail beginning in 2022. Removing the Enactment Date would mean the Bill would take effect upon General Assembly Passage and Governor, John Carney (D), Signing the Measure into Law.

Kentucky: Gov. Andy Beshear (D) has Vetoed a Bill that would have required Kentuckians to show a Photo ID in order to Vote. Voters could have also showed a Social Security Card or Credit Card and then Sign an Affidavit. Beshear said that the Law would Create an Obstacle for Kentuckians trying to Vote, especially during the Coronavirus Pandemic when Offices that provide ID Cards are Closed to In-Person traffic. “Furthermore, no documented evidence of recent voter fraud in the form of impersonation in Kentucky has been presented in support of Senate Bill 2 and, therefore, the legislation would be attempting to resolve a problem does not exist,” Beshear wrote.

Minnesota: This week, Secretary of State, Steve Simon (D), unveiled Legislation that would help Minnesota conduct Elections during the Coronavirus Pandemic. The Proposal would make “temporary, one-time” Changes that would Automatically send Registered Voters Mail-In Ballots and allow Extra Time for Election Administrators to process the Votes. Simon said the Changes would be in effect only during the state of Emergency declared by Gov. Tim Walz (D) and that Witnesses would be required for Voting in order to Combat Fraud.

Oklahoma: The Mayor’s Charter Review Committee will Review a Proposal that will, among other things, move Oklahoma City’s Elections so that they coincide with Statewide Dates.

South Carolina: Lawmakers met for a brief, Emergency Session this week to adopt Measures that include setting aside up to $15 Million to cover Costs directly relate to Protecting the Health of the State’s Voters, Poll Workers, and Local Election Employees.

Tennessee: Gov. Bill Lee (R) has Signed several Election Law Changes that Lawmakers Passed before they Recessed due to the Coronavirus, including one that scales back Voter Registration Drive Restrictions that a Federal Judge Blocked and another that Details Voting Options during Disasters. The New Law removes Misdemeanor Penalties for Not Completing certain Administrative Requirements and Eliminates Fines for Submitting too many Incomplete Registration Forms.

Legal Updates

California: An Appellate Court Upheld a Lower Courts Ruling in late March that stated the California Voter Participation Rights Act (CVPRA) does Not Apply to Charter Cities like Pasadena. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge, Mitchell L. Beckloff, held that the CVPRA Impermissibly Intrudes upon the Province of Chartered Cities in dictating when they may Hold their Elections. The Appellate Opinion, by Presiding Justice Dennis Perluss, neither Agrees nor Disagrees with the Trial Court Judge’s Conclusion. Rather, the Opinion states, that the Legislature didn’t make it Clear whether it intended the CVPR, which went into effect Jan. 1st, 2018, to apply to Chartered Cities or Not so, to Avoid a Constitutional Controversy, it will be assumed there was no such Intention.

Florida: U.S. District Judge, Robert Hinkle, has Ruled that Testimony and Expert Statements for the Trial over a 2019 State Law regarding Felon Voting will be Conducted on a Live Web-based Conferencing System. In 2018 Floridians Approved a Constitutional Amendment that Restored Voting Rights to Felons who have Completed their Sentences. The Legislature crafted a Law that Stops them from Voting if they have Unpaid Fines, Fees, and Restitution. The Trial is set to begin April 27th.

Hinkle issued an Order saying he intends to Grant Class Certification to Plaintiffs who Allege that the State’s 2019 Law amounts to a Poll Tax. In the Order Tuesday on Class Certification, Hinkle Rejected Secretary of State Laurel Lee’s Arguments that a Broad Expansion of Plaintiffs was Unnecessary. “The plaintiffs’ Twenty-fourth Amendment and inability-to-pay claims turn on issues that can be properly resolved in a single action, once and for all. Class treatment is proper,” Hinkle wrote in the 18-page Order, referring to the U.S. Constitution’s 24th Amendment barring Poll Taxes.

A Settlement has been reach in a 2019 Lawsuit over a State Law that essentially Prevented Supervisors of Elections from placing Early Voting Sites on College Campuses. In a Directive this week from Secretary of State Laurel Lee says that Supervisors need Not Ensure that a certain Number of Non-Permitted Parking Sites are Available at every Single Early Voting Site. Instead, the Directive says that Supervisors can use a Number of Factors to determine how adequate the Parking is on a Campus before deciding on whether to Place such a Polling Place there.

Georgia: The ACLU has filed Suit against the State arguing that Requiring Voters to put a Stamp on their Absentee Ballot is the Equivalent of a Poll Tax. According to Courthouse News Service, although the 55-cent Cost of a First-Class Postage Stamp may be Small, the Challengers say any Financial Barrier to Voting is Unconstitutional. Postage Costs could be Higher for Longer and Heavier Ballots.

Ohio: The State of Ohio asked a Federal Judge to Dismiss a Lawsuit that Voting-Rights Advocates filed over a New Primary-Election Plan that State Lawmakers adopted after Polls were Closed because of the COVID-19 Pandemic. In a Response filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, State Attorneys argued that Changing the Election Again would sow more Confusion among Voters and that the Lawsuit is built on the Erroneous Claim that Ohio’s Election Date had been Changed. On Friday, U.S. District Court Judge Michael Watson, Denied the Suit. “The Constitution does not require the best plan, just a lawful one,” Watson wrote in his Order. “As is apparent from the briefing in this lawsuit, every group has a different idea of what the best plan would be. But the Court will not declare the Ohio Legislature’s unanimous bill to be unconstitutional simply because other options may have been better.”

The State Supreme Court has Ordered a Response by April 10th in a Case alleging Voter Fraud in Lorain County. On March 9th, Former Lorain City Councilman Dennis Flores filed a Case at the State Supreme Court seeking an Order for the County Prosecutor to Investigate alleged Voter Fraud in a 2015 Race for City Council.

Minnesota: In a 5-2 Decision, the Minnesota Supreme Court has Ruled in Favor of Secretary of State, Steve Simon (D), and that his Office does Not need to Turn Over Information sought by the Minnesota Voters Alliance regarding Voters’ Status, Reasons for any Challenges to their Registrations and Information on Voters Not currently Registered. The Supreme Court said the Additional Information sought by the Voters Alliance was Accessible only to Public Officials for Specific Purposes. In Declining Access to that Information, the Secretary of State followed the Law, the Court said.

Texas: The Texas Democrats have filed a Federal Lawsuit, in San Antonio this week, arguing that holding Traditional Elections within State and Federal Safety Guidelines attempting to Limit Spread of the New Coronavirus Pandemic would Impose Unconstitutional and Illegal Burdens on Voters unless State Law is Clarified to Expand Voting by Mail. The Harris County Commission has Authorized the County’s Attorney to File an Amicus Brief in the Suit.










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker