The Independent View: Electionline Weekly Sept-13-2018

Legislative Updates

Federal Legislation: Rep. Bob Gibbs (R-OH 7th District) has introduced Legislation that would require All Voters to Provide Proof-of-Citizenship when Registering to Vote. The Proposed Legislation would require that Documentation like a Valid U.S. Passport, a Certified Birth Certificate issued by a State, a Consular Report of Birth Abroad issued by the U.S. Secretary of State, or a Naturalization Certificate, or Certificate of Citizenship issued by the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security be Presented when one Registers to Vote. (But this Legislation misses the fact that all States will have Driving Licenses that had first passed a Citizenship test.)

Maine: Gov. Paul LePage has Vetoed Legislation that would provide Funding to Conduct the November 6th Election via Ranked-Choice Voting.

Michigan: State Elections Officials have Certified a Ballot Measure for the November 6th Ballot that, if Approved, would allow for Same-Day Voter Registration and No-Excuse Absentee Voting.

New Jersey: Democrats have introduced a Bill Setting a Requirement for how much in Federal Election Security Funds must be used for New Voting Machines, an Amount that is nearly Twice as much as what the Governor’s Administration is Planning.

New York: State Sen. Elaine Phillips (R-Nassau County 7th District) has introduced Legislation that would allow Public Schools to Opt-Out of Serving as Polling Places on Election Day. “We need to let schools decide if opening their doors puts children at additional risk, and if more suitable sites should be found for Election Day voting,” Phillips said.

Legal Updates

U.S. 9th Circuit News, a Three-Judge Panel has said the Democratic National Committee could not produce “a single voter” to Testify that it was harder for them to Vote because of the State’s Ballot-Harvesting Law. The Court also said that the State’s Rule that Eliminates Ballots Cast outside of a Person’s Assigned Precinct does not Impose a Burden on Voters and that it is Outweighed by the State’s need to Conduct Orderly Elections.

Arizona: The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals as has set an October 3rd Hearing to hear Arguments in the Legality of the State’s Ballot Harvesting Ban.

Florida: In a 27-page Ruling, U.S. District Judge Mark Walker partially sided with Plaintiffs in a Federal Lawsuit that sought to have Elections Officials in 32 Counties provide Spanish-Language Ballots. Walker Ordered Officials to provide Sample Ballots in Spanish, but did not go so far as to Require Bilingual Ballots and Poll Workers. “Voting in a language you do not understand is like asking this court [to] decide the winner of the Nobel Prize for Chemistry — ineffective, in other words,” Walker wrote. “Courts have long held that the right to vote includes not only the right to physically enter a polling place and fill out a ballot but also the right to comprehend and understand what is on that ballot.”

Michigan: The U.S. Supreme Court turned down an Appeal of a Lower Court Ruling on Michigan’s Straight-Ticket Voting means Voters will not be able to use a Single Mark to Choose All the Candidates from One Party.

New Mexico: The New Mexico Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of a Petition by the State Republican and Libertarian Parties seeking to Stop the Implementation of Straight-Ticket Voting.

North Carolina: Federal Prosecutors and ICE Officials have Revised their Subpoena for Voting Records in 44 Counties in North Carolina. In their Revised Subpoena, Prosecutors have given Officials until January to comply with the Subpoenas. The State Board of Elections Voted to Fight the Subpoenas, regardless of the Deadline.

Buffy Christina Quinn, 39 has been Indicted on a Felony Charge of Violation of Election Law for Voting in the 2016 while She was still on Probation.

North Dakota: The State has asked the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to Overturn a Lower Court’s Ruling that found Problems with how the State’s Voter ID Laws affect Native Americans. U.S. District Judge Daniel Hovland in April Agreed to Expand the Proof of Identity Native Americans can use for North Dakota Elections. The Judge also ordered Eliminating a Requirement that those Documents include Residential Street Addresses, which sometimes aren't Assigned on American Indian Reservations. The State argues the Required Changes could lead to Voter Fraud.