Election Law @ Moritz

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Edward B. Foley
Free & Fair is a collection of writings by Edward B. Foley, one of the nation's preeminent experts on election law.

Topic-by-Topic Coverage (Voter Eligibility)

Recent News & Analysis

Below are the most recent News & Analysis posts on Voter Eligibility. See All News & Analysis on Voter Eligibility

12/19/08
Coleman files another case in Minnesota's Supreme Court

The Coleman campaign has filed another 204B.44 petition in the Minnesota Supreme Court asking the court to order that "originals" not be included in the canvass if corresponding "duplicates" do not exist.  More details will be posted soon.  See the petition here. 

11/4/08
Ohio voter challenged at polls for multiple reasons

A Columbus, Ohio voter showed up to vote and was told his registration had been challenged.  He was given three possible reasons for the challenge: 1) that a mailing sent to him was returned as undeliverable, 2) that he signed the registration form outside the box on the form or 3) that his address on his Ohio driver's license didn't match the address on his registration form.  Ohio's voter ID law does not require that an Ohio driver's license contain the voter's current address. The vote was able to cast a regular ballot, but only after going home to retrieve a form of identification with his current address.  [Read More]

10/31/08
Absentee ballots emerging as a trouble area nationwide

It is becoming clear that the verification and counting of absentee ballots are emerging as top issues in this year’s historic election.  Absentee ballots are being used more this year because several states began allowing “no-fault” absentee voting, meaning any voter can vote early in-person or by mail without an excuse.  High interest in this presidential election and fear among voters of the long lines they saw in 2004 have also contributed to the vastly expanded use of absentee ballots.

As we enter the final weekend before the election, here are some of the reported problems we are seeing with absentee ballots... [Read More]

10/31/08
Litigation Status Report

Overview-- Despite the flurry of election litigation activity that has been occurring in the last two to three weeks, today (Friday, October 31) things are actually pretty quiet on the litigation front. This has happened for two reasons. First, activists and political parties have dropped, settled, or put off until a later time important suits in states like Colorado (voter purges), Michigan (polling place challenges), Ohio (suits over ID and challenges to absentee ballots), and Virginia (general election day preparedness). Second, courts have moved with great speed to decide the remaining disputes that have not gone away on their own: Pennsylvania (a suit against ACORN and one demanding additional paper emergency ballots), Ohio (a suit about both HAVA matching and a disputed 5-day window in which voters could both register and vote in one trip), Wisconsin (a suit about matching, although an appeal is expected), and Georgia (matching). The few suits that are still outstanding, or have been resolved extremely recently, are digested in this article. . . . [Read More]

10/28/08
30 Florida counties come up with new ways to deal with the state's

Some Florida counties are making it easier for voters whose names or other data do not match exactly with BMV or SSA records to vote without in one trip.  Broward County plans to allow these flagged voters to bring copies of ID to the polls to include with their provisional ballots rather than having to make a return trip to provide the same ID within 48 hours after election day.  Miami-Dade County is also allowing the flagged voters to bring ID to the polls to clear up their status and, these voters will be allowed to cast a regular ballot.  [Read More]

Recent Commentary

There are no commentaries on Voter Eligibility that Election Law @ Moritz has covered, or is covering at this time.

Recent News Stories

Below are the most recent News Stories on Voter Eligibility. See All News Stories on Voter Eligibility

11/5/09
Homeless, student voters challenged

Disputes involving voting by homeless people and college students may have been addressed by judges Tuesday, but the same issues are bound to come up in the future, Dutchess County elections officials said.

4/23/09
Task force to examine Va residency rules

A task force will take a look at Virginia's voting residency requirements, an election season issue that often involves student voters.

3/14/09
Vt. weighs letting 17-year-olds vote

An amendment that would let those who turn 18 by Election Day in November to vote in primary elections before that was approved by lawmakers last year and is headed for a second vote. Under the constitution, amendments to the constitution must be approved by two different legislatures and at a public referendum.

3/3/09
Senate: Would-be voters must prove citizenship

If the voter registration measure becomes law, Georgia would become only the second state in the nation, behind Arizona, requiring prospective voters to show they are U.S. citizens to register.

2/22/09
Bill would allow 17-year-old Texans to vote in primaries

State Rep. Hubert Vo liked the huge voter turnout everywhere and now he wants to make it even easier for young people to get involved in the political process. The Houston Democrat is the author of House Bill 513, which would allow 17-year-old Texans to vote in the primaries, which are usually in March, if they will turn 18 before the first Tuesday of November, the day of the general election.

Current Litigation

There are no active cases on Voter Eligibility that Election Law @ Moritz is covering at this time. See All Archived Cases on Voter Eligibility