Here are some updates from today.

• U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell (D-Ala.) led every House Democrat in reintroducing the landmark John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act to restore critical voter protections of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Read her exclusive Democracy Docket op-ed here.

• A court order requiring New York's redistricting commission to reconvene and draw new congressional districts is paused, the state's highest court ruled. The court will hold oral argument on Nov. 15 to determine if the commission must draw a new map. Learn more about New York’s redistricting saga here.

• In Alabama, pro-voting plaintiffs submitted reply briefs in a response in the U.S. Supreme Court to Republican Secretary of State Wes Allen’s request to pause a lower court ruling in Allen v. Milligan. 

  • Two weeks ago, a federal three-judge panel blocked Alabama's new congressional map because it does not have two majority-Black districts as required by a federal court order. Allen appealed this decision and asked the Supreme Court to pause the decision blocking the map while the appeal is ongoing. 

• Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) announced the start of automatic voter registration in the commonwealth. Starting today, eligible Pennsylvanians renewing or getting a new ID at a department of motor vehicles will be automatically registered to vote unless they opt out.

  • It’s National Voter Registration Day! Check your registration status here.

• Democrats on the Ohio Redistricting Commission released their proposed legislative maps. The lawmakers argue that the maps are more balanced and would undo the Republican gerrymandering found in the current districts.

• The Kentucky Supreme Court heard oral argument in a lawsuit challenging Kentucky’s new state House and congressional maps. The Court will decide if Kentucky courts can review partisan gerrymandering claims under the state's current laws.