6/21/2024

Conservatives eye open seats on Wisconsin and Michigan Supreme Courts in bids to break up the courts’ liberal majorities. Louisiana is the latest GOP-led state to entertain “proof of citizenship” legislation, and Arizona Republicans may finally have to accept their 2022 losses.

Republican candidates vie for seats on Michigan, Wisconsin Supreme Courts

Two upcoming state Supreme Court elections in Michigan and Wisconsin are shaping up to be almost as politically charged as the presidential race.

Michigan attorney Matthew DePerno, supporter of the “Big Lie” that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from former President Donald Trump, announced his bid last week for a seat on the majority-liberal Michigan Supreme Court — the same court that thwarted Trump’s attempt to stop the certification of Michigan’s results in 2020. The race will take place on Election Day.

DePerno was charged last year with undue possession of a voting machine and other felonies as part of an investigation into voting machine tampering in the state. In announcing his bid, he took aim at “activist judges, prosecutors, and attorney generals” who he claims are using their power to target their political enemies. His sentiments aren’t much different than that of national Republicans railing against the prosecution of Trump.

In Wisconsin, conservative Brad Schimel is hoping to break the court’s liberal majority by prevailing in next year’s race. In his announcement last year, the county judge said taking back the majority is the only way to check the court’s liberal majority.

“This is a battleground state where the state parties and national interests are all working to get an advantage and to set the law in the direction they think is right,” Barry Burden, a political science professor at UW-Madison and director of the Elections Research Center, told Democracy Docket.

Read more about the Wisconsin and Michigan Supreme Court races.

Louisiana passes ‘proof of citizenship’ law amid nationwide GOP push

Amid Republicans' sudden focus on ensuring that only eligible U.S. citizens are casting ballots in elections — which has become a focal point for GOP legislators ahead of the 2024 race — Louisiana will soon require proof of citizenship to register to vote.

Signed into law last week by Republican Gov. Jeff Landry, the legislation will require people to include proof of citizenship with their voter registration applications, starting on Jan. 1, 2025.

But the law would not just prevent noncitizens from voting, it could stop eligible citizens who do not have access to proof of citizenship documents from voting. A new survey reports that one in 10 voting-age U.S. citizens can’t easily access documents to prove their citizenship either because they don’t have it readily available or don’t have it at all.

It’s perhaps unsurprising that House Republicans in Congress are pushing a bill that would require individuals to provide proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections, even though noncitizen voting is already illegal. In legislatures, like in New Hampshire, GOP legislators are advocating for requiring citizenship documents to register to vote.

Read more about the GOP’s “proof of citizenship” push.

Arizona Republicans may finally have to move on from 2022

An Arizona court blocked yet another attempt from Arizona Republicans to contest the results of 2022 races that they lost in the state.

This month, the Arizona Court of Appeals dismissed a pair of lawsuits that sought to decertify the results of the 2022 general election in Arizona. The 2023 cases were brought by right-wing lawyer Ryan Heath on behalf of failed Republican Arizona attorney general candidate Abraham Hamadeh, Cochise County Supervisor Tom Crosby (R) and “Independent” voter David Mast.

The appeals court dismissal comes after a lower court judge denied the plaintiffs’ requests to remove Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes (D) from office and decertify the governor and attorney general races. The Maricopa County judge also sanctioned Hamadeh and Heath, concluding that their “election challenge” was brought in bad faith.

Hamadeh and Heath are among several Arizona conservatives who repeatedly challenged 2022 races based on wild allegations of massive voting-related errors and discrepancies. In 2023, fellow election-denying Republicans Kari Lake and Mark Finchem  — who lost their respective races for governor and secretary of state — were also sanctioned for falsely representing facts to the court.

Read more about Arizona Republicans’ efforts to contest 2022 state races — and the fallout.

OPINION: How This Season’s SCOTUS Rulings Could Give Conservatives More Power Over State Policy

“June is playoff season for U.S. Supreme Court watchers,” Sister District cofounder Lala Wu writes. And this year is no different. June is often when the Court drops some of its most consequential decisions, such as last year’s ruling in Allen v. Milligan.

As it nears the end of its term, Wu highlights an “under-the-radar” consequence of the Court’s conservative majority, “it is poised to hand over unprecedented power to state governments, many of which are — not coincidentally — controlled by Republicans.” Read more here.

What We’re Doing

Voter accessibility is a crucial aspect of the electoral process, and a person’s disability should not be a barrier to their ability to cast a ballot. As the 2024 election approaches, Democracy Docket’s Courtney Cohn writes, disability rights and pro-voting groups are pushing for people to have access to electronic absentee voting. Read more here.

Law professor and former U.S Attorney Joyce Vance joins Defending Democracy to discuss whether the justice system can handle a defendant like Trump, the state of voting rights in Alabama and what we all can do to save democracy. Watch on YouTube here.