Tuesday, Aug. 20

THE SCOREBOARD

New York’s highest court upholds law expanding mail-in voting

• In a victory for voters, New York's highest court upheld the state's new law allowing any eligible voter to cast a ballot early by mail, rejecting a lawsuit from the RNC claiming the law is unconstitutional.

  
  

• After today's ruling, New York is cemented as one of the 36 states in the U.S. that allow people to vote-by-mail without providing a reason to do so.

  
  

• In a new YouTube video, Marc and Democracy Docket’s Paige Moskowitz explain why the decision is a victory for voters and why the GOP is suing to block ballot access in a blue state.

Nevada Supreme Court declines to rule on crucial election certification issue

• The Nevada Supreme Court dismissed a lawsuit Monday filed by Secretary of State Francisco Aguilar (D) because Washoe County commissioners decided to certify the June primary election results without the court mandating them to do so. However, the justices still could have issued a ruling that would prevent this from happening again.

  
  

Ohio group files lawsuit regarding its anti-gerrymandering ballot initiative

• The group behind a ballot initiative to end gerrymandering in Ohio filed a lawsuit claiming the language approved for the ballot — written by Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R) — is biased, deceptive, inaccurate and unconstitutional.

  
  

• The proposed constitutional amendment — introduced by Citizens Not Politicians — would establish a 15-member citizen redistricting commission, taking the power of drawing congressional and legislative districts out of the hands of politicians.

Utah GOP pushes constitutional amendment that would limit voters’ influence

• Republican lawmakers in Utah proposed a constitutional amendment to go on the November ballot that would give them veto power over voter-approved ballot measures. They will vote on it in a special session tomorrow.

Meet Montana gubernatorial candidate Ryan Busse

• In a new candidate Q&A interview, we spoke with Ryan Busse about why he's running for office, his transition from the GOP to the Democratic Party, the fight against voter suppression and more.

Deep dive into eight right-wing groups targeting states’ voter rolls

• Since 2020, "election integrity" groups have been recruiting volunteers to remove millions of registered voters before the November election. Read here to learn what you should know about the eight right-wing groups leading the effort.