Here is our weekly round-up on election-related legislation. In it, you’ll find the following information on the big picture:
Legislative status: How many bills have been introduced, voted upon, or enacted into law?
Concentration of activity: What states have seen the highest concentration of legislative activity?
Partisan affiliation of sponsorship: How many bills have been sponsored by Democrats vs. Republicans?
Subject: What subjects are most commonly addressed in the bills?
The big picture
To date, we have tracked 2,519 election-related bills. This represents a marginal decrease as compared to last week’s total. These bills were either introduced this year or crossed over from last year’s legislative sessions.
Legislative status
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of the bills we are tracking. The following status indicators are used:
Introduced: The bill has been pre-filed, introduced, or referred to committee but has not otherwise been acted upon.
Advanced from committee: The bill has received a favorable vote in committee. It has either advanced to another committee or to the floor for a vote.
Passed one chamber: The bill has been approved by one legislative chamber.
Conference committee: Differing versions of the bill have been approved by their respective chambers and a conference committee has been appointed to reconcile the differences.
Passed both chambers: The bill has cleared both chambers of the legislature.
Enacted: The bill has been enacted into law, by gubernatorial action or inaction or veto override.
Vetoed: The bill has been vetoed.
Dead: The bill has been defeated in committee or by floor vote.
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of bills in Democratic and Republican trifectas, respectively.
Concentration of activity
The map below visualizes the concentration of legislative activity across the nation. A darker shade of yellow indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been introduced. A lighter shade of yellow indicates a lower number of relevant bills.
Partisan affiliation of sponsor(s)
The pie chart below visualizes the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors.
Bills by topic
The chart below presents information on the total number of bills dealing with particular topics. The number listed on the blue portion of each bar indicates the number of Democratic-sponsored bills dealing with the subject in question. The number listed on the red portion of the bar indicates the number of Republican-sponsored bills. The purple and gray portions of the bar indicate the number of bipartisan-sponsored bills and bills with unspecified sponsorship, respectively. Note that the numbers listed here will not, when summed, equal the total number of bills because some bills deal with multiple topics.
Welcome to The Ballot Bulletin, where we track developments in election policy at the federal, state, and local levels. In this month’s issue:
Delaware state court strikes down law allowing no-excuse absentee/mail-in voting
California enacts three election-related bills
Legislation update: Legislation activity in September 2022
Have a question/feedback/or just want to say hello? Respond to this email, or drop me a line directly at Jerrick@Ballotpedia.org.
Delaware state court strikes down law allowing no-excuse absentee/mail-in voting
On Sept. 14, Vice Chancellor Nathan Cook, of the Delaware Court of Chancery, ruled that a state law allowing any registered voter to vote by absentee/mail-in ballot was unconstitutional. However, on Sept. 19, Cook delayed implementation of his ruling, pending an expedited appeal to the state supreme court.
The law in question
On July 22, Gov. John Carney (D) signed SB320 into law, establishing no-excuse absentee/mail-in voting in any non-presidential primary election, general election, or special election to fill a vacancy in a statewide office or the General Assembly. The state Senate approved the bill 13-8 on June 16, with 13 Democrats voting in favor and one Democrat and seven Republicans opposed. The state House approved the bill 25-12 on June 29, with 24 Democrats and one Republican voting in favor and 12 Republicans opposed. The bill took retroactive effect on July 1.
The General Assembly shall enact general laws providing that any qualified elector of this State, duly registered, who shall be unable to appear to cast his or her ballot at any general election at the regular polling place of the election district in which he or she is registered, either because of being in the public service of the United States or of this State, or his or her spouse or dependents when residing with or accompanying him or her because of the nature of his or her business or occupation, because of his or her sickness or physical disability, because of his or her absence from the district while on vacation, or because of the tenets or teachings of his or her religion, may cast a ballot at such general election to be counted in such election district.
The parties to the lawsuit and their arguments
The plaintiffs are five registered voters: Michael Higgin (who is also a Republican candidate for Delaware House District 15), Michael Mennella (who plans to serve as an election inspector in the Nov. 8 general election), Ayonne Miles, Paul Falkowski, and Nancy Smith. The defendants are Delaware State Election Commissioner Anthony J. Albence and the Delaware Department of Elections.
The plaintiffs, arguing that SB320 is “irreconcilable with the Delaware Constitution,” asked the court to declare the law unconstitutional and bar its enforcement in the Nov. 8 general election.
The defendants argued the plaintiffs lacked standing to challenge SB320. The defendants further argued that SB320 was constitutional.
How the court ruled
Cook ruled:
The plaintiffs had standing to challenge SB320. Cook wrote, “[A]lthough the plaintiffs likely would not have standing under federal jurisprudence, I conclude that the plaintiffs have standing to challenge the Vote-by-Mail Statute under state law. … In this case, the plaintiffs represent various parts of the election process, and I conclude they have a substantial interest in this court reaching a decision on the merits, particularly given the fundamental nature of voting.”
SB320 violates the state constitution: Cook wrote, “The plaintiffs argue that Article V, Section 4A, of the Delaware Constitution … provides for absentee voting in certain enumerated circumstances. Our Supreme Court and this Court have consistently stated that those circumstances are exhaustive. Therefore, as a trial judge, I am compelled by precedent to conclude that the Vote-by-Mail Statute’s attempt to expand absentee voting to Delawareans who do not align with any of Section 4A’s categories must be rejected.”
Cook concluded an injunction (i.e., an order barring the state from enforcing SB320) was appropriate because “there would be irreparable harm in the absence of injunctive relief and … the balance of the equities favors entry of an injunction.”
What comes next
On Sept. 19, Cook stayed enforcement of his ruling, pending an expedited appeal to the state supreme court, which was scheduled to hear oral argument in the case on Oct. 5.
California enacts three election-related bills
In September, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed three election-related bills into law.
AB1631: Existing law requires elections officials to make public a list of the precincts to which precinct officials who are fluent in a non-English language and in English were appointed, and the language or languages other than English in which the officials will provide assistance. This bill requires the county elections official to make this list available on the county elections official’s website.
AB2815: This bill requires a county, for a statewide primary or general election, to provide an additional vote-by-mail ballot drop-off location on each California State University main campus within its jurisdiction and, upon request, each University of California campus within its jurisdiction.
SB1131: Existing law requires an election official to post a list of all polling places and precinct board members at specified times before an election. This bill would eliminate the requirement to post the names of the precinct board members, but would still require the election official to post the political party preference for all precinct board members, as specified.
Legislation update: Legislation activity in September 2022
In September, legislatures in five states and the District of Columbia took action on 36 election bills.
The chart below identifies the 10 most common policy areas implicated by the bills that state lawmakers acted on in September. The number listed on the blue portion of each bar indicates the number of Democratic-sponsored bills dealing with the subject in question. The number listed on the red portion of the bar indicates the number of Republican-sponsored bills. The purple and gray portions of the bar indicate the number of bipartisan-sponsored bills and bills with unspecified sponsorship, respectively. Note that the total number of bills listed will not equal the total number of enacted bills because some bills deal with multiple subjects.
Democrats sponsored 21 of the 36 bills acted on in September (58.3%). Republicans sponsored 7 (19.4%). Bipartisan groups sponsored eight (22.2%).
This information comes from Ballotpedia’s Election Administration Legislation Tracker, which went live on June 29. This free and accessible online resource allows you to find easy-to-digest bill tags and summaries—written and curated by our election administration experts! We update our database and bill-tracking daily. Using our powerful interactive search function, you can zero in on more 2,500 bills (and counting) covering these topics:
Absentee/mail-in voting and early voting policies
Ballot access requirements for candidates, parties, and ballot initiatives
Election dates and deadlines
Election oversight protocols
In-person voting procedures
Post-election procedures (including counting, canvassing, and auditing policies)
Voter ID
Voter registration and eligibility
To make your search results more precise, we first place bills into one of 22 parent categories. We then apply to each bill one or more of the 88 tags we’ve developed.
If you don’t want to immerse yourself in the world of election legislation quite that often, we have a free, weekly digest that goes straight to your inbox and keeps you caught up on the week’s developments.
Here is our weekly round-up on election-related legislation. In it, you’ll find the following information:
Noteworthy bills: Here, we identify and report on the contents and legislative status of noteworthy bills.
Recent activity: Here, we report on the number of bills acted on within the past week.
The big picture: Here, we look at the bills in the aggregate.
Legislative status: How many bills have been introduced, voted upon, or enacted into law?
Concentration of activity: What states have seen the highest concentration of legislative activity?
Partisan affiliation of sponsorship: How many bills have been sponsored by Democrats vs. Republicans?
Subject: What subjects are most commonly addressed in the bills?
Noteworthy bills
This part of our report highlights recent activity on specific noteworthy bills. A bill is noteworthy if it meets one or more of the following criteria:
It has been enacted into law.
It is poised to be enacted into law.
It is the subject of significant debate in the legislature.
It is the subject of significant commentary by activists, journalists, etc.
Michigan HB6071: This bill would make the following changes to state laws regarding polling locations:
Prohibits the use of a polling station in a building belonging to a candidate.
Removes conflicting language regarding establishment of polling place locations.
Authorizes the use of a privately owned banquet hall or similar facility if another suitable location is not available, but the facility may not belong to a candidate or a sponsor of a political committee.
Outlines procedures for using the facility.
Authorizes a legislative body to establish a central polling place and outlines related procedures.
Legislative history: The state Senate approved the final version of the bill by unanimous vote on Sept. 28. Later that same day, the state House approved the bill by a vote of 97-7. It now awaits gubernatorial action.
Political context: Michigan operates under a divided government. Republicans control majorities in both chambers of the state legislature, but the governor (Gretchen Whitmer) is a Democrat.
Recent activity
Since September 23, 15 bills have been acted on in some way (representing a 114.3 percent decrease as compared to last week’s total of 7 bills). These 15 bills represent 0.6 percent of the 2,520 bills we are tracking. Of these 15 bills, 6 (40.0 percent) are from states with Democratic trifectas and 9 (60.0 percent) are from states with divided governments.
The bar chart below compares recent activity on a week-to-week basis over the last eight weeks.
3 bills were introduced (or saw pre-committee action).
Democratic trifectas: 1.
Divided governments: 2.
1 bill advanced from committee (or saw post-committee action).
Divided governments: 1.
2 bills passed one chamber (or saw pre-adoption action in the second chamber).
Divided governments: 2.
4 bills passed both chambers (or saw pre-enactment action).
Divided governments: 4.
MI HB4491: Elections: election officials; authority for county clerks to remove deceased individuals from the qualified voter file; provide for. Amends sec. 509o & 510 of 1954 PA 116 (MCL 168.509o & 168.510).
MI HB6071: Elections: polling places; polling place locations; expand.
MI SB0008: Elections: absent voters; definition of United States Department of Defense verified electronic signature; provide for. Amends 1954 PA 116 (MCL 168.1 – 168.992) by adding sec. 18a.
MI SB0311: Elections: absent voters; electronic return of absentee ballots by military voters using Department of Defense Common Access Cards; allow. Amends sec. 759a of 1954 PA 116 (MCL 168.759a) & adds sec. 18a.
The map below visualizes the concentration of this recent activity across the nation. A darker shade of yellow indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been acted upon in the last week. A lighter shade of yellow indicates a lower number of bills that have been acted upon in the last week.
The big picture
To date, we have tracked 2,520 election-related bills. This represents a marginal decrease as compared to last week’s total (owing to the exclusion of one irrelevant bill). These bills were either introduced this year or crossed over from last year’s legislative sessions.
Legislative status
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of the bills we are tracking. The following status indicators are used:
Introduced: The bill has been pre-filed, introduced, or referred to committee but has not otherwise been acted upon.
Advanced from committee: The bill has received a favorable vote in committee. It has either advanced to another committee or to the floor for a vote.
Passed one chamber: The bill has been approved by one legislative chamber.
Conference committee: Differing versions of the bill have been approved by their respective chambers and a conference committee has been appointed to reconcile the differences.
Passed both chambers: The bill has cleared both chambers of the legislature.
Enacted: The bill has been enacted into law, by gubernatorial action or inaction or veto override.
Vetoed: The bill has been vetoed.
Dead: The bill has been defeated in committee or by floor vote.
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of bills in Democratic and Republican trifectas, respectively.
Concentration of activity
The map below visualizes the concentration of legislative activity across the nation. A darker shade of yellow indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been introduced. A lighter shade of yellow indicates a lower number of relevant bills.
Partisan affiliation of sponsor(s)
The pie chart below visualizes the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors.
The bar chart below visualizes the correlation between the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors and trifecta status (e.g., how many Democratic-sponsored bills were introduced in Democratic trifectas vs. Republican trifectas).
Bills by topic
The chart below presents information on the total number of bills dealing with particular topics. The number listed on the blue portion of each bar indicates the number of Democratic-sponsored bills dealing with the subject in question. The number listed on the red portion of the bar indicates the number of Republican-sponsored bills. The purple and gray portions of the bar indicate the number of bipartisan-sponsored bills and bills with unspecified sponsorship, respectively. Note that the numbers listed here will not, when summed, equal the total number of bills because some bills deal with multiple topics.
Here is our weekly round-up on election-related legislation. In it, you’ll find the following information:
Noteworthy bills: Here, we identify and report on the contents and legislative status of noteworthy bills.
Recent activity: Here, we report on the number of bills acted on within the past week.
The big picture: Here, we look at the bills in the aggregate.
Legislative status: How many bills have been introduced, voted upon, or enacted into law?
Concentration of activity: What states have seen the highest concentration of legislative activity?
Partisan affiliation of sponsorship: How many bills have been sponsored by Democrats vs. Republicans?
Subject: What subjects are most commonly addressed in the bills?
Noteworthy bills
This part of our report highlights recent activity on specific noteworthy bills. A bill is noteworthy if it meets one or more of the following criteria:
It has been enacted into law.
It is poised to be enacted into law.
It is the subject of significant debate in the legislature.
It is the subject of significant commentary by activists, journalists, etc.
Pennsylvania HB143: This bill would make the following changes to state law:
Requires the Department of State to create a monthly process for cross-referencing its database of registered voters with death-record information from local registrars.
Requires that registered electors with death records be removed immediately from the registration database (provided that removal is prohibited within 90 days of an election).
Requires registration officials, upon receiving notice of an address change, to confirm that the elector has moved to another state (if the move is confirmed, then the voter must be removed from the database).
Legislative history: On September 20, the state House approved the bill by unanimous vote. The bill is now pending in the state Senate, where it has been referred to the State Government Committee.
Political context: Pennsylvania has a divided government. Republicans hold majorities in both chambers of the state legislature, but the governor (Tom Wolf) is a Democrat.
Recent activity
Since September 16, 7 bills have been acted on in some way (representing a 56.3 percent decrease as compared to last week’s total of 16 bills). These 7 bills represent 0.3 percent of the 2,521 bills we are tracking. Of these 7 bills, 1 (14.3 percent) is from a state with a Democratic trifecta and 6 (85.7 percent) are from states with divided governments.
The bar chart below compares recent activity on a week-to-week basis over the last eight weeks.
2 bills were introduced (or saw pre-committee action).
Democratic trifectas: 1.
Divided governments: 1.
2 bills advanced from committee (or saw post-committee action).
Divided governments: 2.
3 bills passed one chamber (or saw pre-adoption action in the second chamber).
Divided governments: 3.
The map below visualizes the concentration of this recent activity across the nation. A darker shade of yellow indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been acted upon in the last week. A lighter shade of yellow indicates a lower number of bills that have been acted upon in the last week.
The big picture
To date, we have tracked 2,521 election-related bills. This represents no change as compared to last week’s total. These bills were either introduced this year or crossed over from last year’s legislative sessions.
Legislative status
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of the bills we are tracking. The following status indicators are used:
Introduced: The bill has been pre-filed, introduced, or referred to committee but has not otherwise been acted upon.
Advanced from committee: The bill has received a favorable vote in committee. It has either advanced to another committee or to the floor for a vote.
Passed one chamber: The bill has been approved by one legislative chamber.
Conference committee: Differing versions of the bill have been approved by their respective chambers and a conference committee has been appointed to reconcile the differences.
Passed both chambers: The bill has cleared both chambers of the legislature.
Enacted: The bill has been enacted into law, by gubernatorial action or inaction or veto override.
Vetoed: The bill has been vetoed.
Dead: The bill has been defeated in committee or by floor vote.
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of bills in Democratic and Republican trifectas, respectively.
Concentration of activity
The map below visualizes the concentration of legislative activity across the nation. A darker shade of yellow indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been introduced. A lighter shade of yellow indicates a lower number of relevant bills.
Partisan affiliation of sponsor(s)
The pie chart below visualizes the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors.
The bar chart below visualizes the correlation between the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors and trifecta status (e.g., how many Democratic-sponsored bills were introduced in Democratic trifectas vs. Republican trifectas).
Bills by topic
The chart below presents information on the total number of bills dealing with particular topics. The number listed on the blue portion of each bar indicates the number of Democratic-sponsored bills dealing with the subject in question. The number listed on the red portion of the bar indicates the number of Republican-sponsored bills. The purple and gray portions of the bar indicate the number of bipartisan-sponsored bills and bills with unspecified sponsorship, respectively. Note that the numbers listed here will not, when summed, equal the total number of bills because some bills deal with multiple topics.
Here is our weekly round-up on election-related legislation. In it, you’ll find the following information:
Noteworthy bills: Here, we identify and report on the contents and legislative status of noteworthy bills.
Recent activity: Here, we report on the number of bills acted on within the past week.
The big picture: Here, we look at the bills in the aggregate.
Legislative status: How many bills have been introduced, voted upon, or enacted into law?
Concentration of activity: What states have seen the highest concentration of legislative activity?
Partisan affiliation of sponsorship: How many bills have been sponsored by Democrats vs. Republicans?
Subject: What subjects are most commonly addressed in the bills?
Noteworthy bills
This part of our report highlights recent activity on specific noteworthy bills. A bill is noteworthy if it meets one or more of the following criteria:
It has been enacted into law.
It is poised to be enacted into law.
It is the subject of significant debate in the legislature.
It is the subject of significant commentary by activists, journalists, etc.
California AB2841: This bill requires the clerk of each superior court to notify the Secretary of State each month of findings made by the court regarding a person’s competency to vote and the number of court proceedings related to the determination of a person’s competency to vote. The Secretary of State must send this information to the appropriate county elections official, who must cancel the person’s registration or notify the person that the person’s right to vote has been restored.
Legislative history: On Aug. 29, the state Senate approved the final version of the bill 29-9. On Aug. 30, the state Assembly approved the bill 59-18. The bill was presented to Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on Sept. 9.
Political context: California is a Democratic trifecta, meaning that Democrats control the governorship and majorities in both chambers of the state legislature.
Recent activity
Since September 9, 16 bills have been acted on in some way (representing a 300.0 percent increase as compared to last week’s total of 4 bills). These 16 bills represent 6.3 percent of the 2,521 bills we are tracking. Of these 16 bills, 5 (31.3 percent) are from states with Democratic trifectas and 11 (68.8 percent) are from states with divided governments.
The bar chart below compares recent activity on a week-to-week basis over the last eight weeks.
11 bills were introduced (or saw pre-committee action).
Divided governments: 11.
5 bills passed both chambers (or were acted upon in some way after passing both chambers).
The map below visualizes the concentration of this recent activity across the nation. A darker shade of yellow indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been acted upon in the last week. A lighter shade of yellow indicates a lower number of bills that have been acted upon in the last week.
The big picture
To date, we have tracked 2,521 election-related bills. This represents no change as compared to last week’s total. These bills were either introduced this year or crossed over from last year’s legislative sessions.
Legislative status
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of the bills we are tracking. The following status indicators are used:
Introduced: The bill has been pre-filed, introduced, or referred to committee but has not otherwise been acted upon.
Advanced from committee: The bill has received a favorable vote in committee. It has either advanced to another committee or to the floor for a vote.
Passed one chamber: The bill has been approved by one legislative chamber.
Conference committee: Differing versions of the bill have been approved by their respective chambers and a conference committee has been appointed to reconcile the differences.
Passed both chambers: The bill has cleared both chambers of the legislature.
Enacted: The bill has been enacted into law, by gubernatorial action or inaction or veto override.
Vetoed: The bill has been vetoed.
Dead: The bill has been defeated in committee or by floor vote.
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of bills in Democratic and Republican trifectas, respectively.
Concentration of activity
The map below visualizes the concentration of legislative activity across the nation. A darker shade of yellow indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been introduced. A lighter shade of yellow indicates a lower number of relevant bills.
Partisan affiliation of sponsor(s)
The pie chart below visualizes the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors.
The bar chart below visualizes the correlation between the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors and trifecta status (e.g., how many Democratic-sponsored bills were introduced in Democratic trifectas vs. Republican trifectas).
Bills by topic
The chart below presents information on the total number of bills dealing with particular topics. The number listed on the blue portion of each bar indicates the number of Democratic-sponsored bills dealing with the subject in question. The number listed on the red portion of the bar indicates the number of Republican-sponsored bills. The purple and gray portions of the bar indicate the number of bipartisan-sponsored bills and bills with unspecified sponsorship, respectively. Note that the numbers listed here will not, when summed, equal the total number of bills because some bills deal with multiple topics.
Here is our weekly round-up on election-related legislation. In it, you’ll find the following information:
Noteworthy bills: Here, we identify and report on the contents and legislative status of noteworthy bills.
Recent activity: Here, we report on the number of bills acted on within the past week.
The big picture: Here, we look at the bills in the aggregate.
Legislative status: How many bills have been introduced, voted upon, or enacted into law?
Concentration of activity: What states have seen the highest concentration of legislative activity?
Partisan affiliation of sponsorship: How many bills have been sponsored by Democrats vs. Republicans?
Subject: What subjects are most commonly addressed in the bills?
Noteworthy bills
This part of our report highlights recent activity on specific noteworthy bills. A bill is noteworthy if it meets one or more of the following criteria:
It has been enacted into law.
It is poised to be enacted into law.
It is the subject of significant debate in the legislature.
It is the subject of significant commentary by activists, journalists, etc.
California AB2815: This bill requires counties to provide additional vote-by-mail ballot drop-off locations on the main campus of each California State University within their jurisdictions and, upon request, each University of California campus within their jurisdictions. This bill applies to statewide primary and general elections.
Legislative history: On May 23, the state Assembly passed the final version of the bill by a vote of 54-14. On August 25, the state Senate passed the bill by a vote of 31-8. The bill was presented to Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on September 6.
Political context: California is a Democratic trifecta, meaning that Democrats control the governorship and majorities in both chambers of the state legislature.
Recent activity
Since September 2, 4 bills have been acted on in some way (representing a 42.9 percent decrease as compared to last week’s total of 7 bills). These 4 bills represent 0.2 percent of the 2,521 bills we are tracking. Of these 4 bills, 2 (50 percent) are from states with Democratic trifectas and 2 (50 percent) are from states with divided governments.
The bar chart below compares recent activity on a week-to-week basis over the last eight weeks.
1 bill was introduced (or saw pre-committee action).
1 bill passed one chamber (or saw pre-adoption action in the second chamber).
2 bills passed both chambers (or were acted upon in some way after passing both chambers).
CA AB2815: Elections: vote by mail ballot drop-off locations.
The map below visualizes the concentration of this recent activity across the nation. A darker shade of yellow indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been acted upon in the last week. A lighter shade of yellow indicates a lower number of bills that have been acted upon in the last week.
The big picture
To date, we have tracked 2,521 election-related bills. This represents no change as compared to last week’s total. These bills were either introduced this year or crossed over from last year’s legislative sessions.
Legislative status
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of the bills we are tracking. The following status indicators are used:
Introduced: The bill has been pre-filed, introduced, or referred to committee but has not otherwise been acted upon.
Advanced from committee: The bill has received a favorable vote in committee. It has either advanced to another committee or to the floor for a vote.
Passed one chamber: The bill has been approved by one legislative chamber.
Conference committee: Differing versions of the bill have been approved by their respective chambers and a conference committee has been appointed to reconcile the differences.
Passed both chambers: The bill has cleared both chambers of the legislature.
Enacted: The bill has been enacted into law, by gubernatorial action or inaction or veto override.
Vetoed: The bill has been vetoed.
Dead: The bill has been defeated in committee or by floor vote.
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of bills in Democratic and Republican trifectas, respectively.
Concentration of activity
The map below visualizes the concentration of legislative activity across the nation. A darker shade of yellow indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been introduced. A lighter shade of yellow indicates a lower number of relevant bills.
Partisan affiliation of sponsor(s)
The pie chart below visualizes the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors.
The bar chart below visualizes the correlation between the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors and trifecta status (e.g., how many Democratic-sponsored bills were introduced in Democratic trifectas vs. Republican trifectas).
Bills by topic
The chart below presents information on the total number of bills dealing with particular topics. The number listed on the blue portion of each bar indicates the number of Democratic-sponsored bills dealing with the subject in question. The number listed on the red portion of the bar indicates the number of Republican-sponsored bills. The purple and gray portions of the bar indicate the number of bipartisan-sponsored bills and bills with unspecified sponsorship, respectively. Note that the numbers listed here will not, when summed, equal the total number of bills because some bills deal with multiple topics.
Welcome to The Ballot Bulletin, where we track developments in election policy at the federal, state, and local levels. In this month’s issue:
Federal court rules that Arkansas law limiting voter assistance violates Voting Rights Act
California enacts four election administration bills
Legislation update: Legislation activity in August 2022
Have a question/feedback/or just want to say hello? Respond to this email, or drop me a line directly at Jerrick@Ballotpedia.org.
Federal court rules that Arkansas law imposing limits on voter assistance violates Voting Rights Act
On August 19, Judge Timothy Brooks, of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas, ruled that an Arkansas law imposing a six-person limit on individuals assisting voters violated the federal Voting Rights Act. Brooks barred state and local officials from enforcing the six-person limit.
The law in question
Arkansas Code § 7-5-310 sets out rules related to privacy and voter assistance at polling places. Section 7-5-310(b)(4)(B) says “no person other than [a poll worker or an election official] shall assist more than six voters in marking and casting a ballot at an election.” Section 7-5-310(b)(5) directs poll workers “to make and maintain a list of the names and addresses of all persons assisting voters.”
Section 208 of the Voting Rights Act says “any voter who requires assistance to vote by reason of blindness, disability, or inability to read or write may be given assistance by a person of the voter’s choice, other than the voter’s employer or agent of the voter’s union.”
The parties to the lawsuit and their arguments
The plaintiffs are Arkansas United, a nonprofit whose self-described mission is “to ensure that immigrants in Arkansas have the information and resources they need to become full participants in the state’s economic, political, and social life,” and L. Mireya Reith, the organization’s founder and executive director. The defendants are Arkansas Secretary of State John Thurston (R), the Arkansas State Board of Election Commissioners, and the election officials from Benton, Sebastian, and Washington counties.
The plaintiffs, who offered voting assistance to limited-English proficient voters in the 2020 election, argued that Arkansas Code § 7-5-310 violated § 208 of the Voting Rights Act and should be struck down as a violation of the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
The defendants argued (a) § 208 of the Voting Rights Act does not extend to limited-English proficient voters, and (b), even if it does, the challenged statute does not conflict with § 208 of the Voting Rights Act.
How the court ruled
Brooks ruled:
Section 208 of the Voting Rights Act covers limited-English proficient voters. Brooks wrote, “The plain language of [Section 208] compels this interpretation. … The text does not require the voter’s ‘inability to read or write’ be based on a disability rather than lack of education. The plain text encompasses anyone who cannot read or write the language the voting materials are written in. This squarely includes [limited-English proficient] voters, who lack the ability to read their ballot because they cannot read the English language.”
Section 208 of the Voting Rights Act preempts Arkansas’ six-voter limit: Brooks reasoned that Arkansas’ six-voter limit was “more restrictive” than § 208 of the Voting Rights Act, making “compliance with both … impossible.” Brooks concluded that the six-voter limit “impermissibly narrows the right guaranteed by Section 208.” Brooks also concluded that Arkansas’ six-voter limit “poses an obstacle to Congress’s clear purpose to allow the voter to decide who assists them at the polls.”
Arkansas’ assistor-tracking provision is not preempted by Section 208 of the Voting Rights Act: Brooks said that Arkansas’ assistor-tracking provision was “the type of permissible state legislation contemplated” by Congress when it adopted the Voting Rights Act. Brooks said, “[W]hile the tracking requirement addresses the same topic as § 208, the two statutes can ‘operate harmoniously.'”
Accordingly, Brooks permanently barred state and local officials from enforcing the six-voter limit. However, the state’s assistor-tracking provision remains in effect.
The defendant’s procedural arguments as to the plaintiffs’ standing and defendants’ sovereign immunity, and the court’s response to those arguments, are omitted from this summary.
Brooks was nominated to the bench by Pres. Barack Obama (D) in 2013 and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in 2014
What comes next
Daniel J. Shults, the director of the State Board of Election Commissioners, said, “The purpose of the law in question is to prevent the systematic abuse of the voting assistance process. Having a uniform limitation on the number of voters a third party may assist prevents a bad actor from having unlimited access to voters in the voting booth while ensuring voter’s privacy is protected.”
A representative for Thurston told The New York Times “that [Thurston’s office] was also reviewing the decision and having discussions with the state attorney general’s office about possible next steps.”
California enacts four election administration bills
In August, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed four election-related bills into law.
AB2037: This bill repeals an existing law that prohibits “an establishment where the primary purpose is the sale and dispensation of alcoholic beverages” from being used as a polling place.
AB2577: This bill requires that the secretary of state establish uniform filing forms for candidates to use when filing their declarations of candidacy and nomination papers.
AB2608: This bill makes the following changes to state law:
Requires an elections official to provide a second vote-by-mail ballot to a voter’s representative upon receipt of a written request, signed by the voter under penalty of perjury, stating that the voter failed to receive, lost, or destroyed the original ballot.
Requires the number of registered voters in the jurisdiction where an election is being held to be determined on the 88th day before the election.
Makes administrative changes to the state’s military and overseas voter program..
SB103: This bill requires that presidential electors and alternate electors pledge to cast their electoral ballots for the presidential and vice presidential candidates to whom they are pledged or who are the candidates of the political party that nominated them. This bill provides that any elector who violates this requirement would be automatically removed as an elector. This bill also requires the secretary of state to preside over the meeting of electors.
Legislation update: Legislation activity in August 2022
In August, legislatures in three states took action on 20 election bills.
The chart below identifies the 10 most common policy areas implicated by the bills that state lawmakers acted on in August. The number listed on the blue portion of each bar indicates the number of Democratic-sponsored bills dealing with the subject in question. The number listed on the red portion of the bar indicates the number of Republican-sponsored bills. The purple and gray portions of the bar indicate the number of bipartisan-sponsored bills and bills with unspecified sponsorship, respectively. Note that the total number of bills listed will not equal the total number of enacted bills because some bills deal with multiple subjects.
Democrats sponsored 15 of the 20 bills acted on in August (75%). Republicans sponsored 1 (5%). Bipartisan groups sponsored two (10%). For the remaining two (10%), partisan sponsorship was not specified.
This information comes from Ballotpedia’s Election Administration Legislation Tracker, which went live on June 29. This free and accessible online resource allows you to find easy-to-digest bill tags and summaries—written and curated by our election administration experts! We update our database and bill-tracking daily. Using our powerful interactive search function, you can zero in on more 2,500 bills (and counting) covering these topics:
Absentee/mail-in voting and early voting policies
Ballot access requirements for candidates, parties, and ballot initiatives
Election dates and deadlines
Election oversight protocols
In-person voting procedures
Post-election procedures (including counting, canvassing, and auditing policies)
Voter ID
Voter registration and eligibility
To make your search results more precise, we first place bills into one of 22 parent categories. We then apply to each bill one or more of the 88 tags we’ve developed.
If you don’t want to immerse yourself in the world of election legislation quite that often, we have a free, weekly digest that goes straight to your inbox and keeps you caught up on the week’s developments.
Here is our weekly round-up on election-related legislation. In it, you’ll find the following information:
Noteworthy bills: Here, we identify and report on the contents and legislative status of noteworthy bills.
Recent activity: Here, we report on the number of bills acted on within the past week.
The big picture: Here, we look at the bills in the aggregate.
Legislative status: How many bills have been introduced, voted upon, or enacted into law?
Concentration of activity: What states have seen the highest concentration of legislative activity?
Partisan affiliation of sponsorship: How many bills have been sponsored by Democrats vs. Republicans?
Subject: What subjects are most commonly addressed in the bills?
Noteworthy bills
This part of our report highlights recent activity on specific noteworthy bills. A bill is noteworthy if it meets one or more of the following criteria:
It has been enacted into law.
It is poised to be enacted into law.
It is the subject of significant debate in the legislature.
It is the subject of significant commentary by activists, journalists, etc.
California SB103: This bill requires that presidential electors and alternate electors pledge to cast their electoral ballots for the presidential and vice presidential candidates to whom they are pledged or who are the candidates of the political party that nominated them. This bill provides that any elector who violates this requirement would be automatically removed as an elector. This bill also requires the secretary of state to preside over the meeting of electors.
Legislative history: On April 26, the state Senate approved SB103 unanimously. On August 11, the state Assembly approved the bill, also unanimously. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed SB103 into law on August 29.
Political context: California is a Democratic trifecta, meaning that Democrats control the governorship and majorities in both chambers of the state legislature.
Recent activity
Since August 26, 7 bills have been acted on in some way (representing a 36.4 percent decrease as compared to last week’s total of 11 bills). These 7 bills represent 0.3 percent of the 2,521 bills we are tracking. Of these 7 bills, all 7 (100 percent) are from states with Democratic trifectas.
The bar chart below compares recent activity on a week-to-week basis over the last eight weeks.
6 bills passed both chambers (or were acted upon in some way after passing both chambers).
CA SB103: Uniform Faithful Presidential Electors Act.
The map below visualizes the concentration of this recent activity across the nation. A darker shade of yellow indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been acted upon in the last week. A lighter shade of yellow indicates a lower number of bills that have been acted upon in the last week.
The big picture
To date, we have tracked 2,521 election-related bills. This represents a marginal decrease as compared to last week’s total, owing to the removal of three irrelevant bills. These bills were either introduced this year or crossed over from last year’s legislative sessions.
Legislative status
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of the bills we are tracking. The following status indicators are used:
Introduced: The bill has been pre-filed, introduced, or referred to committee but has not otherwise been acted upon.
Advanced from committee: The bill has received a favorable vote in committee. It has either advanced to another committee or to the floor for a vote.
Passed one chamber: The bill has been approved by one legislative chamber.
Conference committee: Differing versions of the bill have been approved by their respective chambers and a conference committee has been appointed to reconcile the differences.
Passed both chambers: The bill has cleared both chambers of the legislature.
Enacted: The bill has been enacted into law, by gubernatorial action or inaction or veto override.
Vetoed: The bill has been vetoed.
Dead: The bill has been defeated in committee or by floor vote.
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of bills in Democratic and Republican trifectas, respectively.
Concentration of activity
The map below visualizes the concentration of legislative activity across the nation. A darker shade of yellow indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been introduced. A lighter shade of yellow indicates a lower number of relevant bills.
Partisan affiliation of sponsor(s)
The pie chart below visualizes the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors.
The bar chart below visualizes the correlation between the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors and trifecta status (e.g., how many Democratic-sponsored bills were introduced in Democratic trifectas vs. Republican trifectas).
Bills by topic
The chart below presents information on the total number of bills dealing with particular topics. The number listed on the blue portion of each bar indicates the number of Democratic-sponsored bills dealing with the subject in question. The number listed on the red portion of the bar indicates the number of Republican-sponsored bills. The purple and gray portions of the bar indicate the number of bipartisan-sponsored bills and bills with unspecified sponsorship, respectively. Note that the numbers listed here will not, when summed, equal the total number of bills because some bills deal with multiple topics.
Here is our weekly round-up on election-related legislation. In it, you’ll find the following information:
Noteworthy bills: Here, we identify and report on the contents and legislative status of noteworthy bills.
Recent activity: Here, we report on the number of bills acted on within the past week.
The big picture: Here, we look at the bills in the aggregate.
Legislative status: How many bills have been introduced, voted upon, or enacted into law?
Concentration of activity: What states have seen the highest concentration of legislative activity?
Partisan affiliation of sponsorship: How many bills have been sponsored by Democrats vs. Republicans?
Subject: What subjects are most commonly addressed in the bills?
Noteworthy bills
This part of our report highlights recent activity on specific noteworthy bills. A bill is noteworthy if it meets one or more of the following criteria:
It has been enacted into law.
It is poised to be enacted into law.
It is the subject of significant debate in the legislature.
It is the subject of significant commentary by activists, journalists, etc.
California AB2608: This bill makes the following changes to state law:
Requires an elections official to provide a second vote-by-mail ballot to a voter’s representative upon receipt of a written request, signed by the voter under penalty of perjury, stating that the voter failed to receive, lost, or destroyed the original ballot.
Requires the number of registered voters in the jurisdiction where an election is being held to be determined on the 88th day before the election.
Makes administrative changes to the state’s military and overseas voter program.
Legislative history: The state Assembly passed the final version of the bill on May 25 by a vote of 57-19. The state Senate approved the bill on Aug. 17 by a vote of 29-9. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed the bill into law on Aug. 22.
Political context: California is a Democratic trifecta, meaning that Democrats control the governorship and majorities in both chambers of the state legislature.
Recent activity
Since August 19, 11 bills have been acted on in some way (representing no change as compared to last week’s total of 11 bills). These 11 bills represent 0.4 percent of the 2,524 bills we are tracking. Of these 11 bills, all 11 (100 percent) are from states with Democratic trifectas.
The bar chart below compares recent activity on a week-to-week basis over the last eight weeks.
2 bills passed one chamber (or saw pre-adoption action in the second chamber).
Democratic trifectas: 2.
6 bills passed both chambers (or were acted upon in some way after passing both chambers).
Democratic trifectas: 6.
CA AB1848: Redistricting: copies of district maps.
CA AB2967: Elections: petition records and requests: vote-by-mail ballot.
The map below visualizes the concentration of this recent activity across the nation. A darker shade of yellow indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been acted upon in the last week. A lighter shade of yellow indicates a lower number of bills that have been acted upon in the last week.
The big picture
To date, we have tracked 2,524 election-related bills. This represents no change as compared to last week’s total. These bills were either introduced this year or crossed over from last year’s legislative sessions.
Legislative status
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of the bills we are tracking. The following status indicators are used:
Introduced: The bill has been pre-filed, introduced, or referred to committee but has not otherwise been acted upon.
Advanced from committee: The bill has received a favorable vote in committee. It has either advanced to another committee or to the floor for a vote.
Passed one chamber: The bill has been approved by one legislative chamber.
Conference committee: Differing versions of the bill have been approved by their respective chambers and a conference committee has been appointed to reconcile the differences.
Passed both chambers: The bill has cleared both chambers of the legislature.
Enacted: The bill has been enacted into law, by gubernatorial action or inaction or veto override.
Vetoed: The bill has been vetoed.
Dead: The bill has been defeated in committee or by floor vote.
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of bills in Democratic and Republican trifectas, respectively.
Concentration of activity
The map below visualizes the concentration of legislative activity across the nation. A darker shade of yellow indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been introduced. A lighter shade of yellow indicates a lower number of relevant bills.
Partisan affiliation of sponsor(s)
The pie chart below visualizes the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors.
The bar chart below visualizes the correlation between the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors and trifecta status (e.g., how many Democratic-sponsored bills were introduced in Democratic trifectas vs. Republican trifectas).
Bills by topic
The chart below presents information on the total number of bills dealing with particular topics. The number listed on the blue portion of each bar indicates the number of Democratic-sponsored bills dealing with the subject in question. The number listed on the red portion of the bar indicates the number of Republican-sponsored bills. The purple and gray portions of the bar indicate the number of bipartisan-sponsored bills and bills with unspecified sponsorship, respectively. Note that the numbers listed here will not, when summed, equal the total number of bills because some bills deal with multiple topics.
Here is our weekly round-up on election-related legislation. In it, you’ll find the following information:
Noteworthy bills: Here, we identify and report on the contents and legislative status of noteworthy bills.
Recent activity: Here, we report on the number of bills acted on within the past week.
The big picture: Here, we look at the bills in the aggregate.
Legislative status: How many bills have been introduced, voted upon, or enacted into law?
Concentration of activity: What states have seen the highest concentration of legislative activity?
Partisan affiliation of sponsorship: How many bills have been sponsored by Democrats vs. Republicans?
Subject: What subjects are most commonly addressed in the bills?
Noteworthy bills
This part of our report highlights recent activity on specific noteworthy bills. A bill is noteworthy if it meets one or more of the following criteria:
It has been enacted into law.
It is poised to be enacted into law.
It is the subject of significant debate in the legislature.
It is the subject of significant commentary by activists, journalists, etc.
California AB2577: This bill requires that the secretary of state establish uniform filing forms for candidates to use when filing their declarations of candidacy and nomination papers.
Legislative history: The state Senate passed the final version of the bill on June 30 by unanimous vote. The state Assembly approved the final version on August 1, also by unanimous vote. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed AB2577 into law on August 15.
Political context: California is a Democratic trifecta, meaning that Democrats control the governorship and majorities in both chambers of the state legislature.
Recent activity
Since August 12, 11 bills have been acted on in some way (a 15.4 percent decrease as compared to last week’s total of 13 bills). These 11 bills represent 0.4 percent of the 2,524 bills we are tracking. Of these 11 bills, 10 (90.9 percent) are from states with Democratic trifectas and 1 (9.1 percent) was from a state with divided government.
The bar chart below compares recent activity on a week-to-week basis over the last eight weeks.
1 bill was introduced (or saw pre-committee action).
Divided governments: 1.
4 bills passed one chamber (or saw pre-adoption action in the second chamber).
Democratic trifectas: 4.
5 bills passed both chambers (or were acted upon in some way after passing both chambers).
CA AB2577: Elections: state offices: uniform candidate filing system.
The map below visualizes the concentration of this recent activity across the nation. A darker shade of yellow indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been acted upon in the last week. A lighter shade of yellow indicates a lower number of bills that have been acted upon in the last week.
The big picture
To date, we have tracked 2,524 election-related bills. This represents no change as compared to last week’s total. These bills were either introduced this year or crossed over from last year’s legislative sessions.
Legislative status
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of the bills we are tracking. The following status indicators are used:
Introduced: The bill has been pre-filed, introduced, or referred to committee but has not otherwise been acted upon.
Advanced from committee: The bill has received a favorable vote in committee. It has either advanced to another committee or to the floor for a vote.
Passed one chamber: The bill has been approved by one legislative chamber.
Conference committee: Differing versions of the bill have been approved by their respective chambers and a conference committee has been appointed to reconcile the differences.
Passed both chambers: The bill has cleared both chambers of the legislature.
Enacted: The bill has been enacted into law, by gubernatorial action or inaction or veto override.
Vetoed: The bill has been vetoed.
Dead: The bill has been defeated in committee or by floor vote.
The pie charts below visualize the legislative status of bills in Democratic and Republican trifectas, respectively.
Concentration of activity
The map below visualizes the concentration of legislative activity across the nation. A darker shade of yellow indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been introduced. A lighter shade of yellow indicates a lower number of relevant bills.
Partisan affiliation of sponsor(s)
The pie chart below visualizes the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors.
The bar chart below visualizes the correlation between the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors and trifecta status (e.g., how many Democratic-sponsored bills were introduced in Democratic trifectas vs. Republican trifectas).
Bills by topic
The chart below presents information on the total number of bills dealing with particular topics. The number listed on the blue portion of each bar indicates the number of Democratic-sponsored bills dealing with the subject in question. The number listed on the red portion of the bar indicates the number of Republican-sponsored bills. The purple and gray portions of the bar indicate the number of bipartisan-sponsored bills and bills with unspecified sponsorship, respectively. Note that the numbers listed here will not, when summed, equal the total number of bills because some bills deal with multiple topics.
