Welcome to The Ballot Bulletin: Ballotpedia’s Weekly Digest on Election Administration. Every Friday, we deliver the latest updates on election policy around the country, including legislative activity, big-picture trends, and recent news.

In today’s issue, you’ll find: 

• Legislative activity: About the bills acted on this week. 
• The big picture: 
  • Legislative status: The number of bills introduced, voted on, or enacted into law.
  • Concentration of activity: The states that have had the most legislative activity.
  • Partisan affiliation of sponsorship: The number of bills that Democrats and Republicans have sponsored. 
• Recent news: Noteworthy developments in election policy at the federal, state, and local levels, including litigation and ballot measures. 

Legislative activity

Since March 10, state legislatures have acted on 379 bills, a 35.6% increase from last week’s 280 bills. Of these, 147 are from states with Democratic trifectas, 208 are from states with Republican trifectas, and 24 are from states with divided governments. These 379 bills represent 20.1% of the 1,889 pieces of legislation we are currently tracking. At this point in 2022, we were tracking 2,288 pieces of legislation. 

The topics with the most activity this week were:

• Ballot access: 50
• Voter registration and list maintenance: 46
• Audits and oversight: 42
• Ballot counting and certification: 41
• Contest-specific procedures (Primary systems, municipal election procedures, recall elections, special election procedures, and other systems unique to a particular election type): 41

300 bills were introduced (or had pre-committee action).

• Democratic trifectas: 128
• Republican trifectas: 160
• Divided governments: 12

16 bills advanced from committee. 

• Democratic trifectas: 7
• Republican trifectas: 8
• Divided governments: 1

45 bills passed one chamber (or had pre-adoption action in the second chamber). 

• Democratic trifectas: 8
• Republican trifectas: 27
• Divided governments: 10

18 bills passed both chambers. Those bills, with their official bill titles, are:

• Democratic trifectas: 4
  • NM SB335: Delay Part Of Local Election Act
  • NM SB180: Election Changes
  • NM SB43: Intimidation Of Election Officials
  • NM HB4: Voting Rights Protections

• Republican trifectas: 13
  • AR HB1461: To Require Legislative Review Of New Federal Election Guidance; And To Amend The Duties Of The Secretary Of State.
  • GA HB532: Pike County; Magistrate Court; chief judge; provide nonpartisan elections
  • ID H0124: Amends existing law to revise provisions regarding accepted voter identification at the polls.
  • IN SB0106: Local powers concerning elections.
  • ND SB2292: Relating to election offenses and election observers; and to provide a penalty.
  • SC H3961: Dorchester School District 2
  • UT SB0043: Public Notice Requirements
  • UT SB0063: Election Candidate Replacement Amendments
  • UT HB0162: Voter Accessibility Amendments
  • UT SB0017: Voting and Voter Residency Amendments
  • UT HB0303: Elections Record Amendments
  • UT HB0037: Voter Signature Verification Amendments
  • UT HB0365: Voter Affiliation Amendments

• Divided governments: 1
  • VA HB2161: Local government; standardization of public notice requirements for certain intended actions.

The big picture

To date, we have tracked 1,889 election-related bills. These bills were either introduced this year or crossed over from last year’s legislative sessions. 

Legislative status 

The pie charts below show 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 on.
• 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: One chamber has approved the bill.
• Conference committee: Chambers have passed differing versions of the bill, 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 on the floor. 

The pie charts below show the legislative status of bills in Democratic and Republican trifectas, respectively. 

Concentration of activity

The map below shows the concentration of legislative activity across the nation.

Partisan affiliation of sponsor(s)

The pie chart below shows the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors.

Bills by topic

The chart below shows the topics of a sample of the 1,889 bills we have tracked this year. 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 sums of the numbers listed do not equal the total number of bills because some bills deal with multiple topics. Click here to see a full list of subject categories. 

Recent news

Minnesota enacts bill on felon voting rights

On March 3, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) signed HF28, a bill allowing convicted felons who have completed their sentences to vote. Walz said, “Minnesotans who have completed time for their offenses and are living, working, and raising families in their communities deserve the right to vote.” State Sen. Warren Limmer (R), who opposed the bill, said, “There are some offenders that have committed heinous crimes against innocent citizens. I don’t think the Senate understands that. Because this bill treats it as a one-size-fits all — all criminals get the same treatment.” Minnesota, which has a Democratic trifecta, joins 21 other states in granting voting rights to individuals convicted of a felony after completion of their sentences. The New Mexico State Legislature passed a similar bill, HF4, on March 13, submitting it to Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D). New Mexico also has a Democratic trifecta. 

North Carolina Supreme Court reconsiders voter ID requirements

On March 15, the North Carolina Supreme Court heard arguments in a case concerning a 2018 law requiring a photo ID to vote. The Southern Coalition for Social Justice filed the lawsuit on behalf of six state residents against the North Carolina Board of Elections, Speaker of the House Timothy K. Moore (R), Senate President Phil Berger (R), state Sen. Ralph Hise (R), and former state Rep. David Lewis, Sr. (R). In December 2022, the court, which had a 4-3 Democratic majority, upheld a lower court’s determination that the law was unconstitutional. After Republicans won both of the state’s supreme court seats up for election in the 2022, gaining a 5-2 majority the court, the justices agreed to re-hear the case. In the most recent hearing, Attorney Paul Brachman, said, “This law does bear more heavily on African American voters because they’re more likely to lack a qualifying ID, more likely to face difficulties acquiring an ID.” The defendants’ attorney Pete Patterson said, “The law does not bespeak discriminatory intent, racially discriminatory intent, to enact a voter ID law that allows everyone to vote.” 

Welcome to The Ballot Bulletin: Ballotpedia’s Weekly Digest on Election Administration. Every Friday, we deliver the latest updates on election policy around the country, including legislative activity, big-picture trends, and recent news.

In today’s issue, you’ll find: 

• Legislative activity: About the bills acted on this week. 
• The big picture: 
  • Legislative status: The number of bills introduced, voted on, or enacted into law.
  • Concentration of activity: The states that have had the most legislative activity.
  • Partisan affiliation of sponsorship: The number of bills that Democrats and Republicans have sponsored. 
• Recent news: Noteworthy developments in election policy at the federal, state, and local levels, including litigation and ballot measures. 

Legislative activity

Since March 3, state legislatures have acted on 264 bills, a 6.4% decrease from last week’s 280 bills. Of these bills, 109 are from states with Democratic trifectas, 118 are from states with Republican trifectas, and 37 are from states with divided governments. These 264 bills represent 14.8% of the 1,773 pieces of legislation we are currently tracking. At this point in 2022, we were tracking 2,252 pieces of legislation. 

The bill topic with the most activity this week was contest-specific procedures (25), a category that includes primary systems, municipal election procedures, recall elections, special election procedures, and other systems unique to a particular election type. Other topics with the most activity included voter registration and list maintenance (24), audits and oversight (23), ballot verification (23), and ballot access (17). 

5 bills were defeated in committee or by floor vote.

• Republican trifectas: 5

185 bills were introduced (or had pre-committee action).

• Democratic trifectas: 97
• Republican trifectas: 69
• Divided governments: 19

12 bills advanced from committee. 

• Democratic trifectas: 3
• Republican trifectas: 9

43 bills passed one chamber (or had pre-adoption action in the second chamber). 

• Democratic trifectas: 5
• Republican trifectas: 21
• Divided governments: 17

15 bills passed both chambers. Those bills, with their official bill titles, are:

• Democratic trifectas: 1
  • NM HB4: Voting Rights Protections
• Republican trifectas: 13
  • AR HB1419: To Create The Ensuring Access For All Arkansans And Voter Protection Act Of 2023; To Amend The Procedure For The Filing Of A Ballot Initiative And Referendum Petition; And To Declare An Emergency.
  • SD HB1123: Authorize school boards to modify the length of terms for members to allow for holding joint elections.
  • SD SB161: Make an appropriation to the Office of the Secretary of State for voter roll maintenance, ballot machines, and election security.
  • SD SB140: Revise certain provisions relating to voter registration.
  • SD SB160: Establish post-election audits.
  • SD HB1124: Modify provisions pertaining to the testing of automatic tabulating equipment.
  • SD SB55: Prohibit ranked-choice voting.
  • SD SB113: Establish and modify provisions related to initiated petitions.
  • SD SB139: Revise provisions qualifications for the purposes of voter registration.
  • SD SJR505: Proposing and submitting to the electors at the next general election an amendment to the Constitution of the State of South Dakota, updating references to certain officeholders and persons.
  • UT HB0365: Voter Affiliation Amendments
  • UT HB0303: Elections Record Amendments

• Divided governments: 1
  • VA HB2161: Local government; standardization of public notice requirements for certain intended actions.

4 bills were enacted. Those bills, with bill titles and summaries, are:

• Democratic trifectas: 3
  • NY S00852: Relates to the accessibility of congressional, senatorial, assembly and election district maps in downloadable digital file formats compatible with geographic information (GIS) software.
    • This bill requires the board of elections to make district maps in a digital format compatible with geographic information system (GIS) software, including shapefile, geodatabase, KML, or other similar vector-based GIS file types.
  • NY S00822: Permits electronic correspondence with regard to determinations on objections to designating petitions, independent nominating petitions, certificates of nomination or ballot access documents upon the consent of the objector.
    • This bill allows state agencies to notify objectors to designating petitions, independent nominating petitions, certificates of nomination, or ballot access documents of the date they will consider the petition through email in addition to overnight mail. 
  • MN HF28: Right to vote restored to individuals convicted of a felony upon completion of any term of incarceration imposed and executed by a court for the offense.
    • This bill restores voting rights to individuals charged or convicted of a felony that are not currently incarcerated.
• Republican trifectas: 1
  • SD SB46: Enhance the penalty for petition circulation perjury.
    • This bill creates additional requirements for filing a petition to initiate an amendment to the state constitution, including requiring a petition circulator to sign a verification form. The bill also makes falsely attesting to petition verification a felony.

The big picture

To date, we have tracked 1,773 election-related bills. These bills were either introduced this year or crossed over from last year’s legislative sessions. 

Legislative status 

The pie charts below show 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 on.
• 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: One chamber has approved the bill.
• Conference committee: Chambers have passed differing versions of the bill, 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 on the floor. 

The pie charts below show the legislative status of bills in Democratic and Republican trifectas, respectively. 

Concentration of activity

The map below shows the concentration of legislative activity across the nation. A darker shade of orange indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been introduced. A lighter shade of orange indicates a lower number of relevant bills. 

Partisan affiliation of sponsor(s)

The pie chart below shows the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors.

Bills by topic

The chart below shows the topics of a sample of the 1,773 bills we have tracked this year. 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 sums of the numbers listed do not equal the total number of bills because some bills deal with multiple topics. Click here to see a full list of subject categories.

Recent news

U.S. Supreme Court requests additional briefs in North Carolina redistricting case 

On March 2, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered both parties in a case involving North Carolina’s congressional district maps to provide additional briefings. North Carolina Republican lawmakers originally submitted an emergency filing with the United States Supreme Court on Feb. 25, 2022, challenging the congressional district boundaries enacted after the 2020 census. In the order, the court requested “supplemental letter briefs addressing the following question: What is the affect on this Court’s jurisdiction under 28 U. S. C. §1257(a)  and Cox Broadcasting Corp. v. Cohn, 420 U. S. 469 (1975), of the North Carolina Supreme Court’s February 3, 2023 order granting rehearing, and any subsequent state court proceedings?” The parties must file the additional briefing simultaneously on or before 2 p.m., Monday, March 20.

Three more states withdraw from voter data organization

Missouri, Florida, and West Virginia withdrew from the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC) on March 6. Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft (R) said the state was withdrawing because ERIC would not “require member states to participate in addressing multi-state voter fraud.” West Virginia Secretary of State Mac Warner (R) said, “It truly is a shame that an organization founded on the principle of nonpartisanship would allow the opportunity for partisanship to stray the organization from the equally important principle of upholding the public’s confidence.” ERIC Executive Director Shane Hamlin said, “ERIC is never connected to any state’s voter registration system. Members retain complete control over their voter rolls and they use the reports we provide in ways that comply with federal and state laws.” Hamlin also said ERIC “follow[s] widely accepted security protocols for handling the data we utilize to create the reports.” The announcements follow withdrawals by Alabama and Louisiana in January of 2023 and 2022, respectively. According to its website, ERIC is a nonprofit organization of member-states who share information like voter registration and motor vehicle registration records in order to improve the accuracy of each state’s voter rolls. Twenty-eight states and Washington, D.C. remain members of ERIC.

Welcome to The Ballot Bulletin: Ballotpedia’s Weekly Digest on Election Administration. Every Friday, we deliver the latest updates on election policy around the country, including legislative activity, big-picture trends, and recent news.

In today’s issue, you’ll find: 

• Legislative activity: About the bills acted on this week. 
• The big picture: 
  • Legislative status: The number of bills introduced, voted on, or enacted into law.
  • Concentration of activity: The states that have seen the most legislative activity.
  • Partisan affiliation of sponsorship: The number of bills that Democrats and Republicans have sponsored. 
• Recent news: Noteworthy developments in election policy at the federal, state, and local levels, including litigation and ballot measures. 

Legislative activity

Since Feb. 3, state legislatures have acted on 351 bills, a 9% increase from last week’s 322 bills. These 351 bills represent 25.7% of the 1,366 pieces of legislation we are currently tracking this year. Ninety-eight of these bills are from states with Democratic trifectas, 178 are from states with Republican trifectas, and 75 are from states with a divided government.

One bill was defeated in committee or by floor vote.

• Republican trifectas: 1

295 bills were introduced (or saw pre-committee action).

• Democratic trifectas: 89
• Republican trifectas: 147
• Divided governments: 59

19 bills advanced from committee. 

• Democratic trifectas: 5
• Republican trifectas: 4
• Divided governments: 10

34 bills passed one chamber (or had pre-adoption action in the second chamber). 

• Democratic trifectas: 4
• Republican trifectas: 24
• Divided governments: 6

Two bills passed both chambers. Those bills, with their official bill titles, are:

• Republican trifectas: 2
  • SD HB1057: Allow for the appointment of county coroner by all counties.
  • SD HB1062: Clarify the convening of recount boards for primary elections.

The big picture

To date, we have tracked 1,366 election-related bills. These bills were either introduced this year or crossed over from last year’s legislative sessions. 

Legislative status 

The pie charts below show 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 on.
• 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: One chamber has approved the bill.
• Conference committee: Chambers have passed differing versions of the bill, 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 on the floor. 

The pie charts below show the legislative status of bills in Democratic and Republican trifectas, respectively. 

Concentration of activity

The map below shows the concentration of legislative activity across the nation. A darker shade of orange indicates a higher number of relevant bills that have been introduced. A lighter shade of orange indicates a lower number of relevant bills. 

Partisan affiliation of sponsor(s)

The pie chart below shows the partisan affiliation of bill sponsors.

Bills by topic

The chart below shows the topics of a sample of the 1,366 bills we have tracked this year. 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 sums of the numbers listed do not equal the total number of bills because some bills deal with multiple topics.

Recent news

Court settlement prompts changes to Indiana absentee voting regulations

On Feb. 6, parties in a lawsuit seeking accommodations for voters with visual disabilities settled, allowing these voters to use a computer software program to complete their ballot and submit it via email. Attorneys acting on behalf of three Indiana voters with visual disabilities sued the Indiana Election Commission and the Indiana Secretary of State in December 2020 in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana. Before the settlement, Indiana voting regulations required voters with visual disabilities to fill out absentee ballots with the assistance of county election officials. As part of the settlement, the new software system will be available to voters in advance of the May 2023 primary election.

South Dakota bill would prohibit ranked-choice voting

On Feb. 2, the South Dakota Senate passed SB55, a bill that would prohibit ranked-choice voting in the state. State Sen. John Wiik (R) introduced the bill on Jan. 11, and the bill cleared the Senate State Affairs committee on Feb. 1. Although South Dakota does not currently use ranked-choice voting, the bill would prohibit it from ever being implemented.  The bill is currently in the House State Affairs committee. 

Future of photo ID bill in Pennsylvania lies with Democratic majority in the state House

The Pennsylvania state Senate passed SB1 on Jan. 11, a bill proposing a constitutional amendment to require photo identification from all voters. The bill needs majority support in the state House in order to move forward. In November 2022, Democrats won a 102-101 majority in the state House, gaining majority control for the first time since 2010. However, three Democratic-held districts became vacant after the election, giving Republicans a functional 101-99 majority when the legislative session began in January 2023. On Feb. 7, Democrats won all three special elections held to fill these vacancies. Joe McAndrew (D) won in District 32, Abigail Salisbury (D) won in District 34, and Matthew Gergely (D) won in District 35. House Speaker Mark Rozzi (D) and other House Democrats have expressed opposition to the voter ID amendment.

Welcome to The Ballot Bulletin, where we track developments in election policy at the federal, state, and local levels. 

This is the final monthly edition of The Ballot Bulletin. Starting February 3, this newsletter will be sent weekly on Fridays, featuring several new charts and visuals of the latest bills and legislative activity from Ballotpedia’s Election Administration Legislation Tracker. Each week, we’ll give you the latest on noteworthy election-related bills in state legislatures, recent bill activity, and a look at the big picture—how many bills have been signed into law? By members of which political party? And more.

But, in today’s issue:

1. Ohio governor signs bill amending election laws
2. Thirteen election bills advance in state legislatures
3. Legislation update: Activity in January 2023

Have a question/feedback/or just want to say hello? Respond to this email!

Ohio governor signs bill amending election laws

On Jan. 6, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine (R) signed HB458, a bill requiring voters to show an unexpired photo ID in order to cast a ballot. The bill also eliminates August special elections, prohibits curbside voting, and limits ballot drop boxes to one per county.

Ohio State Rep. Thomas Hall (R) introduced HB458 on Oct. 19, 2021. The House passed the bill 67-22 on Dec. 9. In the Senate, the bill was referred to the Local Government and Elections Committee, where State Sen. Theresa Gavarone (R) proposed an amendment adding voter identification requirements to the bill. The committee reported the bill favorably on Dec. 13, 2022, and the full Senate passed the amended bill 24-7 on the same day.

“Elections integrity is a significant concern to Americans on both sides of the aisle across the country, DeWine said. “At the same time, I have long believed that Ohio does a good job of administering elections, as we have provided ample opportunities to cast votes while avoiding the problems we have seen in recent federal elections in other states,” DeWine said.  Gavarone, who proposed the voter identification amendment, said, “You need a photo ID to do an awful lot of different things: to get a job, to rent an apartment. We want to encourage people to vote, but on top of that, we want to give people that extra layer of confidence that we’re doing things right here in Ohio.”

Ohio Democratic Party Chair Liz Walters said, “Ohio Republicans know that their out-of-touch agenda and anti-worker policies are betraying Ohio voters, and they don’t want to be held accountable. So they’re further rigging the rules in their favor and pushing one of the worst anti-voter bills in the entire country all so that they can keep lining the pockets of their corporate donors and leave working families in Ohio out to dry.” All Voting is Local Ohio State Director Kayla Griffin said, “We will witness – and many of us will experience –  extreme barriers to the ballot and disenfranchisement. It is going to take an all hands on deck approach to help voters understand what is happening.” The organization, which says it “exists to expose and dismantle threats to voter freedom,” said the bill was “undemocratic and erects extreme barriers to the ballot.”

Ohio law previously permitted non-photo identification as proof of identity when voting. Non-photo IDs including utility bills, bank statements, or government checks were allowed, but voters must now present an Ohio driver’s license, state identification card, passport, military ID, or state-issued interim identification form.

Ohio has had a Republican trifecta since 2011, meaning the Republican Party holds the governorship and majorities in both chambers of the Legislature. After the 2022 election, Republicans have a 26-7 majority in the Ohio Senate and a 67-32 majority in the Ohio House of Representatives.

Thirteen election bills advance in state legislatures

Of the election-related bills active in 2023, 13 bills in eight states have passed one chamber of their respective state legislatures. 

Three bill are in states with Democratic trifectas:

• NJ S856: Allows county boards of elections to begin canvassing early votes cast during the early voting period.
• NJ A3915: Requires the state to pay for a new election if the state made errors during the initial election.
• NJ S1436: Prohibits electioneering from taking place within 25 feet of anyone waiting in line either at a polling location or ballot drop box. 

Seven bills are in states with Republican trifectas:

• AR HB1105: Allows use of funds appropriated for election expenses to cover the expenses of the State Board of Election Commissioners and any county board of election commissioners to conduct certain elections. 
• MT SB10: Provides that school district trustees must submit finance propositions to voters. 
• ND HB1038: Requires voter approval for increases in city mill levies. 
• ND SB2050: Allows political subdivisions to establish a library without an election.
• WY HB0047: Requires a vendor to apply with the secretary of state for certification of an electronic voting system.
• WY SF0086: Would make a valid concealed firearm permit an acceptable form of voting identification.
• UT SB0043: Modifies public notice requirements for elections and election-related events.

Three bills are in states with divided governments:

• PA SB1: Modifies voter identification requirements.
• VA SB391: Allows local governments to petition the circuit court for a referendum on the question of whether marijuana establishments should be prohibited.
• VA SB495: Allows recall referendums to be used to remove certain  elected and appointed officials.

Legislation update: Legislation activity in January 2023

During January 2023, legislatures in 38 states took action on 696 election bills.

Democrats sponsored 277 of the 696 bills addressed in January (39.8%). Republicans sponsored 318 (45.7%). Bipartisan groups sponsored 31 (4.5%). Partisan sponsorship information was unavailable for the remainder of the bills. 

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 than 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 90 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.

Welcome to The Ballot Bulletin, where we track developments in election policy at the federal, state, and local levels. In this month’s issue:

1. Election-related ballot measures in the 2022 general election
2. New York State Legislature passes two election bills
3. Legislation update: Legislation activity in November 2022

Have a question/feedback/or just want to say hello? Respond to this email!

States approve measures on voting requirements, state initiative processes

Eleven election-related ballot measures appeared on the ballot in 10 states on Nov. 8, and voters in Louisiana decided on an election-related initiative on Dec. 10. Seven of the measures concerned voting policy, with voters approving measures on issues such as ranked-choice voting, early voting, and voter eligibility. One state approved a voter ID requirement, while another state rejected a similar requirement. 

Five measures related to citizen-initiated ballot measure processes. Voters approved three measures requiring single subjects for ballot initiatives, requiring a three-fifths vote for citizen-initiated measures, and mandating that initiatives include information on how they would affect the amount of income tax owed by taxpayers. Another measure requiring a three-fifths vote failed to gain approval, as did a measure allowing a state legislature to repeal a voter-approved ballot initiative.

Below are summaries of the seven ballot measures on voting-related policies, followed by the five on citizen-initiated ballot measures.

Voters approve ranked-choice and early voting measures, Arizonans reject voter ID requirement

Voters approved six of seven ballot measures to change voting-related policies.

Nevadans approved an initiative to use ranked-choice voting for certain state offices 52.94% to 47.06%. Nevada Question 3 establishes open top-five primaries and ranked-choice voting for congressional, gubernatorial, state executive official, and state legislative general elections. 

Connecticut, one of five states without some form of early voting, approved Question 1, a constitutional amendment allowing the Connecticut General Assembly to pass laws providing for in-person early voting. The measure passed 60.53% to 39.47%. 

In Michigan, voters approved an initiated constitutional amendment, Proposal 2, 59.99% to 40.01%. Proposal 2 establishes various voting policies as rights in the Michigan Constitution, such as requiring nine days of early voting, requiring the state to fund prepaid stamps and a system for tracking absentee ballots, and establishing that people have a right to vote without harassment, interference, or intimidation.

In Arizona and Nebraska, voters decided on ballot measures to require or alter voter identification requirements. Arizona voters rejected Proposition 309, which would have required voters’ date of birth and voter identification number for mail-in ballots and eliminated the two-document alternative to photo ID for in-person voting, by a margin of 0.76%. 

In Nebraska, voters approved Initiative 432 65.45% to 34.55%. The measure requires valid photo identification in order to vote and authorizes the state legislature to pass laws to specify the photo identification requirements.  

Voters in Ohio approved Issue 2, a constitutional amendment to prohibit local governments from allowing anyone lacking the qualifications of an elector, including citizenship, to vote. The measure passed 76.90% to 23.10%.

Louisiana also passed a similar amendment, Amendment 1, on Dec. 10. Voters approved the measure 73.44% to 26.56%.

Changes to state initiative processes win in three states, three-fifths vote and legislative repeal measures defeated

Voters in Arizona, Arkansas, and Colorado decided on five legislative proposals to change citizen-initiated ballot measure processes this year. Three of these proposals were approved. 

In Arizona, voters approved two out of three constitutional amendments related to ballot measures. Proposition 129 (approved 55.23% to 44.77%), creates a single-subject rule for ballot initiatives, adding Arizona the other 16 other states with a single-subject rule. Proposition 132 (approved 50.72% to 49.28%) requires a 60% vote for voters to pass ballot measures to approve taxes. Proposition 128, which would have allowed the legislature to repeal a voter-approved ballot initiative following a state or federal supreme court order striking down a portion of the initiative, was defeated 63.60% to 36.40%.  

In Arkansas, voters rejected Issue 2, a constitutional amendment requiring a 60% supermajority vote of approval from voters to adopt constitutional amendments (legislatively referred and citizen-initiated) and citizen-initiated state statutes. The measure failed 59.12% to 40.88%.

In Colorado, voters approved Proposition GG, a proposal requiring a table showing changes in income tax owed for average taxpayers in certain brackets to be included in the ballot title for initiated measures. The measure passed 71.92% to 28.08%.

New York State Legislature passes two election bills

On Dec. 12, the New York State Legislature delivered two election-related bills to Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) after both chambers of the legislature approved the bills earlier this year. Assembly Bill A04261 standardizes the objection process for ballot access documents, while Senate Bill S02951 amends the state’s deadlines for the mailing and receipt of voter registration applications. 

• A04261: This bill standardizes the objection process for designating petitions, independent nominating petitions, certificates of nomination, and ballot access documents at the state level by prohibiting local boards of elections from enacting their own objection processes. 
  • Final state Senate vote (May 24): 49-12 (41 Democrats and eight Republicans in favor).
  • Final state Assembly vote (May 23): 145-0 (103 Democrats and 42 Republicans in favor).
• S02951: This bill reduces the time for mailing and receipt of voter registration applications to the constitutional minimum of fifteen days before the next primary, general, or special election. Applications must be received no later than the tenth day before such elections.
  • Final state Senate vote (May 31): 44-19 (43 Democrats and one Republican in favor).
  • Final state Assembly vote (June 3): 102-41 (102 Democrats in favor).

Legislation update: Legislation activity in November 2022

In November, legislatures in seven states took action on 11 election bills.

The chart below identifies the 10 most common policy areas of bills lawmakers addressed in November. 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.

Democrats sponsored five of the 11 bills addressed in November (45.5%). Republicans sponsored five (45.5%). Bipartisan groups sponsored one (9%). 

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 than 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.

Welcome to The Ballot Bulletin, where we track developments in election policy at the federal, state, and local levels. In this month’s issue:

1. Pennsylvania Supreme Court rules on absentee ballots
2. New York enacts election administration bill
3. Legislation update: Legislation activity in October 2022

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Pennsylvania Supreme Court rules on absentee ballots

On Nov. 1, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court issued a ruling ordering local officials not to count any ballots mailed inside undated or incorrectly dated envelopes in this year’s general election. The ruling requires officials to set these ballots aside and retain them pending a review of the date requirement’s validity.  

The law in question

Pennsylvania Code 25 P.S. § 3146.6 regulates procedures for absentee voting. Section § 3146.6 (a) requires voters to place absentee ballots into an envelope “on which is printed the form of declaration of the elector, and the address of the elector’s county board of election and the local election district of the elector.” Voters “shall then fill out, date and sign the declaration printed on such envelope.” 

The parties to the lawsuit and their arguments

The plaintiffs in the case included the Republican National Committee, the National Republican Congressional Committee, and the Republican Party of Pennsylvania. The defendants were Pennsylvania Secretary of State Leigh Chapman (D) and the boards of elections in all 67 Pennsylvania counties. 

In an Oct. 16 filing, the plaintiffs alleged the “straightforward mandate that any voter who uses an absentee or mail-in ballot ‘shall . . . fill out, date and sign the declaration’ is valid under state and federal law.” The plaintiffs asked the court to prohibit county boards of elections from counting any undated or incorrectly dated absentee or mail-in ballot and to segregate these ballots from others. 

The plaintiffs said:

• The court had already ruled “the date requirement is mandatory, and any ballot that does not comply with it may not be counted in any election after the 2020 general election.”
• A federal materiality provision, which prevents denial of the right to vote based on errors or omissions if those errors are not material in determining a voter’s eligibility, does not preempt state enforcement of a date requirement. The “[a]pplication of these rules does not deny the right to vote,” is not relevant to whether an elector is qualified to vote, and “casting a ballot constitutes the act of voting, not an application, registration, or other act requisite to voting.”
• Secretary of State Chapman’s guidelines directing counties to count undated ballots “are not binding on the county boards of elections.”
• Segregation of undated ballots is necessary because “a county board of elections that counts undated or incorrectly dated ballots cannot remove non-compliant ballots from its certified election results if this Court upholds the General Assembly’s date requirement.”

In an Oct. 19 response to the filing, Chapman said, “Commonwealth and federal courts have held three times that a timely received absentee or mail-in ballot cannot be set aside merely because the voter neglected to hand write an inconsequential date on the return envelope.” Chapman’s attorney said the plaintiffs’ argument was “a position that has no legal support, that has never been considered by any court and that, in any event, would be impossible to implement because county boards have no means of determining the ‘correct’ date.”

Chapman said: 

• A ruling in favor of the plaintiffs would “upset the interests of all voters” who had already applied for or submitted an absentee ballot.
• Provisions in the state’s election code “all confirm that omitting a handwritten date from the declaration of a voter’s ballot return envelope is not a disqualifying defect.”
• Even if the court determined a date was required under state law, “federal law still prohibits county boards from setting aside a ballot on the basis that the voter omitted a date from the return envelope’s declaration.”

How the court ruled

In its Nov. 1 order, the court ordered election officials not to count any undated or incorrectly dated absentee and mail-in ballots. In the unsigned order, the court said: “The Pennsylvania county boards of elections are hereby ORDERED to refrain from counting any absentee and mail-in ballots received for the November 8, 2022 general election that are contained in undated or incorrectly dated outer envelopes.” The court cited § 3146.6(a) of the Pennsylvania code as the basis for the order. 

The court split 3-3 on whether not counting undated absentee ballots would violate federal law. Chief Justice Debra Todd (D) and Justices Christine Donohue (D) and David Wecht (D) considered the exclusion of undated ballots a violation of federal law, while Justices Kevin M. Dougherty (D), Sallie Mundy (R), and Kevin Brobson (R) did not. 

In a supplemental order the court released on Nov. 5, it clarified that “incorrectly dated outer envelopes” are defined as “(1) mail-in ballot outer envelopes with dates that fall outside the date range of September 19, 2022, through November 8, 2022; and (2) absentee ballot outer envelopes with dates that fall outside the date range of August 30, 2022, through

November 8, 2022.”

What comes next

Lt. Gov. John Fetterman (D), the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania on Nov. 7 asking the court to overturn the state court’s decision and count undated ballots. The plaintiff’s attorneys said, “The Date Instruction imposes unnecessary hurdles that eligible Pennsylvanians must clear to exercise their most fundamental right, resulting in otherwise valid votes being arbitrarily rejected without any reciprocal benefit to the Commonwealth.”

New York enacts election administration bill

On Oct. 18, Gov.  Kathy Hochul (D) signed into law a bill modifying New York’s election administration laws.

• A07748: This bill amends Section 5-508 of the state election laws to allow voting registration records for victims of sex offenses and crimes under Article 130 of the penal law to remain confidential. Victims must sign a written statement affirming they were a victim of a crime and that, because of the threat of physical or emotional harm, their registration record needs to be kept confidential.
  • Final state Senate vote (May 31): 63-0 (43 Democrats and 20 Republicans in favor).
  • Final state House vote (May 18): 138-0 (99 Democrats and 39 Republicans in favor).

Legislation update: Legislation activity in October 2022

In October, legislatures in five states took action on 12 election bills.

The chart below identifies the 10 most common policy areas of bills lawmakers addressed in October. 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 two of the 12 bills acted on in October (17%). Republicans sponsored 4 (33%). Bipartisan groups sponsored six (50%). 

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 than 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.