Hello, pro-democracy readers! Many of President Donald Trump’s anti-voting plans have been blocked in court, but threats remain. Reporter Jim Saksa dives into the unresolved cases you need to know about as the midterm elections kick off.
All that and more is on the docket today. See you tomorrow!
As Election Day nears, these federal cases could still impact access to the ballot
While many of the Trump administration’s voter suppression schemes have been blocked by courts, there are plenty of legal fights — including law enforcement at the polls, a massive election monitoring plan by the Department of Justice (DOJ), and an attempt to create a national “citizenship list” — that are still unresolved and could affect access to the ballot for voters this fall.
Trump administration threatens to sue California over alleged noncitizens on rolls, but cites no clear legal authority
A DOJ spokesperson confirmed to Democracy Docket that the department “has sent letters to California election officials demanding immediate action to ensure that noncitizens do not vote in the upcoming federal election.”
However, in letters reviewed by Democracy Docket, the department cites no clear legal authority for ordering state and local election officials to take those steps.
While pushing back on the DOJ’s demand, the Los Angeles County Registrar noted that it didn’t access a USB drive containing the federal list because it would conflict with the county’s data privacy and information security protocols, as it is not a secure medium.
“The letter included a USB drive purportedly containing the referenced records, along with a handwritten note providing a password,” Logan said. “We have not accessed the drive because doing so would conflict with established data privacy and information security protocols. We do not consider the device a secure medium.”
Senate Dems will send over 100 election observers to nine states for midterms
In a first-of-its-kind program for the upper chamber of Congress, observers will be trained and on the ground to document voter interference efforts, threats against election workers, disinformation tactics and any other attempts to meddle with voting on Election Day and during the post-election period.
Georgia Supreme Court skeptical of GOP bid to force election deniers onto Fulton County board
Last year, the county’s Board of Commissioners voted 5-2 to reject two Republican nominees who are longstanding election deniers. In response, the Fulton County Republican Party sued, arguing the board had violated state law by rejecting their nominations.
New Jersey judge allows GOP-led probe targeting Democratic voters to proceed
In a loss for voters, a New Jersey judge refused to halt a county’s investigation into dozens of Democratic and unaffiliated voters ahead of the midterms, allowing election officials to continue the GOP-led process and potentially flag voters for additional scrutiny at the polls.
However, the court also made it clear that the Ocean County Board of Elections cannot use the process to purge any voters from the rolls or make a final determination that they are ineligible to vote.
ICYMI: More than 1,000 North Carolina voters are getting letters questioning their citizenship
If you missed our story yesterday about North Carolina's election board sending letters to over 1,000 state voters who were flagged as potential noncitizens through a faulty federal database, video journalist Emily Gross breaks it all down for you.
Here we share noteworthy briefs on all things voting rights and democracy. Have a footnote for us? Send it to newsletters@democracydocket.com.
Senate candidate James Talarico (D) got in a sick burn on his opponent, election denier Ken Paxton (R), after reports came out that he partied in Dubai with two fugitives wanted by the Justice Department: “A party with multiple fugitives and Ken Paxton is still the sketchiest guy in the room.”
Rep. Andy Harris (R) had a back-and-forth with a reporter about recording in public. He clearly doesn’t understand how the law works. (Seriously, it’s a wild video and it’s worth watching).
This is where the *pretends to be shocked* meme would come in handy. Apparently Trump has backed out of a deposition for the defamation suit he brought against the BBC.
Today's newsletter was edited by Sally Holtgrieve and Dave O’Brien, and produced by Leila Fusenig. Learn more about our staff here.
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