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Fighting Voter Suppression

Coalition of Voting Rights, Civil Rights, and Racial Justice Groups File Brief in Federal Appeal Challenging Mississippi’s “Jim Crow” Lifetime Felony Disenfranchisement Law (Press Release)

JACKSON, Miss. — The League of Women Voters of the US, the League of Women Voters of Mississippi, the Mississippi Center for Justice, One Voice, Mississippi Votes, Mississippi State Conference of the NAACP, Black Voters Matter, Mississippi Poor People’s Campaign, Reaching and Educating for Community Hope (RECH) Foundation, Strong Arms of Mississippi, Mississippi Prison Reform Coalition, People’s Advocacy Institute, and the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, filed an amicus brief late Wednesday in Hopkins v. Watson, urging the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit to declare Mississippi’s lifetime felony disenfranchisement law — Section 241 — cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment to the US Constitution. The groups are represented by pro bono attorneys Matthew Sloan, Lauren Aguiar, Shaud Tavakoli, Daniel Bleiberg, Andrew Karp, and Kathleen Shelton. 

 

Legal organizations demand answers form Hinds County over ballot shortage issues (News Clips)

This story was originally published in Mississippi Today.

A coalition of civic and legal organizations on Thursday called for the Hinds County Election Commission to provide clear answers to voters on why numerous voting precincts in the state’s most populous county ran out of ballots during the Nov. 7 election. 

The group, which includes organizations like Mississippi Votes and the League of Women Voters, told the media that some of the consortium’s representatives have attempted to schedule a meeting with the election commissioners, but the county rejected that request. 

LWVTN, Tennessee Voters File Federal Lawsuit Challenging State “Bona Fide” Primary Voting Law (Press Release)

NASHVILLE – The League of Women Voters of Tennessee and Tennessee voters Victor Ashe and Phil Lawson filed a federal lawsuit today challenging state laws that require voters to be “bona fide” members of a political party to vote in the state’s open primary elections. Plaintiffs argue that the laws create confusion and intimidation because voters in Tennessee do not register with a party and there is no way to determine what “bona fide” means. The plaintiffs are represented by the law firms Sherrard Roe Voigt & Harbison, Baker Donelson and Sidley Austin LLP, and Protect Democracy. 

Pa. counties must accept undated, incorrectly dated mail ballots federal court rules (News Clips)

This story was originally published in Votebeat.

Plaintiffs including the NAACP and League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania applauded the ruling.

LWV Statement on Appeals Court Ruling to Undermine the Voting Rights Act (Press Release)

The League of Women Voters of the United States issued the following statement after the Eighth Circuit of Appeals ruled there is no “private right of action” for Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.

State League of Women Voters condemn election office interferences (News Clips)

This story was originally published in the Kirkland Reporter.

The president of the Seattle-based League of Women Voters of Washington called the substances sent to several election offices in Washington “an attack on democracy.”

 

Ballot shortages in Mississippi created a problem for democracy on the day of a governor's election (News Clips)

This story was originally published in Associated Press.

Voting rights activists plan to meet next week to discuss legal recourse around restoring fair access to ballots, said Debbie Pantenburg, spokesperson for the nonpartisan League of Women Voters of Mississippi.

“Our membership is outraged that the lack of ballots happened in a historically underrepresented region of our state,” Pantenburg said.

She said the league wants Watson to investigate and publish a report detailing how the problems happened.

Pro-democracy groups plan to monitor Shasta County election (News Clips)

This story was originally published by Public News Service.

Dora Rose, deputy director of the League of Women Voters of California, will be in Shasta County for the vote. She condemned the county's attempt to get rid of voting machines and spread fear about potential voter fraud.
 

Virginia Admitted to Wrongfully Removing 3,400 Voters. Can It Recover Ahead of Pivotal Elections? (News Clips)

This story was originally published in Mother Jones.

“How can you figure out how many people will not vote because they’re too afraid to go to the polls? There’s no way to get that number,” Joan Porte, president of the League of Women Voters of Virginia, told Mother Jones. Port also cited the inability to know with certainty how many people were receiving notifications that their rights had been restored in time for Election Day.

Maine lawmakers, gun safety groups call for assault weapons ban (News Clips)

This story was originally published by Public News Service.

"It's going to take that kind of courage from our political leaders," said Kellar, "but I think it's what their constituents are really looking for from them in a moment like this, is to do that soul searching and take a stand when they need to."