This database consolidates and tracks litigation concerning the effect of the pandemic on election law. The purpose of this tool is to provide an interactive list of relevant cases that can be searched by issue, court, status, and jurisdiction.
Case Details
American Women v. Missouri
Closed
American Women v. Missouri, No. 20AC-CC00333 (Mo. Cir. Ct., Cole Cnty.) |
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| Case Summary | After the Missouri officials realized the pandemic would affect the November 3 election, they passed a new bill loosening many of its previous requirements, but only for some voters and not others. These plaintiffs challenge five restrictions that either remain after or were imposed by these rule changes: (1) application of the notarization requirement to some voters but not others; (2) the election day receipt requirement; (3) the ban on ballot collection; (4) the "inconsistent and indiscriminate evaluation criteria" used to determine whether a ballot is valid or will be rejected; and (5) a requirement that some absentee voters must return their ballots by mail, while others may return them in person. In addition to challenging all restrictions under the Right of Suffrage and Equal Protection provisions of the Missouri Constitution, the plaintiffs also challenge the Election Day Deadline under the Procedural Due Process Clause of the Missouri Constitution, and the Ballot Collection Ban under the Freedom of Speech Clause of the Missouri Constitution. | |
| Filed | 08/20/2020 | |
| State | Missouri | |
| Type of Court | State | |
| Status | Closed () | |
| Last Updated | 11/10/2020 | |
| Issue Tag(s) | Vote-by-Mail (Witness and/or Notary Requirement, Mail Voting Deadlines (for Applying, Receiving, Postmark), Signature Verification Standards, Restriction on Assistance or Collection of Mail Ballots for Return, Other Vote-by-Mail Issue) New Missouri rule requires some absentee ballots to only be returned by mail, even though others can return in person |
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| Complaint(s) | 08/20/2020: Complaint filed. | |
| Dispositive Ruling(s) | 10/22/2020: Other, The court held that, with respect to the allegation that Missouri's absentee ballot provision violates the right to vote, the Missouri Supreme Court’s recent decision in NAACP v. State answered this in the negative. The court further held that there was no equal protection violation, since "there is no fundamental right to vote by absentee or mail-in ballot." | |
