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
Lichtenstein v. Hargett
Closed
Lichtenstein v. Hargett, No. 3:20-cv-00736 (M.D. Tenn.) |
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| Case Summary | Tennesee law forbids anyone but employees of election commissions from providing absentee ballot applications to any person. The COVID pandemic is anticipated to increase the demand for absentee voting in Tennessee. Plaintiffs engage in voter outreach, including disseminating information about absentee voting. Plaintiff's plan to send applications directly to members and non-members, if allowed. They seek a declaration that the statute forbidding providing absentee ballot applications to any person violates their constitutional right of free speech, and they seek an injunction against the statute's enforcement. | |
| Filed | 08/28/2020 | |
| State | Tennessee | |
| Type of Court | Federal | |
| Circuit | Sixth Circuit | |
| Status | Closed | |
| Last Updated | 02/04/2021 | |
| Issue Tag(s) | Vote-by-Mail (Other Vote-by-Mail Issue) Ban on providing absentee ballot applications to voters. |
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| Complaint(s) | 08/28/2020: Complaint filed. | |
| Dispositive Ruling(s) | 09/23/2020: Order/Ruling, The court denied the plaintifs' motion for a preliminary injunction to enjoin Tenn. Code Ann. ยง 2-6-202(c)(3), which made it a felony for anyone not an employee of an election commission to provide an application for absentee ballot to any person. The Court reasoned that it found nothing that abridged the rights of free speech or association guarenteed by the First and Fourteenth Amendments, cutting sharply against Plaintiff's motion. | |
| 09/25/2020: Order/Ruling | ||
| 10/23/2020: Other, Voluntarily dismissed. | ||
| 10/23/2020: Other, All parties stipulate to the dismissal of all claims, with prejudice and without costs and fees to any party. The dismissal of this case will automatically dissolve the previously entered injunction. | ||
