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
Black Voters Matter Fund v. Raffensperger
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Black Voters Matter Fund v. Raffensperger, No. 1:20-cv-01489 (N.D. Ga.), 2020 WL 2079240 |
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| Case Summary | The ACLU and ACLU of Georgia, on behalf of Black Voters Matter, argued that the requirement by Election officials that Georgia voters supply postage stamps to mail in absentee ballots and absentee ballot applications is tantamount to an unconstitutional poll tax in violation of the 24th & 14th Amendments of the US Constitution, and an unconstitutional burden on their right to vote in violation of the 1st and 14th Amendments to the US Constitution. They argued that because the COVID-19 pandemic has made it unrealistic for most, if not all, voters to cast ballots in-person, the state is essentially forcing voters to pay in order to participate in our democracy. The suit sought a preliminary injunction to require election officials to provide prepaid returnable envelopes for absentee ballots and absentee ballot applications, arguing that election officials already know how to do this, because the law requires them to provide postage prepaid returnable envelopes for other purposes. Plaintiff withdrew this request for the June 2020 election only, and proposed requested injunction/written confirmation that distributing free postage stamps is permissible and 3 alternative remedies to the poll tax: provide free postage stamps/business reply postage for all absentee ballots, create online portal for obtaining prepaid postage, secure drop-off point at each post office. | |
| Filed | 04/08/2020 | |
| State | Georgia | |
| Type of Court | Federal | |
| Circuit | Eleventh Circuit | |
| Status | Active | |
| Last Updated | 09/16/2020 | |
| Issue Tag(s) | Vote-by-Mail (Postage Requirement) | |
| Complaint(s) | 04/08/2020: Complaint filed. | |
| 05/11/2020: Complaint, Amended Complaint. filed. | ||
| 08/28/2020: Complaint filed. | ||
| Dispositive Ruling(s) | 04/30/2020: Order/Ruling, PI denied. Judge rejected a request by voting rights advocates that Georgia officials be required to provide pre-paid postage for absentee ballots and ballot applications. However, the judge emphasized that her ruling only pertained to the state's June 9 primary and held out the possibility that she could reach a different conclusion regarding the Aug. 11 runoff or the November general elections. The ruling also confirms that third parties may provide stamps to voters returning ballots. The alternative remedies were rejected as costly, ineffective, and a source of voter confusion, focusing largely on the short time scale before implementation. Furthermore, the court noted that since some ballots have already been distributed, sending out more would create differential treatment among voters. | |
| 05/15/2020: Order/Ruling, Denied emergency motion on the preliminary injunction for the August runoff and November general elections. Court cited concerns about justiciability as a result of the recent decision Jacobson v. Fla. Sec'y of State. And as these were not fully briefed, and court did not want to rush the decision. Court also noted that it wanted to see how the June 2020 election would play out first. | ||
| 08/11/2020: Order/Ruling, PI denied. Plaintiffs sought preliminary and permanent injunction prohibiting state defendants from requiring that voters affix their own postage for absentee ballots and applications and mandating that state defendants provide prepaid postage returnable envelopes for absentee ballots. The Court determined that plaintiffs have standing to bring claims without class certification. The Court denied PI and granted motion to dismiss with respect to Count I of violation of the 24th Amendment because stamps are not poll taxes under the 24th Amendment. The Court also denied a preliminary injunction with respect to the claim that postage is an unconstitutional burden on the right to vote because Plaintiffs failed to present sufficient evidence at this time to show their burden outweighs the State’s interest. The court left the door open for revisiting this claim with a fuller record after discovery. | ||
| 08/28/2020: Order/Ruling, Judgment entered in favor of defendants and against plaintiffs | ||
| 08/28/2020: Order/Ruling, This final order and judgement is entered in favor of Defendants and against Plaintiffs. The court rejected Plaintiff's argument that the postage requirement is an unconstutitional poll tax. | ||
Black Voters Matter Fund v. Raffensperger, No. 20-13414 (11th Cir.) |
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| Case Summary | In Georgia, mail-in voters must pay their own postage fee when they mail their ballots. Plaintiffs appeal from the district court's dismissal of their claim that these postage fees are unconstitutional. They allege that the postage fees constitute a poll tax, and are unconstitutional under the 24th Amendment and the Equal Protection clause. | |
| Filed | 10/02/2020 | |
| State | Georgia | |
| Type of Court | Federal | |
| Circuit | Eleventh Circuit | |
| Status | Active | |
| Last Updated | 01/20/2021 | |
| Issue Tag(s) | Vote-by-Mail (Postage Requirement) | |
| Complaint(s) | 10/02/2020: Complaint filed. | |
| Dispositive Ruling(s) | 11/05/2020: Appellant Brief | |
