COVID-Related Election Litigation Tracker

Case Details

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

 

Ward v. Jackson

Closed

Ward v. Jackson, No. CV2020-015285 (Ariz. Super. Ct., Maricopa Cnty.)

  Case Summary Plaintiff, an Arizona voter, alleges that poll workers were not fit to verify absentee signatures and that observers were not present for the replication of damaged ballots in violation of state law. The lawsuit requests an audit and requests the election results be annulled.
Filed 11/30/2020
State Arizona
Type of Court State
Status Closed ()
Last Updated 12/05/2020
Issue Tag(s) Vote-by-Mail (Poll Observer Access, Signature Verification Standards)
Complaint(s) 11/30/2020: Complaint filed.
Dispositive Ruling(s) 12/04/2020: Order/Ruling, The court held that the evidence did not demonstrate fraud or misconduct, since the court's ordered audit and the forensic examiners found a small number of duplicate ballots and a low error rate, without any impact on the outcome. The court denied relief and confirmed the election certification.

Ward v. Jackson, No. CV-20-0343-AP/EL (Ariz. Sup. Ct.)

  Case Summary Appeal from the superior court decision.
Filed 12/04/2020
State Arizona
Type of Court State
Status Closed ()
Last Updated 01/12/2021
Issue Tag(s) Vote-by-Mail (Signature Verification Standards, Poll Observer Access)
Dispositive Ruling(s) 12/04/2020: Appellant Brief
12/08/2020: Order/Ruling, The Arizona Supreme Court, sitting en banc, held that plaintiffs had not provided any evidence to suggest that the hand count audit, required by the Election Code prior to the final canvass, was insufficient to discover fraud. The court concluded that the superior court was correct in its determination that the hand count audit was adequate and that there was no evidence of misconduct.

Ward v. Jackson, No. 20-809 (Sup. Ct.)

  Case Summary In an appeal from the Arizona Supreme Court's opinion that Arizona's hand count audit was conducted lawfully and without fraud, petitioners ask the Supreme Court to consider whether the Electoral Count Act (inclusive of 3 U.S.C. § 5, the “safe harbor” statute) imposes unconstitutional deadlines on state courts’ final determination of disputes over presidential electors.
Filed 12/11/2020
State Arizona
Type of Court Federal
Circuit US Supreme Court
Status Closed ()
Last Updated 01/12/2021
Issue Tag(s) Vote-by-Mail (Poll Observer Access, Signature Verification Standards)
Dispositive Ruling(s) 12/11/2020: Appellant Brief
01/11/2021: Order/Ruling, The Court denied petitioner's motion to expedite consideration.
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