electionline Weekly

EAC Clearie Awards

EAC Clearinghouse 2020 Awards Information

The U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) invites submissions for its fifth annual national Clearinghouse Awards. The Clearinghouse Awards, also referred to as the “Clearies,” honor the enterprising spirit and hard work of election officials across the country. In the challenging circumstances created by the COVID-19 crisis, the Clearies offer the opportunity to recognize the resourcefulness of officials who adjusted their efforts to account for the ever-evolving pandemic. This year, the EAC is also pleased to offer a new category distinguishing cybersecurity and technology initiatives that improve election security of voting systems and strengthen U.S. elections.

The EAC will present awards in the categories of:

• Improving Accessibility for Voters with Disabilities,
• Outstanding Innovations in Elections,
• Best Practices in Recruiting, Retaining, and Training Poll Workers,
• Creative and Original “I Voted” Stickers, and
• Outstanding Innovation in Election Cybersecurity and Technology.

Jurisdictions of all sizes are encouraged to submit their work. Entries must be received by Friday, January 8, 2021. Submissions will be judged on innovation, sustainability, outreach, cost-effectiveness, replicability, and the generation of positive results.

“The 2020 Clearie Awards will help recognize the innovation and hard work of election officials across the nation during an extremely well-run general election with record turnout,” said EAC Chairman Ben Hovland. “Election officials did an amazing job this fall as they navigated unprecedented health concerns due to COVID-19, a substantial increase in early and mail or absentee voting, and poll worker shortages. The best practices developed from 2020 will be highly valuable for future elections. The EAC Commissioners look forward to honoring these hard-working public servants who do so much to serve voters and further our democracy.”

The 2020 Clearies will build on the successes of past years, encouraging innovations in election administration and publicizing achievements across the elections community. Under the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA), the EAC is charged with serving as a clearinghouse for election administration information. The Clearies and the efforts they celebrate play an important role in helping the EAC fulfill this mission.

The 2019 winners of the Clearie Awards can be found here.

More information on submission guidelines can be found here. All submissions should be sent to the EAC at clearinghouse@eac.gov.

Election News This Week

Threats to Democracy: Threats to election officials continued unabated this week. In Michigan, armed protestors gathered outside of Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s home on Sunday evening. “You know, while you’re in this great uncertainty where – and focused on protecting your family, I realize that the threats really weren’t aimed at me. They were aimed at our voters. And then the requests were to overturn an election, where the voters clearly spoke. And my job as the state’s chief election officer is to protect and defend our voters, every single one of them, regardless of how they vote. And so my mind focused on that, and then my heart focused on my kid,” Benson told NPR. The chair of the Wisconsin Elections Commission, Ann Jacobs, says she’s been the target of threats. Jacobs told The New York Times, “People on Twitter have posted photography of my house.” She said another message mentioned her children and suggested crowds would show up at her door. On Monday, the Arizona GOP promoted the idea of dying for the “Stop the Steal” movement to which Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, who herself has been threatened, responded via Tweet with, “I’ve been saying since 11/4 that these unfounded detached from reality conspiracy theories and those fueling them are dangerous and here we are,” Arizona’s Secretary of State Katie Hobbs tweeted Tuesday in response. In an op-ed, The Washington Post wrote: “…[the president] is creating a new playbook for failed candidates: Rile the base; delegitimize your opponent’s victory; pressure state officials to flip the results. This strategy could be far more potent in a closer election. It threatens the foundations of U.S. democracy.”

NPR has an in-depth look this week at how the funding from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan was used throughout the country for the 2020 election. “Honestly, I don’t know what we would have done without it,” acting director of voter services in Chester County, Pa. Bill Turner told NPR. “This grant really was a lifesaver in allowing us to do more, efficiently and expeditiously,” he said. “It probably would have taken a very long time if we didn’t have the resources to do this.” NPR spoke to two scholars with differing opinions on the future of funding. Rachael Cobb, associate professor of political science and legal studies at Suffolk University in Boston though the grants were great as a onetime thing, but cautioned that continuing to use private money for such purposes “sullies [the election] in a way that we don’t need it to be sullied at all.” David Kimball, a political science professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, said that without the grants, “it certainly would have taken them a lot longer to process and count those absentee ballots, which would have only made this post-election period more unbearable.”

That was fast! The University of Pennsylvania will be offering a course on the 2020 election for the spring semester. PSCI 498: Election Law and the 2020 Election will be taught by political science professor Marc Meredith. Students will analyze how laws governing the administration of United States elections guided thinking about changes to election administration during the COVID-19 pandemic. It will cover topics including voting rights, mail-in ballots, voter registration, felon disenfranchisement, and redistricting.  Students will begin by studying the Constitution, voting laws, and court cases to build a foundation in election administration. They will then examine how these laws guided election administrators and courts in the 2020 primaries and presidential election when the country saw an unprecedented increase in mail-in voting.

Personnel News: Angela Mantle has resigned as the elections director in Newton County, Georgia. Howell City, Michigan Clerk Jane Cartwright is retiring. Melanie Conrad will chair the Floyd County Board of Elections for 2021 and longtime elections clerk Vanessa Waddell will continue to serve as interim chief elections clerk.

In Memoriam: Mac Horton, former Charlotte County, Florida supervisor of elections has died from COVID-19. He was 79. Horton served on the Englewood Water District board, was on the Charlotte County School Board for 12 years, a county commissioner for eight years and ended his career in 2008 as Charlotte’s supervisor of elections. “He will be remembered as a nice person and a decent human being,” Sarasota County Commissioner Shannon Staub told the Herald-Tribune. “I can tell you that although he spent a lot of years in the field of politics, it was never about politics for him. It was about getting a job done right. He was there to serve and he was serious about serving and he tried to do what he felt was the best thing for the county and the citizens. He made himself available anytime. He always did it with a smile on his face.” When he was the county’s supervisor of elections, he led an effort to save the historic Charlotte courthouse, which was built in 1928 in Punta Gorda. At the time, it was an unpopular cause but Horton’s respect for history spurred him to lead efforts to save the yellow-brick building that had fallen into disrepair.

Legislative Updates

California: Senator Thomas Umberg (D-Santa Ana) has introduced several-elections related bills including: SB 29 – Minimum In-Person Voting Standards for Counties Conducting Elections in 2021; California conducted a safe, secure, and accurate November 2020 Presidential Election due, in large part, to SB 423 (2020) authored by Senator Umberg. The historic turnout for the 2020 election was 80.7% (as of early December) despite the pandemic. SB 423 and this year’s successor, SB 29, set statewide minimum standards for counties to conduct safe and accessible in-person voting procedures in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. Both voters and election workers need to be guaranteed a safe environment in order to conduct elections. This bill will guarantee that all eligible voters living in jurisdictions conducting elections in 2021 will be mailed a vote-by-mail ballot in order to give the option for individuals to vote at home if they wish. SB 34 – Increased Penalties for Unofficial or Fraudulent Vote Centers, in light of reports from the fall of unofficial ballot boxes and unofficial vote centers operating illegally, Senator Umberg introduced SB 34 to clarify the basic guidelines for the operation of ballot drop boxes and vote centers. SB 35 – Extension of the Polling Place Buffer Outside of Polling Places, with the need for social distancing, some areas of California this November saw lines that extended beyond the front door of polling places. Current law prohibits electioneering within 100 feet of a polling place, but reexamination of that distance is necessary after some allegations were made about campaigning and intimidation as voters waited in line outside to vote.

Delaware: Several elections-related bills have been introduced for consideration. House Bill 15 would eliminate the state’s restrictions on absentee voting, striking the specific list of reasons allowing an individual to vote remotely. The second leg of a constitutional amendment, it would add to the constitution a line stating, “The General Assembly shall enact general laws providing the circumstances, rules, and procedures by which registered voters may vote by absentee ballot.” House Bill 25 would authorize same-day voter registration, letting a Delawarean register and cast his or her ballot on Election Day. Current law sets the last day to register before an election as the “fourth Saturday prior to the date of the election.” House Bill 30 is the latest effort to shift the date of Delaware’s primary election, currently the second Tuesday after the first Monday in September, to coincide with the April presidential primary, even in off years. Delaware holds its presidential primary on the fourth Tuesday in April.

Missouri: The Missouri Legislature will be asked to change part of Missouri’s voter ID law. State Senator Bob Onder wants to put an end to a provision in state law allowing voters without certain identification to still vote by signing a statement saying they are who they say they are. Onder, a Republican from Lake St. Louis, is also proposing to create new provisions about the use of provisional ballots when voters do not have proper identification to vote.

State Senate Bill 17 would allow voters to cast an absentee ballot without an excuse. St. Louis state senator Jill Schupp proposed the bill in order to provide that same flexibility every election. ”Clearly it will provide additional flexibility because currently you have to have a reason,” Schoeller said. “Of course after the end of this year the seventh reason, the COVID-19 reason would go away.” Though Schoeller said he and many other voters likely prefer to vote in person so they can see their ballots go into the machine, he said absentee voting could become especially helpful for people who may not qualify for reasons currently listed on a ballot.

Pennsylvania: Rep. Jeff Wheeland (R-Lycoming) has reintroduced House Bill 1579, legislation to apply voter ID requirements to each and every election, including photo and non-photo options as acceptable forms of ID. Under the bill, the forms of ID that would be acceptable are the same as the options that are currently available to first-time voters in Pennsylvania. They include the following forms of photo and non-photo ID: Driver’s license or PennDOT non-driver ID card; Photo or non-photo ID card issued by other state agency; Photo or non-photo ID card issued by the U.S. government; Student ID with photo; Employee ID with photo; Armed Forces of the U.S. ID card; Firearm permit; Current utility bill; Current bank statement; or Government check. If a voter is unable to present a valid photo ID, he or she would be required to present two forms of non-photo ID from among those listed above.

Vermont: Vermont lawmakers plan to pass legislation in January that will allow towns to send Town Meeting Day ballots to residents via mail, or postpone the date that voting takes place. The proposal, which lawmakers are poised to send to Gov. Phil Scott’s desk within the first two weeks of the legislative session, would also give school officials the same flexibility for budget votes, which also typically happen in person. Town Meeting Day is March 2, and Sen. Jeanette White, D-Windham, told a joint meeting of the House and Senate Government Operations Committees on Friday that she hoped the legislation could reach the governor’s desk by Jan. 19 — two weeks after the legislative session begins.

Legal Updates

Federal Lawsuits: Former CISA Director Christopher Krebs, who was fired by the president last month after asserting the recent presidential election was “the most secure in American history,” filed suit this week against the Trump campaign, attorney Joseph diGenova and the cable channel Newsmax. Krebs charges he was defamed by diGenova, who said on Newsmax that Krebs “should be drawn and quartered” or “shot at dawn” following Krebs’ statement. Krebs says such punishments are the “fate of a convicted traitor” and are the basis for his defamation accusation. The lawsuit, filed in Montgomery County, Md., circuit court, seeks an injunction ordering Newsmax to remove the diGenova interview from its website, as well as monetary damages. Krebs charges he has been the victim of death threats following DiGenova’s remarks, which diGenova has said were “hyperbole.”

Alabama: U.S. District Judge Emily C. Marks of the Middle District of Alabama has ruled in favor of Secretary of State John Merrill and other officials in a lawsuit challenging the Alabama law that disqualifies felons from voting. Greater Birmingham Ministries joined with individuals who had been convicted of felonies in challenging the law as unconstitutional, claiming that it was racially discriminatory, discriminated on the basis of wealth, and violated due process because it was applied retroactively. They were represented by the Campaign Legal Center in Washington, D.C., and other attorneys. The plaintiffs updated their claims in 2017 after the Legislature changed the law. Marks granted the state’s motions for summary judgement. “In 2017, our office worked with the Alabama Legislature to clearly define the crimes of moral turpitude, which, upon conviction, prohibit an individual from being eligible to vote,” Merrill said in his statement on Marks’ ruling. “In defining the 60 crimes of moral turpitude, we created a consistent standard among all 67 counties, as opposed to leaving the interpretation up to each county’s Board of Registrars. After an individual completes his or her sentence and pays all fees and fines associated with the original sentence, he may apply to have his voting rights restored.”

Alaska: Anchorage Republican Rep. Lance Pruitt has filed a lawsuit seeking to overturn his 11-vote loss to Democratic challenger Liz Snyder. In a complaint filed Wednesday, attorney Stacey Stone claims the state failed to properly provide notice when the Alaska Division of Elections moved a polling location from Muldoon Town Center to Begich Middle School. The suit also claims the Division of Elections failed to provide adequate election security after the Alaska Supreme Court temporarily invalidated the state law requiring absentee ballots to be co-signed by a witness. The lawsuit asks that the results be recounted after particular ballots are thrown out. If the court isn’t willing to do that, the suit asks for a new election. State law allows the case to be appealed immediately to the Alaska Supreme Court, and Stone filed the appropriate documents on Wednesday.

Arizona: U.S. District Court Judge Diane Humetewa tossed out the last election challenge pending in Arizona, dismissing its sweeping fraud claims as “sorely wanting of relevant or reliable evidence.” “Allegations that find favor in the public sphere of gossip and innuendo cannot be a substitute for earnest pleadings and procedure in federal court,” Humetewa wrote in the 29-page ruling. “They most certainly cannot be the basis for upending Arizona’s 2020 General Election.” The lawsuit — filed by a group primarily composed of would-be Donald Trump electors, including Arizona GOP Chair Kelli Ward — claimed “massive election fraud” in Arizona involving Dominion voting machines, foreign interference and illegal votes. But their 100-plus-page complaint and preliminary arguments did little to convince Humetewa, who deemed the relief sought by the group “extraordinary.”  “If granted, millions of Arizonans who exercised their individual right to vote in the 2020 General Election would be utterly disenfranchised,” she wrote.  “Such a request should then be accompanied by clear and conclusive facts to support the alleged ‘egregious range of conduct in Maricopa County and other Arizona counties … at the direction of Arizona state election officials,'” she continued. “Yet the Complaint’s allegations are sorely wanting of relevant or reliable evidence, and Plaintiffs’ invocation of this Court’s limited jurisdiction is severely strained.”

One of the three remaining lawsuits challenging Arizona’s presidential election results was withdrawn after the secretary of state’s office threatened to pursue legal fees and sanctions against the attorney involved. The case, filed on behalf of four plaintiffs who identified themselves as members of something called the Arizona Election Integrity Association, included charges that Facebook billionaire Mark Zuckerberg funneled money to election officials in nine Arizona counties through the Center for Tech and Civil Life in a way designed to deliberately skew the vote here for Biden. Attorney David Spilsbury said Zuckerberg sought to create a “two-tiered treatment of the American voter,” putting funds into “progressive strongholds” to turn out more voters. Other places, Spilsbury said, did not have the same opportunity.

Georgia: Attorney Sidney Powell this week filed an appeal for her so-called “Kraken” lawsuit alleging a wide-ranging conspiracy to rig the election for Joe Biden in Georgia. The suit was swiftly dismissed after a hearing the day before by Judge Timothy Batten in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. Batten expressed strong skepticism to Powell’s arguments throughout the hearing, and one thing he returned to multiple times was the jurisdictional issue of whether the suit should have been brought in state court. He also said that the relief Powell seeks with her suit – among other things, invalidating Georgia’s 1 million absentee ballots and declaring President Trump the winner in the state – is something “this court cannot grant.” He characterized it as “the most extraordinary relief every sought in a court in an election.” It’s unclear if the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta will hear the case. The 11th Circuit affirmed the District Court’s dismissal of another election challenge, brought by attorney Lin Wood, last weekend.

The Republican Party has filed suit in Fulton County Superior Court seeking to curtain the use of ballot drop boxes in the January runoff. In a lawsuit the Republican National Committee and the Georgia Republican Party seek to allow voters to return ballots at drop boxes only during normal business hours, not 24 hours a day. Among other things, the lawsuit also seeks greater access for party monitors to observe vote counting and related activities in the Jan. 5 runoff that will determine which party controls the U.S. Senate.

Illinois: The lawsuit filed by the LaSalle County Republican Central Committee accusing the LaSalle County Clerk of mishandling vote-by-mail ballots will have a new judge assigned to it. The case was heard Wednesday morning by Grundy County Judge Lance Peterson. It was being handled by Judge Robert Marsaglia, who did not seek reelection to the bench in November. Marsaglia’s last day was Friday. Peterson says that a new judge will be assigned to the case come early January. In the meantime, Peterson agreed to hold one hearing on December 23 to discuss a motion to dismiss the case by the attorney representing the LaSalle County Clerk’s Office Matthew Krueger. The motion to dismiss takes issue with Larry Smith, the Republican Central Committee Chairman, being referred to as a “voter” instead of a “qualified voter” in the petition asking the court to order a recount of vote-by-mail ballots.

Indiana: Hoosier voters who are blind or have low vision are suing the Indiana Election Commission and Secretary of State over absentee voting. According to plaintiffs Rita Kersh, Kristin Fleschner and Wanda Tackett, Indiana only permits them to vote at home by appointment with a “traveling board” of elections officials. They claim this leads voters who are blind to choose between giving up their right to vote privately and independently, risk exposing themselves to COVID-19 at the polls, or not voting at all. Instead, they say they should be allowed to use electronic options that let them vote privately. The lawsuit was filed in federal district court in the Southern District of Indiana

Massachusetts: U.S. District Court Allison Burroughs has expressed skepticism in a lawsuit filed by five Massachusetts Republicans who lost races in the November election. The plaintiffs are suing to nullify the results, claiming widespread voting fraud and illegal acts by lawmakers. They claim the governor and state lawmakers violated the state Constitution by expanding absentee and early voting, among many other claims. Burroughs said the plaintiffs should have sued before the election if they were worried about expanded voting. “What you don’t get to do is look at an entire arrangement for voting and not say a word until you lose the election, and then complain about the process,” Burroughs told Moran, who was speaking on behalf of the group, during a hearing this week.

Michigan: The Michigan Supreme Court, in a 4-3 decision, denied requests from two voters who backed President Donald Trump and sought an election audit and other actions to address alleged fraud related to absentee ballots. Angelic Johnson and Linda Lee Tarver, both members of Black Voices for Trump, petitioned the state Supreme Court directly on Nov. 26. They sought a range of court actions, in addition to an audit, including: a declaration that Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson had violated their constitutional rights; seizure of ballots, ballot boxes and poll books; appointment of a special master or legislative committee to investigate claims of fraud related to the counting of absentee ballots at the TCF Center in Detroit,  and an injunction preventing Gov. Gretchen Whitmer from certifying Michigan’s presidential election results, which has already happened. The three Democratic-nominated justices — Chief Justice Bridget McCormack and Justices Richard Bernstein and Megan Cavanagh — were joined by Republican nominee Elizabeth Clement in denying the requested actions without first hearing oral arguments. Justices Brian Zahra, David Viviano and Stephen Markman dissented, saying the court should call for additional briefings and oral arguments and hear the case fully on an expedited basis.

Judge Robert Jonker, the chief judge of the federal court in Grand Rapids has denied a request for an emergency order from a Michigan sheriff, saying documents the sheriff filed Sunday are so legally deficient it is not even clear he has started a court action. Barry County Sheriff Dar Leaf sought a temporary restraining order directing local clerks not to comply with a routine post-election memorandum from the Secretary of State’s Office telling them to delete certain records related to the Nov. 3 vote. Rather than clearly showing irreparable harm unless immediate court action is taken, as required to obtain an injunction, Leaf and his co-plaintiffs “invite the court to make speculative leaps toward a hazy and nebulous inference that there has been numerous instances of election fraud and that defendants are destroying the evidence.

Wayne County Judge Timothy Kenny denied a request to audit the county’s election results before Michigan’s electors cast their vote for Joe Biden next week, citing an already-planned audit by the Secretary of State. Kenny said a group of voters who sued Detroit-area election officials are entitled to seek an audit, but not one supervised by county officials. The Secretary of State committed to performing a risk-limiting audit, and Kenny said plaintiffs could pursue a case again in the Court of Claims if the state does not follow through. “This court finds no legal authority that permits the Wayne County Clerk to conduct an audit of Wayne County election results or that separates the audit from the oversight of the Secretary of State,” Kenny wrote in his order. “Since the Secretary of State has made a public commitment to do an audit of the Wayne County vote, plaintiff’s motion for the audit is premature.”

Attorneys for the Trump campaign went to the Michigan Supreme Court on this week in connection with its earliest Michigan case challenging ballot counting in Detroit and elsewhere in the Nov. 3 election. “Unfortunately, some local election jurisdictions, including Wayne County, did not conduct the general election as required by Michigan law,” lawyers for the campaign said in a court filing. “And Secretary of State (Jocelyn) Benson did not require local election jurisdictions to allow challengers to meaningfully observe the conduct of the election and the tabulation and tallying of ballots.” In the  filing Monday, Trump campaign attorney Thor Hearne said the requested relief is not moot, regardless of the outcome of the Nov. 3 vote. “This Court is asked to restore public confidence in Michigan elections by issuing a decision holding that Michigan’s secretary of state must assure the local election officials she oversees and supervises comply with Michigan’s election laws and provide challengers a meaningful opportunity to perform the important role Michigan law designates for challengers,” Hearne said in the filing.

Minnesota: The Minnesota Supreme Court on Friday, Dec. 4, denied a request to temporarily halt certification of the state’s general election results and conduct a statewide recount over suggestions of “vote count anomalies.” The request was brought by 2nd Congressional District candidate Tyler Kistner, as well as a host of other failed candidates and current Republican lawmakers, stemming from challenges over the suspension of witness requirements for absentee and mail-in ballots and other concerns. The petition was filed on Nov. 24, three weeks after the 2020 election and just hours before the state canvassing board met to certify the results. In a ruling signed Dec. 4 by Chief Justice Lorie Gildea, the high court denied the request on the grounds it was improperly served to respondents and that a recount would be overly burdensome and “cast an unacceptable degree of uncertainty over the election.”

New Mexico: The Republican Party of New Mexico launched and financed a lawsuit that was filed today, requesting that all 2020 election ballots in Bernalillo County be impounded. RPNM asked 1st Congressional District candidate Michelle Garcia Holmes to submit the petition. New Mexico law grants candidates the right to have authorities impound tally sheets, registration certificates, paper ballots, absentee ballots, statements of canvass, absentee ballot applications and absentee ballot registers. RPNM and Garcia Holmes want to have ballots checked. The petition, filed in New Mexico’s Second Judicial District Court, asks the Court to examine the attributes of ballots cast in the recent unusual election. RPNM and Garcia Holmes are petitioning the Court to impound ballots in Bernalillo County’s 70 election-day voting convenience centers, 17 early alternative voting locations and 88 absentee voter precincts.

New York: State Supreme Court Justice Scott DelConte denied Republican challenger Claudia Tenney’s motion to certify the current unofficial results, which gave her a 12-vote lead over incumbent U.S. Rep. Anthony Brindisi, D-Utica. DelConte instead outlined steps for boards of elections to correct errors, properly canvass uncounted votes and recanvass where the errors cannot be corrected. He was critical of the county boards of elections in the congressional district, aside from Tioga County, in the 21-page decision.  The errors, which included not recording campaign objections to election officials’ rulings on the validity of ballots, did not comply with state election law, DelConte said.

Six New York City Council members filed suit in State Supreme Court in Manhattan seeking to stop the city from implementing ranked choice voting in the 2021 election cycle. One leading Black mayoral candidate — Eric Adams, the Brooklyn borough president, who once supported the system — now says it’s being rushed. Seventy-four percent of New York City voters approved ranked-choice voting in 2019.  But with the mayoral primary less than seven months away, some campaigns are worried that the system could hurt Black candidates. They argue that a traditional approach would increase the chances of a runoff, where a Black candidate might perform better in a contest with only two names on the ballot. Critics also question whether the city’s problem-prone Board of Elections can roll out such a complicated system during a once-in-a-century pandemic.

Pennsylvania: This week, in a one-sentence order, the U.S. Supreme Court refused a request from Pennsylvania Republicans to overturn the state’s election results. In the Pennsylvania case, the justices said they would not block a ruling from the state’s highest court that had rejected a challenge to the state’s use of mail ballots on Nov. 3. The request that the Supreme Court intercede had faced substantial legal hurdles since it was filed long after the enactment of a 2019 statute that allowed mailed ballots and was based on questions of state, rather than federal, law.

A Pennsylvania appellate court on Wednesday denied the latest in a string of legal challenges seeking to roll back certification of the election results, ending the last active court battle in the state over the outcome of the race. In a four-page opinion, Commonwealth Court President Judge Mary Hannah Leavitt dismissed the suit brought by a group of nine GOP state lawmakers, led by Rep Daryl Metcalfe, saying they had waited too long to file their challenge.  They “are unable to demonstrate a clear right to relief or likelihood of prevailing on the merits because their underlying action … is really an improper and untimely election contest,” she wrote.

Tennessee: Tennessee does not adequately help residents restore their rights to vote after a felony conviction, a new federal lawsuit says.  “Every year that has passed since I lost my ability to vote, I’ve always felt a little bit smaller,” said John Weare, 58, a Lewis County resident who lost his voting rights after assault convictions in Arizona in 1997 and 2003. Weare has been unsuccessful in restoring his rights since he moved to Tennessee five years ago. The suit, filed last week in federal district court on behalf of the Tennessee NAACP and five Tennesseans who were unable to restore their rights, seeks court intervention in the state’s process to help those eligible residents restore their rights. As it stands, Tennessee’s process can vary from county to county and lead residents on what the lawsuit calls a “wild-goose chase.” “A person with the same facts surrounding their conviction and service of the terms of their sentence may get a different result depending on their county of conviction and which official in that county is making the determination of their eligibility,” the lawsuit claims.

Texas: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing four battleground states — Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — whose election results handed the White House to President-elect Joe Biden. In the suit, he claims that pandemic-era changes to election procedures in those states violated federal law and asks the U.S. Supreme Court to block the states from voting in the Electoral College. In a filing to the high court this week, Paxton claims the four battleground states broke the law by instituting pandemic-related changes to election policies, whether “through executive fiat or friendly lawsuits, thereby weakening ballot integrity.” Paxton claimed that these changes allowed for voter fraud to occur — a conclusion experts and election officials have rejected — and said the court should push back a Dec. 14 deadline by which states must appoint their presidential electors. “That deadline, however, should not cement a potentially illegitimate election result in the middle of this storm,” attorneys for Texas wrote. The attorneys general of 17 states (all Republicans) have backed the suit and the president has sought to join the suit.

Wisconsin: A key conservative justice on the Wisconsin Supreme Court delivered a scathing rebuke of Republican efforts to overturn the state’s presidential contest Friday, rejecting a lawsuit that he said would have done irreversible damage to every future election. It was the third time in two days that conservative Justice Brian Hagedorn had sided with the court’s liberals in a 4-3 ruling against Republicans, leaving President Donald Trump and his allies with fewer avenues in their efforts to undo Democratic President-elect Joe Biden’s Wisconsin victory. Hagedorn let loose on the petition by a group called the “Wisconsin Voters Alliance,” which asked the court to reject the more than 3 million votes cast in November’s election, require the Legislature to choose its own presidential electors and require the governor to approve them. Hagedorn said such a move would be without precedent in American history. “One might expect that this solemn request would be paired with evidence,” he wrote. “Instead, the evidentiary support rests almost entirely on the unsworn expert report of a former campaign employee.”

Judge Pamela Pepper, the Chief United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Wisconsin. dismissed a lawsuit brought by the head of the La Crosse County Republican Party seeking to overturn the certification of the November election for president.  The lawsuit was filed December 1 by former Trump team attorney Sidney Powell in federal court in Milwaukee.  The suit was brought originally on behalf of two plaintiffs, La Crosse County GOP chair Bill Feehan and 3rd District congressional candidate Derrick Van Orden. Pepper issued a lengthy response in her dismissal of the lawsuit. A copy of the dismissal can be read below.  She began her order, in part, “The election that preceded this lawsuit was emotional and often divisive. The pleadings that have been filed over the past week are passionate and urgent. People have strong, deep feelings about the right to vote, the freedom and opportunity to vote, and the value of their vote. They should. But the legal question at the heart of this case is simple. Federal courts have limited jurisdiction. Does a federal court have the jurisdiction and authority to grant the relief this lawsuit seeks? The answer is no.” She continues, “Federal judges do not appoint the president in this country. One wonders why the plaintiffs came to federal court and asked a federal judge to do so. After a week of sometimes odd and often harried litigation, the court is no closer to answering the “why”. But this federal court has no authority or jurisdiction to grant the relief the remaining plaintiff seeks. The court will dismiss the case.”

Tech Thursday

Social Media: This week, more than a month after the general election, YouTube announced that it is changing how it handles videos about the election saying it would remove new videos that mislead people by claiming that widespread fraud or errors influenced the outcome of the election. According to The New York Times, the company said it was making the change because Tuesday was the so-called safe harbor deadline — the date by which all state-level election challenges, such as recounts and audits, are supposed to be completed. YouTube said that enough states have certified their election results to determine that Joseph R. Biden Jr. is the president-elect.

Opinions This Week

National Opinions: Post-election violence | Results | Vote by mail | Voter fraud allegations | Election litigation | Decentralized elections | Stacey Abrams | Dominion Voting Systems | Ex-felon voting rights

California: Poll worker safety

Florida: Attacks on elections | Brian Corley | Future elections | Disenfranchised voters |

Georgia: Post-election threats, II | Vendor | Vote counting

Illinois: Fair elections

Iowa: Election workers

Maine: Vote by mail | Secretary of state

Maryland: Rockville board of elections

Michigan: Secretary of state |  Misinformation

New York: Election reform, II | Ranked choice voting, II, III | Local elections

North Carolina: Voter ID | Distrust of elections

Ohio: Faulty ballots | Easier access to the polls

Pennsylvania: Democracy

Texas: Election lawsuit

Upcoming Events

Election Security: Lessons Learned from 2020: The 2020 elections drew record turnout with over 157 million Americans casting a ballot. Despite concerns regarding COVID-19 and foreign interference, election officials from federal agencies with oversight over election security, national organizations, nonprofits, and vendors described the election as “the most secure in American history.” In a panel discussion, experts in election security will discuss what went right to make the election such a success and what challenges remain. To break down what we saw before, during, and after Election Day, experts will cover the record-breaking turnout, conducting elections during a pandemic, voting by mail, in-person voting, audits, misinformation, access to the ballot, and cybersecurity. Hosted by: American Association for the Advancement of Science’s (AAAS) Center for Scientific Evidence in Public Issues (EPI Center)•National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s(NASEM)Committee on Science, Technology, and Law(CSTL). Where: Online. When: Monday, December 14, 1pm-2:3opm Eastern.

The 2020 Voting Experience and Goals for Reform: Following an unprecedented year of uncertainty, adaptation, and innovation in voting 2020, the Bipartisan Policy Center will host its fourth post-presidential election cycle event bringing together election administrators, policymakers, academics, advocates, and campaigns to examine the voting experience. We will discuss the impact of election administration reforms on improving the voting experience over four years ago as well as securing the voting process. Topics to be covered include: the shifts needed for voting during a pandemic; the rise of voting by mail, the use of technology in the election ecosystem, and how it can be secured; the future of funding elections in America; how changes in election laws and litigation impacted the election; how improved data collection and analysis can further improve the administration of elections. This event is sponsored by Democracy Fund and Carnegie Corporation of New York. More information will be forthcoming. When: Dec. 15, 11am-5pm Eastern. Where: Online.

IGO 2021 Mid-Winter Conference: IGO will hold its mid-Winter conference in-person in Phoenix. Elections-related sessions include seminars on the 2020 election, adapting to ever-changing elections during a pandemic, ransomware and cybersecurity and effective communication strategies. Where: Phoenix, Arizona. When: Jan. 22-28.

NASS 2021 Winter Virtual Conference: Registration and more information coming soon. When February 2-5. Where. Online.

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electionline Holiday Schedule

Christmas and New Year: electionline Weekly will not publish on Thursday, December 24 or Thursday December 31. It will publish the annual In & Out list on Wednesday, December 30. The Daily News will not publish on December 24 & 25 and December 31 and January 1. The Daily News will publish December 28-30, but at 10am instead of 6 a.m.

Job Postings This Week

electionlineWeekly publishes election administration job postings each week as a free service to our readers. To have your job listed in the newsletter, please send a copy of the job description, including a web link to mmoretti@electionline.org.  Job postings must be received by 5pm on Wednesday in order to appear in the Thursday newsletter. Listings will run for three weeks or till the deadline listed in the posting.

Certification Project Manager, Hart InterCIvic— The Certification Project Manager manages state and federal certification projects of our Hardware and Software products, under the direction of the Sr. Director of Product Management.  The Certification Project Manager must be able to exercise sound judgment and interact with regulatory authorities in a professional manner, particularly in high-pressure situations. Essential Duties and Responsibilities (Other duties may be assigned): Submit state/federal certification application materials; Plan for and coordinate logistics for onsite state/federal certification activities; Lead onsite state/federal certification activities; Provide follow up to state/federal certification activities. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Deputy Director of Voter Services, Hillsborough County, Fla.— The Supervisor of Elections administers all federal, state, county, municipal and special district elections in Hillsborough County. It’s our responsibility to process all voter registration applications received from qualified Florida residents, and also to educate Hillsborough County residents about registering to vote. We issue Voter Information Cards to all newly registered voters, and reissue those cards when there are changes to a voter’s registration information or polling place. Maintaining our voter database is a huge undertaking and one we take great care with. We hold countywide elections, as well as municipal elections for the City of Tampa, Plant City and Temple Terrace, and work with the county and municipalities periodically on reapportionment, redistricting and drawing precinct boundaries. Candidates for county, district and special district offices file and qualify for candidacy with our office. We also receive the forms and financial reports that candidates, committees and political parties are required to file. And our office verifies and certifies all petition signatures for candidates and ballot initiatives. Responsible for planning, organization and management of voter services units, including onboarding and training; eligibility and registration; Voter Focus reports; list maintenance; and Vote By Mail operations. Salary: $65,000. Deadline: Dec. 29. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

IT Security Analyst, North Carolina State Board of Elections— The Information Technology Security Analyst is responsible for the monitoring and review of agency security systems and associated data, and ensuring that the configuration of agency systems, applications and networks are in compliance with agency security policies. This position requires a technical background, with problem solving, critical thinking, documentation skills, and the ability to communicate complex topics clearly and effectively. The primary goal of this position is to provide security support, monitoring of security solutions, logging of security events and support additional security systems and solutions on a day to day basis. From time to time, this position is also required to identify, plan, document, execute, and report on continuous improvement activities related to security and other tasks as assigned  Successful candidates will demonstrate the desire and ability to learn skills to grow into activities required for the position where the candidate does not currently possess such skills. This position will be subject to a background check. DHS carries all security clearances for SBE. This position may require the receipt and ongoing maintenance of a security clearance. Salary: $61,972.00 – $100,892. Deadline: Dec. 17. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

IT Security Engineer, North Carolina State Board of Elections— The Information Technology Security Engineer is responsible for the operation of agency security infrastructure, technical security guidance in the application of best practices, and ensuring that the configuration of agency systems, applications and networks are in compliance with agency security policies. This position requires broad technical expertise, sophisticated problem solving and critical thinking, excellent documentation skills, security experience, and the ability to communicate complex topics clearly and effectively. The primary goal of this position is to ensure the proper function of agency information security systems and solutions on a day to day basis. This position is also required to identify, plan, document, execute, and report on continuous improvement activities related to security and other tasks as assigned. Successful candidates will demonstrate the desire and ability to learn skills to grow into activities required for the position where the candidate does not currently possess such skills. This position will be subject to a background check. DHS carries all security clearances for SBE. This position may require the receipt and ongoing maintenance of a security clearance. Salary: $74,987.00 – $121,857.  Deadline: 12/17. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Network Engineer, North Carolina State Board of Elections— The State Board of Elections oversees the enforcement of federal and state laws, rules, and procedures governing the conduct of elections, voter registration, and campaign finance activities in North Carolina.  Primary Purpose of the Position: Serves as a key technical resource for employees and senior management in regard to network design, configuration, monitoring and debugging.  He or she must be capable of handling the most complex engineering problems and projects. Eloyees receive agency requests for assistance, evaluate needs, design and prepare technical specifications, and project cost estimates for myriad network environments, equipment and systems. Salary: $74,987.00 – $121,857. Deadline: Dec. 15. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Operations Support Specialist, North Carolina State Board of Elections— The State Board of Elections oversees the enforcement of federal and state laws, rules, and procedures governing the conduct of elections, voter registration, and campaign finance activities in North Carolina.  Provide operational support to Election Administration, Campaign Finance administration and other business operations. Perform a variety of general office assistant tasks in support of the agency’s administrative operations, especially public contact and providing public assistance. Answer and route incoming telephone calls in a timely manner. Answer and/or route emails in a timely and professional manner. Answer questions of a general nature, including assisting the public with locating voter registration information, polling place hours and locations, acceptable forms of voter identification, online campaign finance data, and county boards of elections contact information.  Route calls and emails based on routing guidelines provided. Welcome visitors in a prompt and friendly manner. Require visitor sign-in and sign-out, provide visitor badge, contact staff when visitors arrive. Direct visitors to wait in lobby until staff member arrives to escort them. If visitors are present to attend a public meeting, then direct visitors to meeting room and/or restrooms as needed. Prepare and display signage for public meetings, directional signs, etc. as required. Assist with receiving, date-stamping, and routing incoming mail to appropriate staff as directed. Update records and databases as required, including campaign finance and certification databases and candidate filing records. Salary: $30,280.00 – $48,058.  Deadline: Dec. 10. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Training Manager, Hillsborough County, Fla.— The Supervisor of Elections administers all federal, state, county, municipal and special district elections in Hillsborough County. It’s our responsibility to process all voter registration applications received from qualified Florida residents, and also to educate Hillsborough County residents about registering to vote. We issue Voter Information Cards to all newly registered voters, and reissue those cards when there are changes to a voter’s registration information or polling place. Maintaining our voter database is a huge undertaking and one we take great care with. We hold countywide elections, as well as municipal elections for the City of Tampa, Plant City and Temple Terrace, and work with the county and municipalities periodically on reapportionment, redistricting and drawing precinct boundaries. Candidates for county, district and special district offices file and qualify for candidacy with our office. We also receive the forms and financial reports that candidates, committees and political parties are required to file. And our office verifies and certifies all petition signatures for candidates and ballot initiatives. Responsible for designing, developing, and executing training programs for election-cycle employees. Employs training delivery methods best suited for the audience, timeframe and space constraints. Salary:$48,000. Deadline: Dec. 29. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Marketplace

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