A lawsuit is currently pending in U.S. District Court in Colorado over the law that requires presidential electors to vote in the electoral college for the candidate who received the most popular votes in Colorado. It had been filed last year by two Democratic presidential electors who wanted to vote for someone other than Hillary Clinton. The two electors did not receive injunctive relief, but they hope to eventually win declaratory relief, or at least to settle the issue for future presidential elections.

On January 12, the Colorado Secretary of State asked the court to be relieved from the discovery process. The electors want information about the Secretary of State’s press release issued the date the lawsuit had been filed; they want information about the Secretary of State’s efforts to re-word the oath that presidential electors must take just prior to voting; and they want information about the Secretary of State’s referral of a third Democratic presidential elector, Michael Baca, for prosecution (Baca is not a plaintiff, but when the electors voted at the state capitol, he cast a ballot for Bernie Sanders; he was then ejected as an elector).

The state says it would be burdensome to produce all the records. The state also says that if discovery goes forward and Michael Baca is deposed, he may possibly plead the Fifth Amendment and refuse to testify. This argument seems far-fetched. From what is known about Michael Baca, a champion of freedom for presidential electors to vote for any qualified candidate, it seems very likely he would be in favor of letting discovery proceed.

The plaintiffs have not yet responded to the motion for discovery.