On October 12, U.S. District Court Judge David J. Novak refused to dismiss the lawsuit Goldman v Northam, e.d., 3:21cv-420. He also requested that the chief judge of the Fourth Circuit appoint two more judges for this case. The chief judge of the Fourth Circuit did make such appointments on October 13.

The issue is whether it violates one-person, one-vote, for Virginia to use districts based on the 2010 census to elect its House of Delegates on November 2, 2021. A hearing will be held in this case on December 3, 2021. It is possible that the election returns for House of Delegates held next month will be nullified, and a new election scheduled, after new districts, based on the 2020 census. Or it is possible that the 2021 election returns will be valid, but the winners will only be permitted to serve one year terms.

On Tuesday, October 12, the Georgia Secretary of State presented evidence in state trial court that his investigators had examined all the Fulton County absentee ballots, and found none suspicious. There had been charges that some of them had never been creased, but the investigation found no such ballots. On Wednesday, the state court relied on that evidence to dismiss the case. See this story. Thanks to PoliticalWire for the link.

On October 12, the Montana Democratic Party filed a federal lawsuit against a new Montana law that prohibits any political committee from petitioning inside a public college residence hall, dining facility, or athletic facility. The new law, SB 319, also bans voter registration drives inside such places. Montana Democratic Party v Jacobsen, 9:21cv-119.

The case is assigned to U.S. District Court Judge Donald W. Molloy, a Clinton appointee. Thanks to the Institute for Free Speech for the link.