U.S. District Court Strikes Down New York Law Criminalizing Giving Food or Drink to Voters Standing in Line at the Polls

Posted on by May 30, 2024
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On May 30, U.S. District Court Judge Katherine Polk Failla, an Obama appointee, struck down the New York law that makes it a crime for anyone to give food, drink, or tobacco to any voter standing in line at the polls on election day.  The Brooklyn Branch of the NAACP v Kosinski, s.d., 1:21cv-7667.

Here is the opinion, which is based on the free speech part of the First Amendment.  Testimony showed that people who want to give food or drinks to people in line mean to convey the message that voting is important and that the voters waiting patiently should be encouraged.  The decision says that there have been elections in which voters waited as long as five hours in order to vote.

The decision also says that New York’s defense of the law is inherently contradictory.  On the one hand the state argued that the law isn’t generally enforced, but on the other hand the state insisted the law is necessary.  The case had been filed in 2021 and has a considerable amount of evidence.  Thanks to DemocracyDocket for the link.

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Files Ballot Access Lawsuit in New York

Posted on by May 30, 2024
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On May 29, the Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. campaign filed a federal lawsuit against various aspects of the New York independent presidential petition law.  Team Kennedy v Berger, s.d., 1:24cv-03897.  The case is assigned to U.S. District Court Judge Andrew L. Carter, Jr., an Obama appointee.

Even though Kennedy submitted three times the number of signatures over the legal requirement, both Democratic and Republican Party New York officials have announced that they intend to challenge the petition.

Here is the Complaint.

Angus King, One of the Three Independents in the U.S. Senate, Will Run for Re-Election

Posted on by May 29, 2024
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On May 29, independent U.S. Senator Angus King announced that he is running for re-election, again as an independent.  The Senate has three independents, all of them up for re-election this year.  Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont is also running for re-election.  Senator Kyrsten Sinema is not running for re-election.

Sixth Circuit Rules 2-1 that Ohio Attorneys General Cannot Indefinitely Block Circulation of Initiative Petitions

Posted on by May 29, 2024
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On May 29, the Sixth Circuit issued an opinion in Brown v Yost, 24-3354, that is protective of the ability of people to use the initiative process in Ohio.  The Ohio law does not permit a statewide initiative to circulate until the proponents collect 1,000 signatures and submit their proposed initiative and a summary to the Attorney General.  If the Attorney General agrees that the summary is fair, he or she then send it on the Ohio Ballot Board, which then sends it on to the Secretary of State.  Only then can the group start to collect the signatures.  This year 413,000 signatures are needed, and the due date is July 3.

The group that filed the lawsuit has been trying to get started since last year, but the Attorney General has rejected their proposed summary six times.  The Sixth Circuit ordered the Attorney General to send the paperwork to the Ohio Ballot Board, a process that should be quick and should let the group finally start to get its signatures.  The measure would abolish qualified immunity for police officers.  The decision was 2-1.  Here is the Opinion.  It is by Judge Karen Nelson Moore, a Clinton appointee, and is also signed by Judge Andre Mathis, a Biden appointee.  The dissent is by Judge John K. Bush, a Trump appointee.