On December 4, the Arizona Democratic Party filed a lawsuit in state court against the Secretary of State, to try and stop the No Labels Party change its name to the Arizona Independent Party. See this story.
The case is Arizona Democratic Party v Fontes, Superior Court, Maricopa County, cv2025-64362.
When Virginia was readmitted to the Union after the Civil War, the act said that as a condition of being readmitted, Virginia could not newly deprive anyone of the right to vote, except that persons who had committed “felonies at common law” could be deprived of the vote. In 2023 a federal lawsuit was filed by Virginia felons who had committee drug law feloonies, arguing that they should be allowed to register to vote under the terms of the 1870 readmission act.
Virginia objected that the readmission act could not be used as a basis for a lawsuit, but lost on that in the Fourth Circuit. The state then appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, but that court refused to hear the state’s appeal.
The case is back in U.S. District Court. Here is the latest brief, which was filed by the plaintiffs. It argues that the only “felonies at common law” in Virginia in 1870 were: arson, burglary, jail escape, homicide, larceny, mayhem, rape, robbery, sodomy, suicide, and treason. Therefore, the plaintiffs argue, the state can’t prevent people from registering to vote on the grounds that they committed a felony not on that historic list.
The case is King v O’Bannon, e.d., 3:23cv-408. The case is before Judge John A. Gibney, Jr., an Obama appointee.
On December 8, U.S. District Court Judge Zachary M. Bluestone, a Trump appointee, dismissed Missouri General Assembly v Glahn, e.d., 4:25cv-1535. This is the lawsuit that the state legislature had filed to stop the referendum petition involving new U.S. House district boundaries. Here is his opinion.
The state legislature had argued that the U.S. Constitution does not allow referenda or initiatives to be used to change election laws that relate to congressional elections. Some people read Article One to say that only legislatures can pass or alter election laws dealing with congressional elections. The judge said the case is not ripe. The petition is still being circulated. After it has been circulated and the signatures verified, then the issue could return to court.
The opinion has an interesting footnote one, listing the six cases pending in state court over the law that changes U.S. House district boundaries.
On November 9, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in National Republican Senatorial Committee v Federal Election Commission, 24-3051. This is the case filed to challenge the federal campaign finance law that controls how much money a political party may spend on its own nominees, assuming the party and the nominee coordinate their activity.
Here is a news story about the argument. UPDATE: here is a more detailed story. UPDATE: here is the transcript.
On November 11, a paid petitioning firm, Advanced Micro Targeting, filed a federal lawsuit to stop another organization that is playing dirty tricks to stop the Missouri referendum petition that AMT is circulating. Advanced Micro Targeting v Let the Voters Decide, w.d. Missouri, 4:25cv-881. Let the Voters Decide is a Florida organization that is not actually trying to help get anyone or any organization on the ballot in any state. Instead it is trying to persuade employees of AMT to break their contract and to take other steps to sabotage the Missouri referendum.
Here is the Complaint. The case is assigned to U.S. District Court Judge Greg Kays, a Bush Jr. appointee.
