An Oregon initiative called the “Voter Fairness Act” will begin to circulate soon. It would amend the State Constitution to say that there should be a system in which parties must either nominate by convention, or participate in a primary that is open to all voters. A party would decide 250 days before an election whether it wants to have nominees, but if it does, it can only nominate them by convention at its own expense. If it doesn’t want to do that, its candidates would run in a May primary in which candidates from all the non-convention parties would run. It would be up to the legislature to choose how many primary candidates would advance to the general election.

Here is the text, which is proposal 55.

On October 24, the Third Circuit voted 8-6 not to rehear Eakin v Adams County Board of Elections, 25-1644. This is the case over Pennsylvania postal absentee ballots, and whether a voter who forgets to fill out the date on the outer envelope loses his or her vote as a result.

On October 23, U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, dismissed a lawsuit filed by a Texas member of Congress, Ronny Jackson. The case had been filed in Texas to stop the California election. The plaintiff, Jackson, claimed that if the California election went ahead, that would make it likely that Democrats would gain a majority in the U.S. House in November 2026, and that would injure Jackson because he would have less influence. Jackson v Weber, n.d. of Texas, 2:25cv-197. Judge Kacsmaryk, a Trump appointee, said Jackson did not have standing. Here is the order of dismissal.

On October 24, U.S. District Court Judge Kenly Kato, a Biden appointee, refused to enjoin the California election in a lawsuit filed by Steve Hilton, a California Republican candidate for Governor in 2026. Hilton v Weber, c.d., 8:25cv-1988. The case is still alive but the judge said the lawsuit can continue after the election, if Prop. 50 passes. Hilton had charged that the districts would not be equal in population, and also that California precedent doesn’t merit mid-decade districting. Here is his Complaint.