On September 9, the Republican National Committee asked for a rehearing in the Third Circuit in Eakin v Adams County Board of Elections, 25-1644. This is the lawsuit over the much-litigated Pennsylvania law that says a postal ballot voter must include the date the voter put the ballot in the mail on the outer envelope. No other state has such a law. The Third Circuit had invalidated the law because the panel did not believe the requirement serves any purpose. When postal ballots arrive in Pennsylvania elections offices, each envelope is date-stamped.

The panel decision had been 3-0, and the judge who signed the opinion is a Republican appointee, Judge D. Brooks Smith. But Smith is not a full-time judge, so he can’t vote on the rehearing request. The Third Circuit has thirteen full-time judges, including seven appointed by Republican presidents, and six appointed by Democratic presidents. The issue seems to be a partisan issue, so the rehearing vote is likely to be close. Here is the request for rehearing.

As of Monday afternoon, September 22, Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe still hasn’t signed HB 1, the bill for different U.S. House districts. The bill was presented to him on September 12.

Arkansas has always had open primaries. But starting in 2026, registered Democrats won’t be able to vote in Republican primaries. Several years ago the state added a question about party membership to the voter registration form. The vast majority of Arkansas voters haven’t had to use the new form, so they continue to be unaffiliated with any party. But the Arkansas Republican Party recently passed a rule that says people who have registered with a party can’t vote in future Republican primaries, unless of course they had joined the Republican Party.

There are 86,497 registered Democrats, 742 registered Libertarians, and 120 registered Greens, and they won’t be able to vote in future Republican primaries. However, they can change their registration at any time, even as late as primary day.