On December 9, Colorado filed this brief in Baca v Hickenlooper, the case over whether presidential electors can vote for any qualified presidential candidate, or whether they can be replaced if they vote for someone different than expected.

The only U.S. Supreme Court precedent on this subject is Ray v Blair, 1952. Most people probably don’t realize when they read about Ray v Blair that in 1952 and previous years, the Alabama Democratic Party chose its candidates for presidential elector in a primary. Nowadays, no party chooses candidates for presidential elector in a primary. In Ray v Blair, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a Democratic Party rule that no one could get on a party’s primary ballot (as a candidate for presidential elector) unless that person signed a pledge promising to vote for the party’s eventual presidential nominee. Thus Ray v Blair was about the right of parties to control who could seek their nomination. It was not about the ability of presidential electors to vote freely in December. Thanks to Politico for the link.

UPDATE: here is the brief of the intervenor, the Colorado Republican Committee.

On December 9, a U.S. District Court Judge in Colorado set a hearing date in Baca v Hickenlooper. This is the Colorado lawsuit over whether the Secretary of State can remove presidential electors who say they won’t vote for their party’s presidential nominee. The hearing is at 3 p.m. in Denver federal courthouse, room A-1002. The plaintiff presidential electors are seeking a court order to safeguard their positions as electors. The state’s brief is due by Friday, December 9, at 5 p.m.

UPDATE: the Colorado Republican Party has asked to intervene in the lawsuit, and the state has asked for permission from the court to file an oversized brief.

According to this story, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, a Democrat, will try to persuade the 2017 session of the legislature to ease the deadline for parties to switch parties. Current law forces voters who are registered in one party, but who want to vote in the primary of another party, to change more than six months before the primary. Schneiderman wants to ease the deadline to 25 days before the primary (if the change is submitted by postal mail) and 10 days before the primary, for individuals who appear in person at the voter registration office.