On October 28, U.S. District Court Joan Gottschall issued her opinion in Segovia v Board of Election Commissioners for Chicago, n.d., 15c-10196. The plaintiffs are U.S. citizens who live in Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Even though they are citizens who formerly lived in Illinois, the state will not furnish them with overseas absentee ballots. But, due to an outdated Illinois law, former Illinois residents who are citizens and who move to American Samoa may receive Illinois overseas absentee ballots.

The 18-page decision says there is a rational reason for the Illinois policy.

On October 31, the Michigan voters fighting the ban on photography at a polling place ask for an en banc review in their lawsuit, Crookston v Johnson, 16-2490. A few hours later, the court asked the state to respond. The state’s response is due November 1 at 3 p.m. central time. The original 3-judge panel had kept the ban in place, by a 2-1 vote. Thanks to John Anthony LaPietra for this news.

Ohio Governor John Kasich has already voted in the November 8 election. He told the press that for president, he wrote in John McCain. See this story. As the story notes, John McCain is not a declared presidential write-in candidate, so Kasich’s vote will not be tallied.

Between 1947 and 1968, Ohio did not permit write-in votes in the general election. In 1968 a 3-judge U.S. District Court ruled in Socialist Labor Party v Rhodes that the U.S. Constitution requires write-in space on the ballot, so the legislature legalized write-ins in 1969. Thanks to Political Wire for the link.