On April 25, the state of New York filed its supplemental brief in Walden v Kosinski, 25-764. This is the lawsuit over an independent candidate in New York may choose “Independence” as part or all of his or her ballot label. The state’s supplemental brief insists that the ban does cover all independent candidates. The Second Circuit judges had asked both sides for a supplemental brief on whether the ban just applies to the names of qualified parties, or also to ballot labels for independents.

Later on April 25, the candidate who wants to use “Independence” as his party label filed a brief, agreeing that the law does apply to him and that it won’t permit him to use “Independence”.

This case will be decided very quickly, because we are now in the petitioning period for independent candidates in New York for 2025 elections.

On April 24, U.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Katelly, a Clinton appointee, issued a 120-page order in League of United Latin American Citizens v Executive Office of the President, 1:25cv-946. It says that the President does not have the power to alter the federal voter registration form. In March President Trump had issued an executive order that applicants who use the form must attach documents that prove U.S. citizenship.

On March 25, President Donald Trump issued an Executive Order that the federal voter registration form should be altered to provide that applicants must attach proof of citizenship. On April 3, nineteen states filed a federal lawsuit to overturn the Executive Order, on the grounds that the President has no authority to alter the form. State of California v Trump, U.S. District Court of Massachusetts, 1:25cv-10810. The case is assigned to U.S. District Court Judge Denise Casper, an Obama appointee. Here is the Complaint.