On August 27, the Colorado Supreme Court struck down a state law that said if voters in a recall election fail to vote on whether the officer should be recalled, then they may not vote on the second half of the ballot. The second half of the ballot asks, in case the recall succeeds, which candidate should replace the recalled officer. The Court did not explain its reasoning, but said it would do so later.

This opinion does not stop the September 10 recall of two State Senators; it just clarifies that ballots are valid even if the voter leaves the top half blank. Thanks to Rick Hasen for this news.

On August 26, the Green Party of Tennessee filed a federal lawsuit against Tennessee’s law that requires voters at the polls to show certain kinds of government photo-ID. The case is in the eastern district and is Green Party of Tennessee v Hargett. Here is the Complaint.

The lawsuit does not argue that it is unconstitutional for the state to require photo-ID, but says that the types of photo-ID are too limited. See this story about the lawsuit.

On August 26, the California Assembly passed SB 213, which removes all residency requirements for petitioners of all types of petition. The bill now goes to the Governor.

Also on August 26, the California Senate unanimously passed AB 1419, which moves the deadline for a newly-qualifying party in presidential election years from January to July. The bill must return to the Assembly because the bill was amended after it passed the Assembly the first time. The amendment is not substantive and relates to which government must pay the extra costs associated with the bill.