On July 18, an en banc decision of the Fifth Circuit said Mississippi’s ban on ex-felon voting does not violate the Eighth Amendment. The original panel in this same case had ruled that the ban does violate the Eigth Amendment, which bans cruel and unusual punishment. Hopkins v Watsoon, 19-60662. Here is the decision. The vote was 13-6.
Mississippi will elect its entire legislature in November 2025, even though all state legislators were also up for re-election in November 2023 and Mississippi provides for four-year terms for all its legislators, in both houses. On July 18, 2024, a 3-judge U.S. District Court issued a ruling in Mississippi State Conference of the NAACP v State Board of Election Commissioners, 3:22cv-734, s.d. The panel had already ruled on July 2 that the districts violate the federal Voting Rights Act. The July 18 ruling says the legislature need not redraw the districts immediately and need not hold legislative elections this year.
As already reported, the North Carolina State Board of Elections rejected the petition for the Justice for All Party, even though the county boards of election said it has enough valid signatures. Democrats on the state board had then said they believe the circulators misrepresented the contents of the petition to signers. The Justice for All Party is the party formed to support Cornel West.
West has obtained the services of the same attorney who won a similar case for the Green Party against North Carolina in 202. A federal lawsuit is expected in the coming week.
Recently Indiana county election officials finished validating the petition to place Jill Stein on the ballot as the Green Party nominee. They said only 40% of the signatures are valid, and therefore she is short 9,000 signatures. However the results are suspect, because Stein had the same paid circulators as Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., and he was told his validity rate was 60% and therefore sufficient.
Signers can sign multiple petitions for the same office in Indiana. The Green Party will try to do a re-validation process.
No Green Party presidential nominee has ever appeared on the Indiana ballot. 2024 is the first time the party have made a big effort in a statewide Indiana petition.
The Democratic National Committee still says it will nominate for president and vice-president by a virtual roll-call of the delegates, in advance of the actual physical national convention. See this story. But they say the virtual roll-call will be in August, not July.
