On June 10, the U.S. House Administration Committee passed three bills by Congressmember Susan Davis, a Democrat from San Diego. All three of these bills only relate to federal elections.

HR 1604 would require states to let any eligible voter vote by mail. Currently, 22 states do not let any voter vote by mail unless that voter alleges that he or she will be away from home, or is physically unable to visit a polling place on election day. This bill has 50 co-sponsors and passed Committee by a vote of 4-2. It had been introduced on March 19 and is called the “Universal Right to Vote by Mail Act.”

HR 2510 grants money to states to establish systems to track absentee ballots, so that a voter who votes absentee can learn if the ballot is on the way to him or her, and also if it was received and counted afterwards. HR 2510 was introduced May 20, has 4 co-sponsors, and passed on a voice vote. It is called the “Absentee Ballot Track, Receive and Confirm Act.”

HR 512 makes it illegal for a state’s chief elections officer to engage in any partisan political activity on behalf of a candidate for federal office, much like the original Hatch Act of 1939 that forbade all federal employees from engaging in partisan political activity. This bill was introduced on January 14, has 2 co-sponsors, and was passed on a voice vote. It is called the “Federal Election Integrity Act.”

On June 11, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled unanimously that nothing in the Minnesota Constitution is inconsistent with a city’s choice to use Instant Runoff Voting for its own elections. The 30-page decision is here. Thanks to Rick Hasen for the link. The case is Minnesota Voters Alliance v City of Minneapolis. The Minnesota Voters Alliance is the group that opposed IRV.

On June 10, the Maine legislature gave final approval to LD 1041, which revises how a qualified party remains on the ballot. The bill will soon be forwarded to the Governor, who has 10 days to sign or veto it, not counting Sundays.

Existing law requires a party to poll 5% at either of the last two elections, for the office at the top of the ticket (Governor or President). The bill replaces that with the requirement that a party have 10,000 registered members who voted at the last election. Currently, 10,000 is 1.06% of the number of registered voters in Maine.