The February 13 ruling by the Supreme Court of Virginia to allow the upcoming statewide vote on acceptance of a Democratic Party of Virginia Congressional redistricting plan not withstanding, the Virginia GOP refuses to throw in the towel in its attempt to put a halt to it. On Wednesday, February 18, it filed suit to challenge the ballot language of the initiative, not the legality of the initiative itself. The case is Republican National Committee v Koski, Circuit Court, Tazewell County.

Here is the latest, hot off the press from Democracy Docket.

Law Professor John J. Martin of Quinnipiac University has this essay, pointing out that Congress has no authority to set voter qualifications, even in federal elections. Article One lets Congress write laws on the “time, place and manner” of congressional elections. But those categories don’t include anything about voter eligibility. Therefore, the SAVE America bill recently passed by the U.S. House, mandating that only citizens can vote in federal elections, has no constitutional basis.

The article also points out that nineteen states let non-citizens vote during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Also currently 20 local governments allow non-citizens to vote in elections for their own officers.

On February 17, the Virginia House passed HB 630. It lets any local jurisdiction use ranked choice voting for elections for its own officers. The vote was 62-34. No Democrats voted “no” and no Republicans voted “yes.”