Voting Rights, Registration and Requirements

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      On Conservative Radio, Misleading Message Is Clear: ‘Democrats Cheat’

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      Election fraud claims from 2020 are widespread on talk radio, contributing to the belief that the midterm results cannot be trusted.Listen to This ArticleTo hear more audio stories from publications like The New York Times, download Audm for iPhone or Android.November’s midterm elections are still months away, but to many conservative commentators, the fix is already in. Democrats have cheated before, they say, and they will cheat again.Never mind that the claims are false.In Lafayette, La., Carol Ross, host of “The Ross Report,” questioned how Democrats could win a presidential election again after a tumultuous few years in power. “They’re going to have to cheat again,” she said. “You know that. There will be rampant cheating.”In Greenville, S.C., Charlie James, a host on 106.3 WORD, read from a blog post arguing that “the Democrats are going to lose a majority during the midterm elections unless they’re able to cheat in a massive wide-scale way.”And on WJFN in Virginia, Stephen K. Bannon, the erstwhile adviser to former President Donald J. Trump who was indicted for refusing to comply with subpoenas issued by the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, summed it up this way: “If Democrats don’t cheat, they don’t win.”Mr. Trump introduced the nation to a flurry of false claims about widespread voter fraud after his electoral loss in 2020. The extent of his efforts has been outlined extensively in the past couple of weeks during the hearings on the Jan. 6 Capitol riot — including a speech that day in which he falsely said Democrats changed voting laws “because they want to cheat.”Republican politicians and cable outlets like Fox News have carried the torch for Mr. Trump’s conspiracy theories ever since. But the loudest and most consistent booster of these unfounded claims has been talk radio, where conservative hosts reduce the jumble of false voter fraud theories into a two-word mantra: “Democrats cheat.” More

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      Missouri Enacts Strict New Voter Rules and Will Switch to Caucuses

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      Missouri overhauled its election rules on Wednesday, enacting a voter identification law similar to one the state’s highest court blocked two years ago and doing away with its presidential primary in favor of a caucus system.The new law, which Gov. Michael L. Parson signed at the State Capitol in Jefferson City, requires voters to present a photo ID when casting a regular or absentee ballot. Those without such documentation will be required to fill out a provisional ballot that would be segregated until they provide photo identification or their signature is matched to the one kept on file by election officials.The voter identification rule was the latest instituted in a Republican-controlled state, and reflected the party’s continued mistrust of common voting practices, including the use of voting machines. It requires the use of hand-marked paper ballots statewide starting in 2023, with limited exceptions for certain touch-screen systems until the end of next year.Among the other changes is a prohibition against the use of drop boxes for absentee ballots — a practice that many Republicans criticized during the 2020 presidential election — and replacing Missouri’s presidential primary, held in recent years in March, with a series of caucuses.The proposal advanced in the spring from the Legislature, where its Republican sponsors have continued to cite unsubstantiated and nonspecific voter fraud claims — just as former President Donald J. Trump has done — as the impetus for the voter ID law.The law will take effect on Aug. 28, in time for the November election but not until after Missouri holds its primaries on Aug. 2.Missouri voters approved a constitutional amendment in 2016 that led to a previous set of voter ID rules, but the state Supreme Court gutted those rules in 2020. The rules had stipulated that voters without the required ID had to fill out an affidavit or use provisional ballots until their identity could be validated.The president of the League of Women Voters of Missouri told The St. Louis Post-Dispatch this month to expect legal challenges to the new law, which the group said could disenfranchise voters of color and those who are young or older.While paper ballots are already overwhelmingly used in Missouri, Republicans have sought to scale back the use of electronic voting equipment nationwide, spreading falsehoods that the devices were rigged during the 2020 presidential election.The new law repealed provisions enacted at the start of the coronavirus pandemic that permitted mail and absentee voting in the 2020 general election, but Republicans compromised with Democrats to allow two weeks of no-excuse in-person absentee balloting. However, those ballots must be submitted at a local election office. Military and overseas voters will still be permitted to mail their ballots.The law also makes it illegal for local election authorities to accept private donations in most circumstances. More

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      Colorado: How to vote, Where to Vote and What’s on the Ballot

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      Colorado conducts its elections mainly by mail, but voters do have the option to cast their ballot in person on Tuesday. Here’s what to know:How to voteEvery registered voter in Colorado was mailed a ballot. To be counted, ballots must be received by a county election official by 7 p.m. local time.You can check the status of your mail ballot through the secretary of state’s website.Not sure if you’re registered to vote? You can search the state’s voter rolls here by providing your name, birthday and ZIP code.Where to voteIf you prefer to cast a ballot in person, on Election Day, you can vote at any polling location in your county from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. You can find ones closest to you by searching your address here, which will also show you the closest ballot drop box locations.What’s on the ballotSeveral statewide offices are on the ballot this year. Senator Michael Bennet, a Democrat, is seeking his third term. Gov. Jared Polis, also a Democrat, is defending the seat he has held since 2019. There are also primaries in House races.Colorado voters can see exactly what will appear on their ballots here. More

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      North Dakota Primary Guide: How to Vote, Poll Locations and What’s on the Ballot

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      Nervous that you forgot to register to vote? Don’t sweat it. North Dakota does not require people to register to vote.How to voteEligible voters can cast a ballot today by providing “acceptable identification,” at their polling site, according to North Dakota’s secretary of state. That includes a locally issued driver’s license, a state identification card or a tribal, government-issued identification card.If you used an absentee or mail ballot, check its status on this page. The deadline to return such ballots was Monday. Request an absentee or mail ballot for future elections here.Where to voteUse this site to find your voting place.What’s on the ballotRepublicans will pick a nominee for Senate, as well as secretary of state. Depending on where you live, you may also pick candidates for state legislative and local offices.This site will show you your sample ballot. More

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      Nevada: How to Vote, Where to Vote and What’s on the Ballot

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      Nevada voters can weigh in on some key contests today. Here’s a last-minute guide for Election Day.How to voteAll registered voters in Nevada should have received a ballot by mail, unless they requested to opt out, according to Nevada’s secretary of state.Voters can use this page to check the status of their ballots and to check their voter registration status. Absentee ballots must be postmarked by today and received by the county clerk’s office, or registrar of voters, by 5 p.m. local time on Saturday, according to the secretary of state’s office.Didn’t register yet? That’s OK. Nevada offers same-day registration for people casting ballots in person.Where to voteVoters can use this site to find their polling place.What’s on the ballotVoters will be asked to pick candidates for governor, secretary of state, Senate and, depending on where they live, members of the House of Representatives.To see your sample ballot, use this site. More

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      Maine Primary Guide: How to Vote and What’s on the Ballot

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      Maine offers same-day voter registration, so there’s still time to cast a ballot in person today.How to voteNot sure if you’re registered to vote? You can check here. If you’re not registered, don’t worry. The secretary of state’s website says, “There is no cutoff date for registering to vote in person at your town office or city hall.”The deadline to apply for an absentee ballot, however, was last week. You can go here to request an absentee ballot for future elections.To check the status of your absentee ballot, visit this page.Where to voteThis site will help you find your voting place.Absentee ballots must be returned to your municipal clerk by 8 p.m. on Election Day, according Maine’s secretary of state.What’s on the ballotRepublicans in Maine’s Second Congressional District will pick a nominee to run against Representative Jared Golden, a Democrat, in November. Depending on where you live, you may also pick a nominee for a state legislative or local office.To see which candidates will appear on your ballot, use this site (it’s also the site that allows you to find your polling location). More

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      South Carolina Primary Guide: How to Vote and What’s on the Ballot

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      Not sure if you can vote? Or where? We’ve got you covered. Here is a handy, last-minute guide to voting in South Carolina.How to votePolls close in South Carolina at 7 p.m. Eastern time. People who are in line at their polling location at that time will be allowed to vote.The deadline to register to vote is at least 30 days before any election. Not sure if you’re registered? You can check on this page, with your name, date of birth and part of your Social Security number.If you used an absentee ballot, you can track its status here. Want to use an absentee ballot in the future? Here are the guidelines.Where to voteYou can find polling places near you on this site (it’s the same as where you check your voter registration status).According to the South Carolina secretary of state’s website, absentee ballots must be received by the county voter registration office by 7 p.m. Eastern time on Election Day.What’s on the ballotThere are a number of races for statewide office, as well as many local contests. You’ll be asked to make your pick for governor and House races, among others.Find a personalized sample ballot on this site. More

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      Supreme Court Allows Undated Ballots in Pennsylvania Election

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      A state law required mailed ballots to be accompanied by a signed and dated declaration, but a federal appeals court ruled that undated declarations sufficed.WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court said on Thursday that election officials in Pennsylvania may count mailed ballots accompanied by voters’ declarations that were signed but not dated. The court’s order came in a tight race for a seat on a state court, but it is likely to affect other contests in the state as well.The court’s brief order gave no reasons, which is typical when the justices act on emergency applications.The court’s three most conservative members — Justices Samuel A. Alito Jr., Clarence Thomas and Neil M. Gorsuch — dissented, saying that the court should address the issue presented in the case in time for the November elections.The case concerned a state law enacted in 2019 that permitted all registered voters to vote by mail. The law required voters using mailed ballots to “fill out, date and sign” a declaration printed on the outside of the return envelope that said they were qualified to vote.The Supreme Court’s order let stand a ruling from a unanimous three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, in Philadelphia, which said the part of the state law requiring the declarations to be dated ran afoul of a provision of the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964. The provision prohibits government officials from denying the right to vote “because of an error or omission” if it “is not material in determining whether such individual is qualified under state law to vote.”The case arose from an election in November 2021 for a seat on the Lehigh County Court of Common Pleas in which David Ritter, a Republican, leads Zachary Cohen, a Democrat, by 71 votes. The local elections board determined that it would also count 257 undated ballots, and challenges in state and federal court followed.It was undisputed that the undated ballots were received by Election Day and that the elections board had accepted ballots with incorrect dates, including birth dates, rejecting only missing ones.The suit, brought by five voters who had submitted undated ballots, argued that the federal law required that all 257 undated ballots be counted. The voters, represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, told the Supreme Court that requiring a date served no purpose.“The handwritten date is so inconsequential that the Board of Elections accepted ballots where voters wrote any date whatsoever on the return envelope, even dates from decades ago,” the voters’ brief said. “The county clerk affirmed he would have accepted envelope dates from the future. Yet voters who mistakenly omitted the envelope date were disenfranchised.”In March, Judge Joseph F. Leeson Jr. of the Federal District Court in Allentown, Pa., rejected the suit, saying that only the attorney general was authorized to sue under the federal law.The Third Circuit disagreed, saying that the voters were entitled to sue and that the requirement of a dated declaration did not help determine whether the voter was qualified. “The requirement is material if it goes to determining age, citizenship, residency or current imprisonment for a felony,” Judge Theodore A. McKee wrote, concluding that adding a date to a signature did not aid in those determinations.Justice Alito, writing for the three dissenters, said the federal law did not appear to address the requirement that voters date their declarations.“When a mail-in ballot is not counted because it was not filled out correctly, the voter is not denied ‘the right to vote,’” he wrote. “Rather, that individual’s vote is not counted because he or she did not follow the rules for casting a ballot.”Understand the Battle Over U.S. Voting RightsCard 1 of 6Why are voting rights an issue now? More