Democrats, Republicans battle over election rules in Harris-Trump face off
WASHINGTON (Reuters) — The U.S. presidential contest between Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump features an array of legal battles over how the votes are cast and counted that are likely to last beyond Election Day on Nov. 5.
Here are some of the most significant voting-related disputes that are playing out in the seven competitive swing states that are likely to determine the outcome of the election. Together they control 94 of the 270 Electoral College votes a candidate needs to win:
ARIZONA
11 Electoral College votes
2020 winner: Democratic President Joe Biden
Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs, Republican-controlled state legislature
State laws that prevent people from being registered to vote in different places remain in effect under a federal appeals court ruling. The laws allow counties to cancel registrations of voters who have moved out of state and makes it a crime to help an out-of-state resident vote in Arizona. Voting-rights groups had said they unfairly targeted voter-registration efforts.
A conservative legal group has also sued to force election officials to verify that registered voters are U.S. citizens.
Separately, the state’s Supreme Court ruled in September that 97,000 registered voters should not be disqualified because the state does not have proof that they are U.S. citizens. The voters in question had been registered before 2004, when the state passed a law requiring proof of citizenship to vote in state and local elections.
The state Supreme Court also dismissed a lawsuit brought by a conservative group that sought to roll back expanded voter registration and ballot drop options.
GEORGIA
16 Electoral College votes
2020 winner: Biden
Republican Governor Brian Kemp, Republican legislature
The Republican-controlled state election board has required ballots to be counted by hand to ensure the total number of votes matches the total number of voters. Democratic and Republican officials have said this would slow down and potentially inject chaos in the vote counting process.
The panel also has given county officials more power to investigate vote results, which could potentially enable Trump allies to block certification if he loses.
Democrats have sued the Georgia Election Board to block enforcement of that second rule, with a trial scheduled for Oct. 1. The hand-count requirement is likely to be challenged in court as well.
Democrats and voting rights groups are also seeking to overturn a 2021 overhaul of election laws that they say aims to suppress turnout among Democratic-leaning groups.
MICHIGAN
15 Electoral College votes
2020 winner: Biden
Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Democratic legislature
The Republican National Committee has filed several lawsuits challenging the way the state counts absentee ballots, and has also sued to block the state from allowing veterans and small business agencies to register voters.
NEVADA
6 Electoral College votes
2020 winner: Biden
Republican Governor Joe Lombardo, Democratic legislature
The Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee have sued to force officials to verify that registered voters are U.S. citizens, saying the state has not done enough to prevent non-citizens from voting.
Trump and his allies have claimed that the election could be skewed by widespread voting by non-citizens, though they have provided little evidence in court filings.
NORTH CAROLINA
16 Electoral College votes
2020 winner: Trump
Democratic Governor Roy Cooper, Republican legislature
The Republican National Committee sued to prevent the state from accepting digital identification cards issued by the University of North Carolina at polling places, which could make it more difficult for students to vote.
A state court denied the request on Sept. 19 and the RNC is appealing that decision.
Republicans have also sued to invalidate absentee ballots that have not been properly sealed.
PENNSYLVANIA
19 Electoral College votes
2020 winner: Biden
Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro, divided legislature
The state Supreme Court ruled that mail ballots must be rejected if they do not have the correct date written on their outer envelope. Voting rights groups had argued that the requirement serves no purpose and has invalidated thousands of legitimate ballots.
Pennsylvania’s highest court is also considering whether counties must count provisional ballots cast at polling places by voters whose mail-in ballots were rejected due to flaws like missing secrecy envelopes.
Separately, election officials may again need several days to tally those mail ballots, as state law does not allow them to begin processing them until Election Day. That risks repeating the chaos of the 2020 election, when Trump and his allies used the delay to sow doubts about the validity of the outcome.
WISCONSIN
10 Electoral College votes
2020 winner: Biden
Democratic Governor Tony Evers, Republican legislature
The State Supreme Court is considering a case brought by a conservative group that would bar the use of mobile voting sites on the grounds that they give Democrats an unfair advantage. The court is also considering whether election workers can allow voters to fix errors on absentee ballots.
As in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin also may not be able to quickly declare a winner as it does not allow absentee ballots to be preprocessed before Election Day.
