Tag Archives: TDP

Voter Registration Week

Posted on September 3, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It’s been going on all week, and a busy week this has been. After seeing record turnout for this year’s primaries and runoffs, Texas Democrats are striving for even higher numbers in the general election. They have a large pool … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit hears arguments on vote by mail case

Posted on September 1, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

One more try before it’s too late to make a difference for this year. The Texas Democratic Party’s lawyer argued today before a federal appeals court that the state is unlawfully discriminating against the majority of the voting-age population by … Continue reading →

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More on mail ballots

Posted on August 16, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a second story from the Trib on the attempted destruction of the Postal Service in the name of vote suppression by Donald Trump. “I think the goal of Donald Trump’s comments are to destabilize faith in voting systems and … Continue reading →

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Harris County to join TDP lawsuit over vote by mail

Posted on August 14, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

They do lots of stuff at Commissioners Court. Harris County Commissioners Court voted on Tuesday to join a lawsuit by Texas Democrats suing Gov. Greg Abbott to expand vote-by-mail in Texas. The Democratic-led commissioners court voted 3-2 to join the … Continue reading →

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Texas Dems ramp up mail ballot outreach

Posted on August 11, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a smart move, with some caveats. The Texas Democratic Party [announced] Monday that it is doubling down on its vote-by-mail campaign with a goal of reaching 1.7 million potential mail voters by the end of the month — the … Continue reading →

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Update on that other vote by mail lawsuit

Posted on July 31, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

From Daily Kos: A federal judge has rejected Republican Secretary of State Ruth Hughs’ motion to dismiss a case brought by several Texas voters and civil rights organizations seeking to expand access to absentee voting for the November general election. Plaintiffs are asking the … Continue reading →

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Another lawsuit filed over mobile voting locations

Posted on July 19, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Don’t know that there’s enough time for this to be heard, but it’s a good idea. Mi Familia Vota, the Texas NAACP and two Texas voters this week filed a suit against the state over its election policies, alleging they … Continue reading →

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Dems ask some Supreme Court justices to recuse themselves from convention appeal

Posted on July 11, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Stay with me here, this will all make sense. The Texas Democratic Party on Friday called for four of the state’s nine Supreme Court justices to recuse themselves from a case involving the Texas Republican Party’s in-person convention, claiming each … Continue reading →

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2020 Primary Runoff Early Voting, Second Wednesday: This is all the vote by mail we’re going to get

Posted on July 9, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I’m going to start this update off with a bummer of a legal analysis from Vox’s Ian Millhiser: The Texas case, meanwhile, is Texas Democratic Party v. Abbott, and the stakes in that case are simply enormous. Texas law permits voters … Continue reading →

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No fast track on vote by mail lawsuit

Posted on July 4, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I confess, I hadn’t been aware that this was in the hopper. The U.S. Supreme Court won’t fast-track a bid by Texas Democrats to decide whether all Texas voters can vote by mail during the coronavirus pandemic, leaving in place … Continue reading →

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No relief from SCOTUS on vote by mail

Posted on June 28, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This is not really a surprise. The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected an initial bid by state Democrats to expand voting by mail to all Texas voters during the coronavirus pandemic. Justice Samuel Alito — whose oversight of federal courts … Continue reading →

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Straight ticket voting lawsuit tossed

Posted on June 26, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Not a big surprise. A federal judge on Wednesday threw out Democrats’ effort to reinstate the straight-ticket voting option in Texas. Siding with the state, U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia Marmolejo found that Democrats lacked standing to challenge Texas Republicans’ … Continue reading →

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TDP appeals to SCOTUS on vote by mail

Posted on June 17, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go. After a series of losses in state and federal courts, Texas Democrats are looking to the U.S. Supreme Court to expand voting by mail during the coronavirus pandemic. The Texas Democratic Party on Tuesday asked the high … Continue reading →

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Just a reminder, you can get a mail ballot if you need one

Posted on June 13, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

No one is going to stop you. As Democrats and civil rights groups sue to expand mail-in voting during the pandemic, a recent decision by the Texas Supreme Court has left it up to voters to decide for themselves whether … Continue reading →

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Plaintiffs move for dismissal of state lawsuit over mail ballots

Posted on June 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Not a surprise. The fight over expanding voting by mail in Texas during the coronavirus pandemic appears to be coming to an end in state courts, but a lawsuit continues at the federal level. Following a Texas Supreme Court ruling … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit extends block on vote by mail expansion

Posted on June 5, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Not unexpected, unfortunately. A three-judge panel of the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals extended its order Thursday blocking a lower court’s sweeping ruling that would have allowed all Texas voters to qualify to vote by mail during the coronavirus … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit flips the switch

Posted on May 21, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It’s what they do. A federal appeals court has temporarily put on hold a lower court’s sweeping ruling that would have allowed all Texas voters to qualify to vote by mail during the coronavirus pandemic. Siding with Texas Attorney General … Continue reading →

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Federal court issues order to allow voting by mail

Posted on May 20, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go again. A federal judge opened a path for a massive expansion in absentee voting in Texas by ordering Tuesday that all state voters, regardless of age, qualify for mail-in ballots during the coronavirus pandemic. Days after a … Continue reading →

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First federal vote by mail lawsuit hearing

Posted on May 17, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

One down, two to go. U.S. District Judge Fred Biery heard arguments Friday in a federal lawsuit seeking to give all voters the option to vote by mail due to fears of catching or spreading the coronavirus. […] During Friday’s … Continue reading →

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Supreme Court sticks its nose in

Posted on May 16, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I suppose this was to be expected. The Texas Supreme Court on Friday temporarily put on hold an expansion of voting by mail during the coronavirus pandemic. Siding with Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Supreme Court blocked a state appeals … Continue reading →

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Appeals court upholds vote by mail order

Posted on May 15, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Second round goes to the plaintiffs. A state appeals court upheld a temporary order Thursday from a state district judge that could greatly expand the number of voters who qualify for mail-in ballots during the coronavirus pandemic, rebuffing Attorney General … Continue reading →

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Paxton tries a Supreme shortcut

Posted on May 14, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

They sure are keeping busy. In a bit of judicial leapfrog, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is asking the Texas Supreme Court to weigh in on his interpretation of how voters can qualify for absentee ballots during the coronavirus pandemic. … Continue reading →

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LULAC joins TDP’s federal mail ballot lawsuit

Posted on May 13, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

More plaintiffs, more fun. A prominent Latino civil rights group is jumping into the fight to expand Texas’ voting-by-mail eligibility, alleging the restriction that limits age eligibility for voting by mail to those 65 and older disproportionately harms Texas Latinos … Continue reading →

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Yet another lawsuit over voting by mail

Posted on May 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Turns out there are a lot of obstacles to voting by mail in Texas, and so there are a lot of lawsuits being filed by various plaintiffs to rectify that. A coalition of voters and civil rights groups opened a … Continue reading →

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TDP petitions appeals court to get Paxton to knock it off

Posted on May 8, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The Texas Democratic Party has asked a court to order state officials not to interfere with a previous court order that opened up mail-in voting in the state. In their filing Tuesday with the Third Court of Appeals, lawyers … Continue reading →

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First hearing for TDP federal vote by mail lawsuit set for next week

Posted on May 5, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go. U.S. District Judge Fred Biery has ordered a hearing on expanding vote-by-mail to all Texas voters in advance of the July 14 Democratic Party runoff election. The hearing, set for 9 a.m. May 15, will allow only … Continue reading →

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Paxton threatens county clerks over vote by mail instructions

Posted on May 3, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Seems to me this should get a bit more attention. Attorney General Ken Paxton informed county judges and election officials Friday that if they advise voters who normally aren’t eligible to apply for mail-in ballots due to a fear of … Continue reading →

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The TDP motion for a fast ruling in their federal vote by mail lawsuit

Posted on May 1, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I mentioned this in passing in yesterday’s post, so here are some more details. Updating an ongoing lawsuit, the Texas Democratic Party on Wednesday asked a federal judge in San Antonio to issue an order by May 15 requiring state … Continue reading →

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Age discrimination lawsuit filed over vote by mail

Posted on April 30, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This is something new. Citing the threats of the coronavirus, six Texas voters filed suit in federal court Wednesday challenging restrictions that limit age eligibility for voting-by-mail to those 65 and older. In a lawsuit filed in San Antonio, the … Continue reading →

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Vote by mail is not a panacea

Posted on April 26, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s be clear, I very much support expanded access to vote by mail. I support the ongoing TDP lawsuit to force expanded vote by mail, and I would very much advise anyone who is at risk for COVID-19 to apply … Continue reading →

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How do you conduct an election in a pandemic?

Posted on April 21, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

We’re about to find out, one way or another. There will be an election in Texas in mid-July, apparently with polling sites, election workers and voting machines in place so people can cast their ballots in person. How many voters … Continue reading →

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Here’s the official order in the TDP vote by mail lawsuit

Posted on April 19, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Round One went to the plaintiffs. From there, who knows. A Texas state district judge on Friday issued an order allowing voters to use the coronavirus as a reason to vote by mail for as long as the pandemic lasts … Continue reading →

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TDP gets initial win in vote by mail lawsuit

Posted on April 16, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a good start, but we’ve got a long way to go. A state district judge on Wednesday said he will move forward with an order easing restrictions for voting by mail in Texas in light of the new coronavirus … Continue reading →

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Another view of the lawsuit over expanded voting by mail

Posted on April 13, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

From Ian Millhiser at Vox, who is decidedly more pessimistic about the plaintiffs’ chances. He starts by noting how restrictive Texas’ existing vote-by-mail law is. The law only allows Texas voters to obtain an absentee ballot under a very limited … Continue reading →

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