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Federal Judge Permanently Blocks Key Parts of Trump’s Election Order
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kdvr.com, Approved, National

Federal Judge Permanently Blocks Key Parts of Trump’s Election Order

By Alliyah Sims | KDVR DENVER (KDVR) — A federal judge has permanently blocked key parts of President Donald Trump’s executive order on elections, ruling after a legal fight that began last year over voter registration rules and proof-of-citizenship requirements. The decision strikes down provisions tied to how states verify voter eligibility and says those responsibilities belong to states and Congress, not the president. The ruling also turns a temporary block into a permanent one; however, an appeal is expected. Rob Preuhs, Professor and Chair of Political Science at Metropolitan State University of Denver, said the concern at the center of the case is how election systems could impact eligible voters. “That means that we’re all potentially at the risk o...
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Foreign-Born Judge Sparkle Sooknanan Halts Federal Citizenship Checks For Voter Rolls
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The Federalist, Approved, National

Foreign-Born Judge Sparkle Sooknanan Halts Federal Citizenship Checks For Voter Rolls

By: Breccan F. Thies | The Federalist A foreign-born federal judge in D.C. ruled Monday that Americans are not allowed to check the citizenship of prospective voters because doing so might “purge voter rolls.” D.C. District Court Judge Sparkle Sooknanan, who is from Trinidad and Tobago, blocked the Trump administration from using an updated database called the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) system in order to ensure that only American citizens vote in American elections. Sooknanan became a U.S. citizen in 2009, but seemingly still retains citizenship in Trinidad and Tobago, which she said she would only renounce “if required by law.” As Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., pointed out, “If judges can stop Presidents, they should not...
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Judge keeps Colorado’s GOP primary open to unaffiliated voters
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Approved, DENVER7, State

Judge keeps Colorado’s GOP primary open to unaffiliated voters

By April Schildmeyer | Denver7 DENVER — A judge rejected three Republican primary candidates' request to block unaffiliated voters from participating in the upcoming party primary election. Former State House Rep. Ron Hanks, State Rep. Scott Bottoms and David Willson, a candidate for attorney general, filed the suit, claiming that allowing non-party voters to participate dilutes the votes of registered Republicans and violated the party's First Amendment rights. In 2016, Colorado voters approved Proposition 108, which opened primaries to unaffiliated voters. Judge Jon J. Olafson found the plaintiffs waited too long to file their lawsuit, noting that ballots had already been mailed to overseas military voters. County clerks must mail ballots to military and overseas voters by...
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Colorado Moves Toward Month Long Voting Under New Elections Bill
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Colorado Moves Toward Month Long Voting Under New Elections Bill

By Jesse Paul | The Colorado Sun Another provision in House Bill 1113, a major elections bill headed to Gov. Jared Polis’ desk, would let the governor declare a disaster emergency if there is a major election disruption. Election Day is about to become election month in Colorado.  A bill headed to Gov. Jared Polis’ desk would let county clerks begin mailing ballots to registered voters 29 days before Election Day, up from 22. Clerks would have to finish mailing out ballots no later than 25 days before an election, up from 18.  State Rep. Emily Sirota, a Denver Democrat and lead sponsor of House Bill 1113, said the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office and elections advocates asked for the change because they are worried about the Trump administration ...
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High Court Rejects Race-Based Map In Major Voting Rights Ruling
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The Federalist, Approved, National

High Court Rejects Race-Based Map In Major Voting Rights Ruling

By Shawn Fleetwood | The Federalist ‘Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 … was designed to enforce the Constitution — not collide with it,’ wrote Justice Alito. The U.S. Supreme Court released a bombshell ruling on Wednesday significantly curtailing states’ use of race in the redistricting process. “Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 … was designed to enforce the Constitution — not collide with it. Unfortunately, lower courts have sometimes applied this Court’s §2 precedents in a way that forces States to engage in the very race-based discrimination that the Constitution forbids,” Associate Justice Samuel Alito wrote for the majority (6-3). Known as Louisiana v. Callais, the case centers around Louisiana’s creation of a ...
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Federal Judge Keeps Unaffiliated Voters In Colorado GOP Primaries
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Federal Judge Keeps Unaffiliated Voters In Colorado GOP Primaries

By Jesse Paul | The Colorado Sun U.S. District Judge Philip A. Brimmer said excluding unaffiliated voters days before the state’s ballot certification deadline, and just weeks before ballots start being mailed out, would create too much confusion. A federal judge Tuesday rejected the Colorado GOP’s last-ditch effort to block unaffiliated voters from participating in the party’s June 30 primaries.  U.S. District Judge Philip A. Brimmer said excluding unaffiliated voters days before the state’s ballot certification deadline, and just weeks before ballots start being mailed out, would create too much confusion.  The Republican Party asked Brimmer on April 20 to issue an emergency order preventing state elections officials from mailing Republican primary ball...
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Colorado Primary Battles Intensify As Voters Face Crowded 2026 Ballots
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Colorado Primary Battles Intensify As Voters Face Crowded 2026 Ballots

By Ernest Luning | Colorado Politics With just over two months to go until ballots are counted in Colorado’s primary, candidates are squaring off in high-stakes contests for their party’s nominations in statewide and congressional races approaching the midterm election. For the first time in memory, state voters will have the chance to elect an entire new slate of state-level executive officials — from governor and attorney general to secretary of state and state treasurer — since those offices’ Democratic incumbents all face term limits. At the same time, Democrats will decide which candidate to nominate in the state’s marquee U.S. House race, where the Republican incumbent in the 8th Congressional District is facing three potential challengers in what’s expected to b...
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Trump Allies Eye Unconventional Response To Virginia Redistricting Fight
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Fox News, Approved, Commentary, National

Trump Allies Eye Unconventional Response To Virginia Redistricting Fight

By Chad R. Mizelle | Commentary, Fox News Returning Arlington to the District of Columbia would fight fire with fire. If you’re proud of something, you want people to see it. That is why it’s telling that Virginia Democrats are asking Old Dominion residents to vote for a redistricting scheme without allowing their proposed map to be printed on the ballots. But it’s no wonder: the mid-decade redistricting proposal is an obscene gerrymander that will wipe out all but one GOP-leaning congressional district in the state. And, of course, they claim it’s all done in the name of "democracy." This dishonest power play seeks to make the congressional representation of a purple state nearly as blue as Massachusetts. It disenfranchises nearly half the commonwea...
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After GOP vote to close primary: Clerks warn timing could complicate June election
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

After GOP vote to close primary: Clerks warn timing could complicate June election

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice Colorado Republicans left Pueblo with more than a slate of candidates. They left with a plan to change who votes—and how soon that could happen. At the state assembly, delegates backed a legal push to stop Republican ballots from going out to unaffiliated voters. Republican National Committeeman Randy Corporon and attorney John Eastman are expected to file an injunction in court this week. The primary is set for June 30. At this point, it’s not about whether Republicans want a closed primary. It’s whether it can happen in time. Colorado law currently allows unaffiliated voters to take part in primary elections by choosing a party ballot. Changing that—even through a court order—would have to work inside a system that is already u...
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Colorado Officials Say Trump Election Order Oversteps Constitutional Limits
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Colorado Officials Say Trump Election Order Oversteps Constitutional Limits

By Marissa Ventrelli | Colorado Politics Colorado leaders criticized President Donald Trump’s new executive order issued Tuesday, arguing that its creation of a national voter‑eligibility list and new limits on mail voting violate states’ constitutional authority to run their own elections. President Donald Trump has frequently criticized mail-in voting, calling it “mail-in cheating.” Through the SAVE Act in Congress, the president has sought to require voters to show an ID before casting a ballot. The measure, approved by the U.S. House, has stalled in the U.S. Senate. “The cheating on mail-in voting is legendary. It’s horrible what’s going on,” Trump said a news conference, repeating allegations about the security of mail ballots as he signed the order. “I thi...
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