Voting Rights
Minnesota Voters Alliance v. Hunt
The ACLU and ACLU of Minnesota intervened as defendants to block an attempt by Minnesota Voters Alliance -- a private plaintiff group -- to challenge a law that restored voting rights to individuals convicted of a felony while they are "not incarcerated for the offense" and "including any period when they are on work release."
Status: Closed (Judgment)
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U.S. Supreme Court
Jul 2024
Callais v. Landry
Whether the congressional map Louisiana adopted to cure a Voting Rights Act violation in Robinson v. Ardoin is itself unlawful as a gerrymander.
Status: Ongoing
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Nebraska Supreme Court
Jul 2024
Spung v. Evnen
Less than four months before the November 2024 presidential election, the Nebraska Secretary of State issued a directive embracing a non-binding opinion issued by the state Attorney General that would essentially reinstate permanent felony disenfranchisement and re-disenfranchise tens of thousands of Nebraska citizens. This directive is violative of both the Nebraska Constitution and several state statutes, and urgent relief is needed to avoid mass disenfranchisement of an entire class of Nebraska citizens.
Status: Ongoing
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South Carolina Supreme Court
Jul 2024
League of Women Voters of South Carolina v. Alexander
This case involves a state constitutional challenge to South Carolina’s 2022 congressional redistricting plan, which legislators admit was drawn to entrench a 6-1 Republican majority in the state’s federal delegation. Plaintiff the League of Women Voters of South Carolina has asked the state’s Supreme Court to conclude that the congressional map is an unlawful partisan gerrymander that violates the state constitution.
Status: Ongoing
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Ohio
Jul 2024
League of Women Voters of Ohio v. LaRose
In Ohio, HB 458 makes it a felony for any person who is not an election official or mail carrier to return an absentee voter's ballot—including voters with disabilities—unless the person assisting falls within an unduly narrow list of relatives. We are challenging the law because it violates Section 208 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA) and the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) by making it exceedingly difficult for voters with disabilities to cast their ballots.
Status: Ongoing
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Mississippi
Jul 2024
Mississippi State Conference of the NAACP v. State Board of Election Commissioners
Mississippi has a growing Black population, which is already the largest Black population percentage of any state in the country. Yet. Black Mississippians continue to be significantly under-represented in the state legislature, as Mississippi’s latest districting maps fail to reflect the reality of the state’s changing demographics. During the 2022 redistricting process, the Mississippi legislature refused to create any new districts where Black voters have a chance to elect their preferred representative. The current district lines therefore dilute the voting power of Black Mississippians and continue to deprive them of political representation that is responsive to their needs and concerns, including severe disparities in education and healthcare.
Status: Closed (Judgment)
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Texas
Apr 2024
Crystal Mason v. State of Texas
Crystal Mason thought she was performing her civic duty by filling out a provisional ballot in the 2016 election. She didn't know it would land her a five-year prison sentence, upending her family and the life she had built. At the time, Ms. Mason was on federal supervised release, a preliminary period of freedom for individuals who have served their full time of incarceration in federal prison. Ms. Mason didn’t know, and nobody told her, that the state considered her ineligible to vote while on supervised release. Because her name didn’t appear on voter rolls, she filed a provisional ballot, consistent with federal law. The state never counted her ballot but has still sought to send her to prison for an innocent mistake.
Status: Closed (Judgment)
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All Cases
125 Voting Rights Cases
Georgia
Nov 2022
Cook v. Cobb County
On November 4, 2022—the last day of early voting in Georgia and four days before the November 2022 midterm elections—Cobb County Elections Director Janine Eveler disclosed for the first time that approximately 1,036 absentee ballots marked as issued on October 13, 2022 and October 22, 2022 had never been mailed to voters, due to staff error. The ACLU and co-counsel sued on behalf of several affected voters to ensure that plaintiffs could vote in the 2022 midterm election and that no other voters were affected by Cobb County's error.
Status: Closed (Judgment)
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Georgia
Voting Rights
Cook v. Cobb County
On November 4, 2022—the last day of early voting in Georgia and four days before the November 2022 midterm elections—Cobb County Elections Director Janine Eveler disclosed for the first time that approximately 1,036 absentee ballots marked as issued on October 13, 2022 and October 22, 2022 had never been mailed to voters, due to staff error. The ACLU and co-counsel sued on behalf of several affected voters to ensure that plaintiffs could vote in the 2022 midterm election and that no other voters were affected by Cobb County's error.
Nov 2022
Status: Closed (Judgment)
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Texas
Oct 2022
State of Texas v. Hervis Rogers
The ACLU, ACLU of Texas, and Nicole DeBorde Hochglaube represented Mr. Hervis Rogers, a Houston man who faced charges for voting while on parole after waiting more than six hours to cast his ballot in March 2020. Mr. Rogers faced up to 40 years in prison, despite believing he was simply fulfilling his civic duty. In October 2022, Mr. Rogers' charges were dismissed.
Status: Closed (Dismissed)
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Texas
Voting Rights
State of Texas v. Hervis Rogers
The ACLU, ACLU of Texas, and Nicole DeBorde Hochglaube represented Mr. Hervis Rogers, a Houston man who faced charges for voting while on parole after waiting more than six hours to cast his ballot in March 2020. Mr. Rogers faced up to 40 years in prison, despite believing he was simply fulfilling his civic duty. In October 2022, Mr. Rogers' charges were dismissed.
Oct 2022
Status: Closed (Dismissed)
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U.S. Supreme Court
Oct 2022
Fitisemanu v. United States, et al. (Amicus)
On May 28, 2022 the American Civil Liberties Union filed an amicus brief with the Supreme Court in a case, Fitisemanu v. United States, addressing the constitutionality of the federal law designating persons born in American Samoa as “non-citizen U.S. nationals.”
Status: Closed (Judgment)
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U.S. Supreme Court
Voting Rights
Racial Justice
Fitisemanu v. United States, et al. (Amicus)
On May 28, 2022 the American Civil Liberties Union filed an amicus brief with the Supreme Court in a case, Fitisemanu v. United States, addressing the constitutionality of the federal law designating persons born in American Samoa as “non-citizen U.S. nationals.”
Oct 2022
Status: Closed (Judgment)
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South Carolina
May 2022
South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP v. Alexander (State House Map Challenge)
This case -- part of a broader challenge to South Carolina's redistricting after the 2020 Census -- involved a racial gerrymandering claim against the State's House district lines. Plaintiffs the South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP and an individual voter challenged the drawing of 29 specific districts as unconstitutional racial gerrymanders. In May 2022, the parties settled their dispute over State House maps, which resulted in redrawn districts in Dillon, Horry, Kershaw, Orangeburg, and Richland counties.
Status: Closed (Settled)
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South Carolina
Voting Rights
South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP v. Alexander (State House Map Challenge)
This case -- part of a broader challenge to South Carolina's redistricting after the 2020 Census -- involved a racial gerrymandering claim against the State's House district lines. Plaintiffs the South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP and an individual voter challenged the drawing of 29 specific districts as unconstitutional racial gerrymanders. In May 2022, the parties settled their dispute over State House maps, which resulted in redrawn districts in Dillon, Horry, Kershaw, Orangeburg, and Richland counties.
May 2022
Status: Closed (Settled)
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U.S. Supreme Court
Apr 2022
United States v. Vaello-Madero
Whether excluding Puerto Rico residents from the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program violates the equal protection component of the 5th Amendment’s Due Process Clause.
Status: Closed (Judgment)
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U.S. Supreme Court
Voting Rights
Racial Justice
United States v. Vaello-Madero
Whether excluding Puerto Rico residents from the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program violates the equal protection component of the 5th Amendment’s Due Process Clause.
Apr 2022
Status: Closed (Judgment)
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