The efforts to restrict voting have continued into this year. As of January 14, legislators in at least 27 states have introduced, pre-filed, or carried over 250 bills with restrictive provisions, compared to 75 such bills in 24 states on January 14, 2021. These figures include carryover bills, which are far more common this year (an even-numbered legislative year) than last (an odd-numbered year). When carryover bills are set aside to focus on new legislative activity — the pre-filed and introduced bills — the increase in restrictive bills is still stark: 96 bills would make it harder to vote in 12 states as of January 14, 2022, compared to 69 such bills in 23 states, a 39 percent increase. Show In keeping with restrictive voting laws passed last year, state legislators have resumed the assault with legislation that, if enacted, would disproportionately impact voters of color. Many state legislators, however, remain committed to expanding access to the ballot box. As of January 14, legislators in at least 32 states have introduced, pre-filed, or carried over 399 bills that expand voting access, compared to 286 such bills in 30 states on January 14, 2021. Of the 33 state legislatures that are considering voting legislation as of January 14, 26 are considering both restrictive and expansive voting bills, and only one (South Carolina) is considering only restrictive voting legislation. Alabama, Florida, Maine, Rhode Island, South Dakota, and Vermont are currently only considering expansive voting bills. This year, in addition to tracking bills that restrict or expand access to voting, we are tracking legislation that would undermine the integrity of the electoral process and empower partisans to manipulate election administration or outcomes. The unprecedented uptick of such bills that began last year has continued in 2022. Like many of the bills restricting voting access, these bills are justified by the myth of widespread voter fraud and a stolen election. As of January 14, legislators in at least 13 states have pre-filed and introduced 41 bills that would undermine the electoral process. These bills threaten the people and processes that make elections work. This legislation ranges from allowing any citizen to initiate or conduct new biased election audits; to imposing new criminal or civil penalties on election officials for making unintended errors; to allowing partisan actors to remove election officials from office. With these bills, state lawmakers are doubling down on efforts to undermine voters’ trust in elections. This legislation would open the door to manipulating election results for partisan reasons over accuracy. As states approach the 2022 primaries and midterm elections, it is imperative that voting rights and the security of our elections remain a top priority on the state and federal levels.
As of January 14, legislators in at least 27 states have introduced, pre-filed, or carried over 250 restrictive bills this year. Of these, at least 96 bills in 12 states have been pre-filed or introduced for the 2022 legislative session. Like last year’s legislation, the restrictive bills being considered would primarily curtail access to mail voting and impose new or stricter voter ID requirements for in-person voting and registration. Other trends include new barriers for voters with disabilities, limiting or eliminating same-day voter registration, and new proof of citizenship requirements. Virginia leads the nation in new proposed restrictive voting legislation so far in 2022, with 34 pre-filed or introduced bills. Twenty-one of these bills would repeal provisions of current state law that ensure voter access to mail voting, including the permanent absentee voter list, drop boxes for the return of absentee ballots, and no-excuse absentee voting. Restrictions on mail voting. Over half of the restrictive bills pre-filed or introduced for the 2022 legislative session target every stage of mail voting.
Stricter voter ID. At least 37 bills pre-filed or introduced this year in eight states would impose new or more stringent voter ID requirements for voter registration or in-person voting.
At least nine bills in three states that have been pre-filed or introduced this year would make it more difficult for voters with disabilities to cast a ballot. Five Virginia bills would repeal state law that currently allows a person who requests assistance “by reason of a physical disability or an inability to read or write” to receive assistance with completing an in-person ballot or an in-person application to vote by mail. Other Virginia bills would repeal the permanent absentee voter list and reinstate a requirement for voters with disabilities to submit an annual application to vote by mail. A Washington bill would eliminate an existing state law requirement to provide access to individuals who are blind or visually impaired. At least 12 bills in two states pre-filed or introduced this year would loosen requirements to educate voters. An Indiana bill would repeal an existing law that requires voters who cast a provisional ballot to be informed on how to ensure their ballot is counted. Eleven Missouri bills would repeal an existing law that requires the secretary of state to provide advance notice of the identification requirements for voting in elections. The Arizona, Virginia, and Washington legislatures have proposed five bills this year that impose new proof of citizenship requirements to vote, register, or remain registered to vote. The Washington bill would require county auditors to cancel the registration of all voters who have not previously shown proof of citizenship by obtaining an enhanced driver’s license or state ID. After cancellation, it would only give voters notice and an opportunity to cure registration by going to the auditor’s office in person and presenting a passport, birth certificate, or certificate of naturalization.
As of January 14, legislators in at least 32 states have introduced, pre-filed, or carried over 399 bills that expand voting access. Of these, at least 98 bills in 17 states have been pre-filed or introduced for the 2022 legislative session. Over a third of the new expansive legislation would ease mail voting. Other bills would make voter registration easier, including by establishing automatic voter registration (AVR), expanding voting rights to individuals with past convictions, easing access to early voting, and improving voting accessibility to voters with disabilities and who face language barriers. Missouri leads for the number of expansive bills pre-filed or introduced for the 2022 legislative session with 26 bills. Access to mail voting. Over one-third of the expansive voting bills that have been pre-filed or introduced for the 2022 legislative session address mail voting.
Voting rights restoration. At least 20 bills pre-filed or introduced in seven states would restore voting rights to individuals with past convictions or expand current voting rights restoration policies.
Easier voter registration. At least 34 bills pre-filed and introduced in 12 states would ease the process for registering to vote or maintaining one’s registration status.
Expanding access for voters with disabilities. At least seven pre-filed or introduced bills in four states will expand voting access to voters with disabilities. Two Missouri bills would require at least one voting machine per polling location for use by voters who are blind or visually impaired in election regions with more than 350,000 residents, and at least one such voting machine in elections regions with fewer than 350,000 residents. A New Hampshire bill would require voter registration to be discussed as part of an education or accommodations plan for students with disabilities who are 17 years or older. Two Rhode Island bills would extend the deadline for voters with certain disabilities to request a mail ballot. An Indiana bill would allow voters with disabilities to join a permanent absentee voter list.
In addition to legislation making it more difficult for voters to cast ballots, last year saw a large uptick in bills that could enable partisan interference in election administration. The most extreme of these “election sabotage” bills would have allowed partisan officials to simply reject election results. Most of them targeted fair election administration in other ways, such as by targeting election officials with new criminal and civil penalties for facilitating voter access, placing partisan actors in charge of election administration and vote counting, and using partisan election reviews to call fair and accurate election results into question. This surge of election sabotage legislation continues in 2022. As of January 14, legislators in 13 states have pre-filed or introduced 41 bills that would undermine the electoral process, some of which mirror the 2021 legislation in their purpose and scope and some of which bring new legislative tactics to the attacks on democracy. Arizona leads the country with nine election sabotage bills introduced so far in 2022, with Virginia (6), Missouri (6), and New Hampshire (5) close behind. Bills Initiating Biased Election ReviewsThirteen bills have been introduced in seven states that would initiate biased reviews of elections and election results that lack transparency and fail to satisfy basic security, accuracy, and reliability measures. These bills are part of a movement in state legislatures to undermine faith in the electoral process. Citizen-initiated audits. Three bills in three states have been introduced that would allow for citizens to initiate or conduct a review of election results or election practices without basic security measures for the ballots or clear guidelines for how results are reviewed. These “citizen audit” bills are a new twist on the growing trend of partisan election review legislation as well as legislation that empowers citizen enforcers in other contexts.
Audits of the 2020 general election. Eight bills in five states (Florida, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia), would require an audit of the 2020 general election statewide or in specific jurisdictions. These kinds of bills, which also appeared in a number of states in 2021, show how the myth that the results of the 2020 election were fraudulent continues to grip state lawmakers. Future audits of elections. Four bills in three states would require or authorize suspect audit processes in the future. This legislation uniformly lacks basic security, accuracy, and reliability measures, bestowing inordinate discretion on individuals, imposing no transparency requirements, or failing to mandate clear guidelines for how results are reviewed.
Bills That Would Establish New Prosecutorial Authority Related to ElectionsFive bills have been introduced in three states that would expand law enforcement’s power over election-related matters. Three of these bills would create new law enforcement entities to investigate and prosecute voters for fraud. Our research shows that widespread voter fraud is vanishingly rare. While prosecuting any election fraud and crimes that might occur is undoubtedly a necessary and important state function, the context for these bills raises risks of the spread of disinformation about elections as well as the politicization and abuse of the process, including racially discriminatory prosecutions of voters and people providing ballot assistance.
In addition to these bills, Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida has announced plans to use executive action to establish law enforcement bureaus to investigate and prosecute voter fraud. Other states, including Texas, have similarly diverted state resources to such efforts in the past but have failed to garner any evidence of widespread fraud. Bills That Impose New Criminal or Civil Penalties on Election OfficialsSixteen bills have been introduced in eight states that would impose new criminal or civil penalties on election officials for actions taken to expand voter access or for minor mistakes during their ordinary course of conduct. After the 2020 election year, when election officials went to great lengths to protect voters from unprecedented challenges, these measures seek to chill election official conduct. They also contribute to an unprecedented wave of election officials leaving the profession. These resignations could further undermine elections if professional election administrators are replaced by more partisan actors.
Bills That Politicize the Elections Process in Potentially Subversive WaysNineteen bills in seven states have been introduced that would politicize elections administration in a manner that could open the door to election sabotage. These bills are part of a trend that emerged in state legislatures in 2021 and represent the most direct attack on fair election administration. The most serious of these bills establish processes that could be used to remove professional election officials and replace them with more partisan actors. Another category of these bills rearrange authority over specific aspects of election administration between different actors in a way that could be politically manipulative. And a final category of these bills would establish commissions or oversight agencies with vague or overbroad “election integrity” functions. Removing election officials. Two bills in two states would establish processes that could be used to remove professional election officials and replace them with more partisan actors. These bills create a threat to all aspects of election administration because they open the door to partisan actors manipulating the mechanics of election administration in a specific local jurisdiction. Two similar laws were enacted in 2021 in Arkansas and Georgia.
Transferring authority. Ten bills in three states would transfer authority over specific aspects of election administration to different actors in ways that could open the door to political interference. Legislation reassigning authority over a specific aspect of elections, such as voter roll maintenance, is not necessarily a sign of potential election sabotage in and of itself. But when a transfer of authority or the removal of an election official opens the door to more partisan influence over election administration or vote counting, more scrutiny is needed.
Election oversight commissions and agencies. Six bills in four states would establish commissions or other oversight agencies tasked with ambiguous or suspect “election integrity” functions. While the purpose or titles of these committees may not appear problematic on their face, the proliferation of such “election integrity” entities are fueled by the false pretense of voter fraud and perpetuate election denialism. These commissions could be used to justify further efforts to suppress voting or prosecute voters or election officials.
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