Short v. Brown, No. 18-15775 (9th Cir. 2018)
Annotate this CaseOnly 25% of registered California voters participated in the June 2014 primary; only 42% voted in the November 2014 general election. To increase participation in the democratic process, California enacted the Voter’s Choice Act (VCA), modeled after Colorado’s successful election system. A ballot is automatically mailed to every registered voter 29 days before the election date, Cal. Elec.Code 4005(a)(8)(A). A voter may cast a completed ballot by mailing it in, depositing the ballot at a designated “ballot dropoff location” (a large locked mailbox), or submitting it at a “vote center.” The voter may cast his ballot as soon as he receives it. Rather than require all 58 California counties to implement this new voting system immediately, the VCA authorizes 14 counties to opt in on or after January 1, 2018. All other counties may implement the all-mailed system on or after January 1, 2020. Within six months of each election conducted under the system, the California Secretary of State must submit to the legislature a detailed report assessing turnout and other metrics of success. The Ninth Circuit affirmed the denial of a preliminary injunction in a suit alleging that the VCA violated the Equal Protection Clause by restricting the fundamental right to vote on the basis of county of residence, without sufficient justification.
Court Description: Voting Law / Preliminary Injunction The panel affirmed the district court’s denial of plaintiffs’ request for an order preliminarily enjoining the California Voter’s Choice Act (“VCA”). California decided to adopt an all-mailed ballot election system, and enacted the VCA. The VCA’s county-by- county structure permits voters in some counties to receive a ballot by mail automatically, while requiring voters in other counties to register to receive a ballot by mail. Plaintiffs alleged that the VCA violated the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause by restricting the fundamental right to vote on the basis of county of residence without sufficient justification; and sought a preliminary injunction against enforcement of the VCA. The panel held that the district court properly denied the request for a preliminary injunction. The panel held that the case did not raise “serious questions” under the Supreme
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