Voting rights advocacy groups filed a new lawsuit today in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, asking the court to stop county election boards from disqualifying mail ballots submitted by voters who did not include a “correct” handwritten date on the return envelope.
March 1, 2024 – Last year, the Pennsylvania General Assembly passed legislation stripping prosecutorial authority over crimes on SEPTA property from elected District Attorney Larry Krasner and installing a state-appointed prosecutor in Philadelphia County. Today, community organizations representing Philadelphia voters and their interests—POWER Interfaith, Pennsylvania Policy Center, Abolitionist Law Center, Common Cause Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania State […]
An initiative of the Jeffrey Golan & Frances Vilella-Vélez Voting Justice Project January 12, 2024 – In the 2022 General Election, more than 10,000 voters who timely returned their mail-in ballots were disenfranchised because they had made a harmless clerical mistake: writing an incorrect date, or no date at all, on their ballot envelope. In […]
March 16, 2022–The Public Interest Law Center and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund have released a statement on the recent Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision upholding the Legislative Reapportionment Commission’s (LRC) final plan for state house and senate district lines. The law firms filed an amicus brief supporting the redistricting plan, representing formerly incarcerated Pennsylvania voters […]
February 15, 2022 – The Public Interest Law Center has filed an amicus brief with the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, supporting voters’ right to choose to vote by mail. The brief backs the appeal by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania from the Commonwealth Court’s decision to strike down Pennsylvania’s expansion of mail-in voting, Act 77. This law, […]
February 23, 2022–Today, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania issued an order selecting the map proposed by the Carter plaintiffs as Pennsylvania’s congressional map for the next decade. We represented a group of Pennsylvania voters who are deeply committed to free and equal elections. These voters, known as the Ali et al amici, submitted a proposed […]
January 24, 2022 — Today, a group of Pennsylvania voters who are deeply committed to free and equal elections have weighed in on congressional redistricting for the Commonwealth. They submitted a proposed plan as part of an amicus brief and expert report filed in two consolidated cases – Carter v. Chapman and Gressman v. Chapman—which […]
December 31, 2021 – The congressional redistricting process in Pennsylvania appears to be at an impasse. A map drawn by the Pennsylvania House Government Committee, controlled by Republicans, has drawn sharp rebuke from Democratic Governor Tom Wolf. In two consolidated cases, Carter v. Degraffenreid and Gressman v. Degraffenreid, voters are asking the Pennsylvania Supreme Court […]
Election Day is Tuesday, November 3. If you need help or have questions at the polls, or witness any voter harassment or intimidation, call the national Election Protection hotline, 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683). We are proud to be part of the coalition of organizations across the country staffing this resource for voters, led by the Lawyers’ Committee […]
As Election Day approaches, your options to cast your ballot are becoming clearer. As always, you can choose to vote in person. Mail-in voting is also easy and secure. And, on September 17, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania cleared up many of the most pressing questions about voting by mail, when it ruled on five election-related issues in Pennsylvania Democratic Party v. Boockvar. A breakdown of the ruling, and what it means for voters, is below.
