The Markup: Administration escalates interference efforts
Welcome to the Markup, Voting Rights Lab’s weekly digest of election law and policy updates. We’re tracking 1,683 bills across 44 states and D.C. This week, we’re seeing a tug-of-war between states and the federal government: Federal officials are escalating efforts to interfere in local election administration, even as states like New Jersey and Delaware are advancing legislation to protect voter access. Read on for the latest.
The Good News
New Hampshire enacts law requiring secure data-sharing agreement between secretary of state and DMV.
Gov. Kelly Ayotte signed S.B. 438 into law. This law requires all polling locations to have access to the secretary of state’s centralized voter database and data from the Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV). S.B.438 will help confirm voter eligibility after a new proof-of-citizenship mandate led to hundreds of voters being turned away during local elections last year.
Delaware legislature advances Voting Rights Act and rights-restoration measure.
Lawmakers sent H.B. 444 to the governor. This law would establish the “Delaware John Lewis Voting Rights Act” and would aim to provide all eligible voters with an equal opportunity to engage in the electoral process. Lawmakers also passed H.B. 180, a constitutional amendment that would restore voting rights to citizens with past felony convictions upon release. This amendment must be passed by the legislature again next session with a two-thirds vote.
New Jersey enacts the John R. Lewis Voter Empowerment Act and poll worker benefits bill.
Gov. Mikie Sherrill signed the “John R. Lewis Voter Empowerment Act of New Jersey” (A.B. 1715) into law. The new law strengthens safeguards against voter suppression and discrimination. It also expands language accessibility for voters with limited English proficiency, establishes a centralized statewide election information database, and creates guiding principles requiring election laws to protect voter freedom. New Jersey is the first state to adopt state-level Voting Rights Act legislation following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Louisiana v. Callais that weakened the federal law.
Sherrill also signed A.B. 1516, which exempts compensation for poll workers and other temporary election workers from impacting eligibility for unemployment benefits.
The Bad News
Trump administration escalates efforts to exercise control over elections.
President Donald Trump removed the remaining members of the bipartisan Election Assistance Commission (EAC). The move leaves the agency without a quorum and therefore unable to take official action ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. The administration fired the two Democratic commissioners while allowing the lone remaining Republican commissioner to resign. The EAC is responsible for certifying election equipment and developing the federal voter-registration application. An executive order directing the EAC to add a proof-of-citizenship requirement to the voter registration form has been blocked by the courts.
Meanwhile, the administration plans to send election monitors to key states and is threatening to withhold counterterrorism funds from states that do not meet election policy demands. The administration is attempting to compel states to use the administration’s flawed and legally dubious voter-verification tool.
North Carolina House passes omnibus election bill.
The House passed a wide-ranging bill (H.B. 958) that makes changes to ballot counting, mail voting, voter list maintenance, election administration, and oversight of election officials. One provision would require a post-election audit of mail- and in-person early voters to verify eligibility using a flawed database. The bill now goes to the Senate for consideration. Senate leadership has not committed to taking up the legislation. Gov. Josh Stein is expected to veto the bill if it reaches his desk.
On Our Radar
Conflicting federal court rulings create uncertainty over states’ access to the SAVE database for voter list maintenance.
A federal district court in Florida ordered the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to restore Florida, Indiana, Ohio, and Iowa’s access to expanded features of the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database. This includes bulk uploads and Social Security number searches, pursuant to a 2025 settlement agreement. The ruling directly conflicts with a recent decision by a federal district court in Washington, D.C., which blocked DHS from implementing the same SAVE enhancements. The D.C. judge last week declined to pause her decision pending appeal.
The conflicting orders leave DHS subject to competing judicial directives. Additional appeals and litigation are expected, with the issue potentially reaching the U.S. Supreme Court.
FBI escalates federal efforts to investigate the 2020 election in Georgia.
The FBI has redirected more than 200 analysts to investigate the 2020 General Election in Fulton County, Georgia. In January, FBI agents raided the Fulton County election office and seized hundreds of boxes containing ballots and other documents related to the 2020 election.
Meanwhile, a federal judge blocked a Department of Justice subpoena for Georgia’s election workers’ personal information. The subpoena requested information, including names, roles, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses of nearly 3,000 election workers and volunteers during the 2020 General Election.
DOJ appeals rulings denying access to state voter-registration records; New York judge rules against the government.
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) appealed a series of recent federal court rulings that rejected efforts to obtain sensitive voter registration records from Maryland, New Hampshire, and Pennsylvania. In another case, a federal judge in New York ruled against the DOJ, marking the department’s 12th loss in its attempt to access state voter rolls.
Arizona Supreme Court rules disputed election responsibilities must remain with the Maricopa County Recorder.
In the ongoing clash between Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap and the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, the state Supreme Court reinstated a superior court decision ordering the return of IT staff and resources to the recorder’s office. While early voting is already underway for the state’s July primary, the primary will be unaffected by the administrative changes.
Maryland officials announce special session on congressional redistricting; Colorado Supreme Court blocks redistricting ballot measures.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and the state legislature announced a special session beginning August 3. Lawmakers will consider a constitutional amendment to open the door to future congressional redistricting in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Louisiana v. Callais decision. The legislature failed to reach an agreement on redistricting during the regular session.
Meanwhile, the Colorado Supreme Court blocked five citizen-initiated ballot measures that sought to change how congressional districts are drawn. These measures would have allowed the legislature to draw new district lines for 2028. The measures are ineligible for the November 2026 ballot.
Election Policy Tracker
Explore our Election Policy Tracker for real-time updates and analysis.
Sign up for weekly updates
Subscribe to The Markup.