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A Consent Decree Waiving the Witness Requirement for Voting by Mail in Rhode Island During an Infectious Pandemic

Robert Timothy Reagan
October 25, 2023

Common Cause Rhode Island v. Gorbea (Mary S. McElroy, D.R.I. 1:20-cv-318)
For the June 2020 presidential primary election in Rhode Island, the governor suspended the state’s requirement that mail-in ballots be witnessed by a notary or by two other witnesses. A district judge approved a consent decree applying the witness-requirement suspension to elections in Rhode Island in September and November. The court of appeals and the Supreme Court denied a major political party’s motion to stay the consent decree.
Subject: Absentee and early voting. Topics: Absentee ballots; Covid-19; intervention; interlocutory appeal; laches; primary election.

One of many Case Studies in Emergency Election Litigation.

Downloadable file:
PDF icon Case Study 3 pages

Tags:
Election Litigation | Absentee Ballots | Early Voting | Interlocutory Appeal | Intervention | Primary Election | Emergency Proceedings | Laches | Covid-19 | U.S. District Courts | D.R.I.