SCOTUS pulled into Michigan ballot fight over proof-of-citizenship amendment

The justices are being asked to force election officials to put an amendment on state ballots despite ongoing litigation over the validity of signatures for the initiative.WASHINGTON (CN) — An advocacy group asked the Supreme Court for emergency action on Monday to put a proof-of-citizenship amendment on Michigan ballots for the midterm elections.Americans for Citizen Voting gathered over 700,000 signatures in support of its petition requiring Michigan voters to prove they are U.S. citizens. But the Michigan Board of State Canvassers denied ballot access to the proposed state constitutional amendment after determining that its signatures didn’t pass a validity check.The advocacy group claims the decision disenfranchises Michigan citizens and called on the Supreme Court to let voters weigh in on the proposal while litigation over the certification continues.“If respondents’ decision to keep ACVM’s petition off the ballot stands, then Michigan voters will never have a chance to vote on the petition, regardless of whether it should or should not have been placed on the ballot,” Americans for Citizen Voting wrote. “On the other hand, if ACVM’s petition is placed on the ballot and ACVM’s arguments ultimately fail there will be no harm. The choice is thus between irreparable harm and no harm at all.”Under state law, constitutional amendments need 446,198 valid signatures to gain ballot access. The Michigan Board of State Canvassers reviewed a random sample of 1,000 submitted signatures to certify the proposal and determined that only 626 were valid.The Michigan Bureau of Elections conducted a similar review and only found 612 valid signatures.Americans for Citizen Voting asked the Michigan Supreme Court to overturn the board’s decision last week. But without action from the state high court, the group pushed for the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene. The justices typically only rule on cases after lower courts have weighed in.“Just as this court is familiar with the crushing time constraints of election cases, so too is it familiar with the need to — in some circumstances — issue injunctive relief without waiting for fulsome lower court consideration,” Americans for Citizen Voting wrote.The group blamed the board of canvassers for waiting over five months before denying its petition. And now Americans for Citizen Voting claims the Michigan Supreme Court is also delaying the case.“Denial of access to the ballot is so obviously an irreparable harm that federal courts rarely even linger on this element of a motion for an injunction,” the group wrote. “Applicants respectfully ask this court to hold that, like so many lower federal courts have found before and as is demanded by common sense, denial of access to the ballot is a harm irreparable by any post-election remedy.”Americans for Citizen Voting urged the justices to act by Sept. 3, one day before the deadline to finalize Michigan’s ballot.Noncitizen voting is exceedingly rare, and federal voter registration requires applicants to swear under penalty of perjury that they satisfy each eligibility requirement to vote — including citizenship. But the issue has gained attention amid baseless claims of voter fraud.Last week, the Supreme Court cleared the way for President Donald Trump to enforce an executive order creating lists of U.S. citizens eligible to vote in each state and instructing the U.S. Postal Service to send mail ballots only to verified voters. However, the justices’ ruling was based on procedural issues with a Democratic challenge to the order, not the constitutionality of the policy, which could be blocked as litigation continues.In the coming months, the high court will also review Arizona’s proof-of-citizenship requirements for voting in federal elections.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads