Hello pro-democracy readers! Your hometown could be the next battleground in the GOP’s war to restrict voting. In our top story, Breaking News Reporter Yunior Rivas breaks down how Republicans are taking their attack on free and fair elections to the local level. Meanwhile, Maryland is making moves to fight back in the ongoing redistricting battle across the country.

All that and more is on the docket today. See you tomorrow!

Andrew Wyrich, Newsletter Editor

Republicans are trying to impose Trump’s voting restrictions at the local level

• Republican local officials, conservative activists and election deniers have tried to use ballot measures, county boards, city charters and local election offices to restrict voting or interfere with election administration on the local level — even where state law preempts them.
  
  
• This new front in the fight over ballot access deserves scrutiny as the midterms fast approach.
  
  
• Inside the GOP’s local-level anti-voting fight >>>

Maryland Democrats prepare special session to counter GOP gerrymanders

• Maryland may be on the verge of fighting back in the redistricting war. If voters approve a redistricting amendment on the ballot in November, Democrats could use it to pursue a new congressional map for the 2028 elections.
  
  
• How many seats could Democrats gain? >>>

Trump DOJ bid to defend Ohio’s anti-voting law is useless and untimely, court rules

• A federal judge today rejected the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) attempt to defend Ohio’s restrictive new voting law, finding its proposed filing redundant, disconnected and too late to help the court ahead of a major hearing next week.
  
  
• The department has recently experienced many setbacks in court, but this one is particularly unusual: Judges seldom reject such filings from the DOJ.
  
  
• Here’s what the judge said >>>

The FBI’s raid on free and fair elections

• “The first wave of Donald Trump’s weaponization of the criminal justice system was aimed at high-profile political enemies,” Marc writes in his latest opinion piece.
  
  
• “What we are witnessing now, however, is a second and more insidious track of that same weaponization — one aimed not at famous individuals who can fight back, but at the unglamorous, under-the-radar groups doing the daily work of democracy.”
  
  
• This piece was originally published for Democracy Docket members only. We’re sharing it more widely because it felt too timely to keep behind the paywall. Become a member to get Marc’s exclusive notes first.
  
  
• What the FBI’s latest raid really means >>>

North Carolina Republicans want to ban election officials from promoting voting

• The alarming rule is part of a massive proposed overhaul of elections that a state legislative committee approved today. The bill would also create new barriers for voters and increase partisan control over North Carolina’s election processes.
  
  

• What else is in the bill? >>>

Also in North Carolina…

• A Wake County court approved a settlement between the RNC, the North Carolina Republican Party and the North Carolina State Board of Elections, allowing for the removal of noncitizens identified through jury questionnaires from state voter rolls.
  
  
• Learn more about the settlement here >>>

Election denier Jim Marchant advances in Nevada Secretary of State race

• The victory puts Marchant — who has said he would not have certified President Joe Biden’s 2020 win in Nevada — one step closer to overseeing elections in one of the country’s most important battleground states.
  
  
• More on Marchant’s victory >>>

Speaking of election deniers: Florida Supreme Court refuses to suspend or disbar Kenneth Chesebro

• In a 6-1 ruling, the court refused to take action against Chesebro, a former Trump campaign lawyer who pleaded guilty in Georgia to a felony charge tied to the ‘fake electors’ scheme that sought to undermine Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory.
  
  
• More on the court’s decision >>>

EXPOSED: Trump's 3-part plot to end free elections in 2026

• In a recent video, Marc broke down the three fronts of Trump's war on voting: Restricting voter registration, controlling who gets to use mail-in voting and laying the groundwork for another "stop the count" campaign.
  
  
• Watch the full video >>>