😃 Good: In Nevada, lawmakers advanced a last-minute resolution that would establish universal mail-in voting in the state constitution by requiring every active registered voter to automatically receive a mail ballot, with the option to opt out. The amendment will also expand access to ballot drop boxes. While these provisions already exist in state law, this amendment will cement them in the constitution, making them significantly harder to overturn. Because it’s a legislative resolution, it does not require the governor’s approval and can pass with a simple majority vote. The measure now moves to the 2027 legislative session, where a second approval would place it on the ballot for voters in 2028.
😠 Bad: In Utah, members of the state legislature are fighting for a gerrymandered congressional map after a judge found that it violated state law. This legal battle stems from Proposition 4, a 2018 ballot measure approved by voters to require fair congressional maps. The state district court recently ruled that the legislature's attempts to overturn Proposition 4 were unconstitutional and ordered them to create a map that follows the law. Now, lawmakers are challenging that ruling in the State Supreme Court, even passing legislation to adjust candidate filing deadlines while the appeal is underway. Utah is now one of several states currently working on new maps ahead of the 2026 elections.
😡 Ugly: The Department of Homeland Security is cleared to rework its federal immigration-status database, the decades-old SAVE system, for mass voter "verification" under a settlement with Florida, Ohio, Iowa, and Indiana. Created initially to confirm eligibility for public benefits, the system will now perform automated checks of U.S. citizenship, allowing all state DMVs to submit large batches of driver's license records for review.
This dangerous overhaul opens the door to wrongful voter purges, bulk data-sharing, and the potential misuse of personal information for immigration enforcement. These changes could remain in place for at least two decades, creating new barriers for communities that already face obstacles to the ballot box, including Black and Brown voters, naturalized citizens, and women who have changed their names.
