The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for Dec. 29, 2025

Ohio has joined Kansas in eliminating a grace period for mail-in ballots arriving after election day.  A U.S. Supreme Court case from Mississippi could potentially eliminate mail ballot grace periods nationwide, disenfranchising tens of thousands. 

In March 2025, the GOP-dominated Kansas legislature repealed its 2017 three-day grace period law, and as of 2026, requires ballots to be received on or before election day.

With the erosion of U.S. Postal Service delivery standards, several states added grace periods to count late-arriving mail ballots.  But that was before President Donald Trump partially and baselessly blamed his 2020 loss on mail-in ballots, and in March 2025 issued an already court-challenged executive order requiring that all voting occur on election day.

On December 19th, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed SB 293, eliminating that state’s four-day grace period for absentee ballots.   About 8,000 ballots arrived after election day in 2024, according to Secretary of State testimony on the bill.  

DeWine said he QUOTE “reluctantly” signed the bill due to the pending U.S. Supreme Court case, Watson v. Republican National Committee, challenging Mississippi’s grace period law.   That case will be heard next year, and impacts as many as 14 other states with similar laws.

We have more at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl. 

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

The White House – PRESERVING AND PROTECTING THE INTEGRITY OF AMERICAN ELECTIONS
Kansas Legislature – Senate Bill 4
Kansas Reflector – Kansas Legislature overrides governor’s veto of bill to limit advance voting
BOLTS Magazine – Trump Wants Mail Votes to Arrive By Election Day. Red States Are Rushing to Toe the Line. 
Ohio Capital Journal – Gov. DeWine weighing whether to eliminate Ohio’s absentee ballot grace period
Ohio Capital Journal – Ohio Gov. DeWine signs property tax bills, ‘reluctantly’ approves new voting restrictions

Brennan Center for Justice – (2024) Mail Voting Accuracy

Groups Taking Action:

ACLU Ohio,  National Vote at Home Institute,  Ohio Voice

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

U.S. Election Assistance Commission – How to Register And Vote in Your State

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#News #Democracy  #DemocracyNews #VotebyMail #MailBallotGracePeriod #Ohio #Kansas 

The post Ohio Joins Kansas in Eliminating Grace Periods for Mail-In Ballots; A 2026 Mississippi SCOTUS Case Could Eliminate Them Nationwide appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for Dec. 24, 2025

Proof of citizenship, limits on voting by mail and narrowed voter ID options dominated the 37 restrictive state election laws passed in 2025, according to democracy legislation tracker Voting Rights Lab.  Five states accounted for nearly half of the laws passed.  

Texas added a signed sworn statement for the disabled and elderly to vote curbside, and now requires voters who move within the county less than 30 days from the election to return to their previous precinct to vote. 

New Hampshire required copies of ID or a notarized signature with an absentee application, and required anyone registering by mail to include proof of citizenship, domicile and age.  Those registering by mail are often elderly or disabled, and may not have access to documents or means of copying them.

Kansas eliminated its grace period for mail-in ballots, and ballots must arrive by 7 pm election day. 

Indiana’s HB 1680 required proof of citizenship documents to be provided at registration, restricted assistance with filling out voter registration documents, and loosened rules on challenges to voter eligibility at the polls, among several other anti-voter provisions. 

North Dakota now requires that all mail ballots must be received by the close of polls on election day, but no longer accepts mail ballots at the polls, only by mail, drop boxes, or election offices.

We’ve linked the Voting Rights Lab tracker at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

Voting Rights Lab –  State bills which restricted voting in 2025
Voting Rights Lab –  Find legislation in your state
Brennan Center for Justice – State Voting Laws Roundup: October 2025

Groups Taking Action:

Common Cause,  AIPI Vote, NAACP Legal Defense Fund, League of Women Voters US

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

U.S. Election Assistance Commission – How to Register And Vote in Your State

Please follow us on Facebook and Bluesky Social, and SHARE! 

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

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Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#News #Democracy  #DemocracyNews #VoterSuppression #VoterID #VotebyMail #ProofofCitizenship

The post Restrictive Voting Laws Passed in 20 States in 2025. Proof of Citizenship, Limits on Mail-In Voting and Narrower Voter ID Rules Dominated. appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for Nov. 21, 2025

Charges of illegal noncitizen voting have been filed by Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach against a respected local mayor, who just won reelection with 83% of the vote.  The politically ambitious Kobach promises “hundreds” more prosecutions.  It’s highly unlikely.

Kobach, a former Kansas Secretary of State and 2017 vice-chair of President Donald Trump’s Presidential Commission on Election Integrity, charged Coldwater, Kansas Mayor Jose Ceballos with three counts of voting without being qualified and three counts of election perjury.  Ceballos, a permanent legal resident from Mexico who has applied for U.S. citizenship, allegedly voted in the 2022, 23 and 24 elections.   If convicted, he could face up to five years in prison and deportation.

Kobach said in a press conference that there are “thousands” of noncitizens on the Kansas voter rolls, and he expected “hundreds” of more prosecutions.  

The data, however, suggests otherwise.  A 2016 study by the Brennan Center for Justice found noncitizen voting “vanishingly rare,” and conservative Cato Institute research reviews in 2020 and 2024 found that noncitizens don’t illegally vote in detectable numbers, and don’t sway elections. 

Speaking to KWCH News, City Council President Britt Leonards said of the mayor, He has done a wonderful job.  He’s always put our community first in everything he does.”    

We’ve linked to  local reporting at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

Kansas Reflector – Kansas mayor charged with alleged voter fraud; state leader says ‘hundreds’ more cases expected
Topeka Capital Journal – Kansas officials believe illegal voting case is first of many
Kansas Attorney General’s Office – Kobach, Schwab announce charges in voter fraud case
Kansas SOS Office – Secretary Schwab and Attorney General Kobach announce voter fraud charges – FULL Press Conference
Brennan Center for Justice – Noncitizen Voting Is Already Illegal — and Vanishingly Rare
Cato Institute – (2020)  Noncitizens Don’t Illegally Vote in Detectable Numbers

Cato Institute – (2024)  Illegal Alien Voting Isn’t Swaying Federal Elections

ProPublica – (2018) How the Case for Voter Fraud Was Tested — and Utterly Failed

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

U.S. Election Assistance Commission – How to Register And Vote in Your State

Please follow us on Facebook and Bluesky Social, and SHARE! 

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

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Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#News #Democracy  #DemocracyNews #NoncitizenVoting #Kansas #KrisKobach #VoterFraud

The post Kansas AG Kobach Announces Noncitizen Voting Charges Against Local Mayor, and Promises ‘Hundreds More’ Prosecutions. It’s Highly Unlikely. appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for Nov. 17, 2025

We have updates on the congressional midterm gerrymandering arms race from Indiana, Missouri, Kansas,and California.  Florida, which has been on the sidelines, may enter the fray soon.

First to Indiana, where an effort by GOP lawmakers to manipulate one more Republican seat by splitting Indianapolis appears to have stalled. The state Senate defied Governor Mike Braun and refused to convene in December to approve the maps.

In Missouri, one lawsuit hopes to prove that mid-decade redistricting is not allowed under the state constitution.  Another aims to invalidate the signatures to stop a citizen ballot initiative overturning the maps.  The Missouri Independent reports that Citizens Not Politicians needs 106,000 signatures in six of eight congressional districts by Dec. 11.  The group said it had over 200,000 on November 6th.

Enough Kansas GOP legislators opposed that state’s proposal to gerrymander that the state senate wouldn’t be able to override the veto of its Democratic governor.  Seven committee chairs and vice chairs lost their posts as a result. 

November 13th, the Trump Department of Justice  joined the California state GOP in a lawsuit claiming Democrats racially gerrymandered its maps to counter Texas.

Although a Florida congressional redistricting committee has been formed, it has not yet met. Governor Ron DeSantis said in a post November 13th, “Stay tuned.”

We’ve linked the local reporting at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Indiana Capital Chronicle – Indiana Republican senators reject Trump’s redistricting push; won’t convene in December
Missouri Independent – Judge hears arguments over legality of gerrymandered Missouri congressional map
Missouri Independent – National Republicans gear up to fight referendum on Missouri congressional map 
NPR – In Kansas and elsewhere, some state lawmakers are skeptical of the redistricting rush
Kansas Reflector – Kansas Republicans’ effort to redraw state maps isn’t over, just delayed, leadership says
U.S. Justice Department – Justice Department Sues Governor Gavin Newsom for California’s Race-Based Redistricting Plan
Florida Politics – ‘Stay tuned’: Ron DeSantis still expects Congressional redistricting

Groups Taking Action:

Common Cause, FairVote, League of Women Voters

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

U.S. Election Assistance Commission – How to Register And Vote in Your State

Please follow us on Facebook and Bluesky Social, and SHARE! 

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

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Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

‘#News #Democracy  #DemocracyNews #Gerrymandering #CaliforniaPolitics #MissouriPolitics #KansasPolitics #FloridaPolitics #Indiana Politics #DonaldTrump #Midterms

The post Congressional Gerrymandering Arms Race Updates:  Indiana, Missouri, Kansas, California and Florida appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for Oct. 29, 2025

October 27th Indiana Governor Mike Braun signed a proclamation calling the state’s legislature into special session on November 3rd to consider congressional redistricting and a tax code issue.   This follows weeks of lobbying by Trump administration officials, worried that the GOP may lose control of the U.S. House. 

Indiana is already a very red state, with Democrats only holding two of nine seats, District 1 in northwest Indiana, and District 7 in Indianapolis.  Creating a GOP-leaning district will require “cracking” the existing districts and diluting liberal strongholds by adding Republican voters from adjoining areas.  The Indiana Capital Chronicle reports that the state House has enough votes to pass a gerrymandering plan, but Senate leaders say they’re still short of the votes needed.

In Kansas, Democratic Governor Laura Kelly refused to call a special session for redistricting, but KCUR reports that Senate President Ty Masterson confirmed Oct. 27th that he has the 27 signatures in the state Senate to activate a constitutional provision allowing the legislature to call the session itself. But it’s not yet clear if there are the  84 signatures needed from the House.  The only competitive congressional district in the state, Congressional District 1 south of Kansas City, is held by Democrat Sharice Davids. 

We’ve linked to local reporting and  the current Congressional maps for both states at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

American Democracy Minute – What States are Next?  Updates on Pre-Midterm Gerrymandering Prospects in Missouri, Kansas, Florida, Ohio, Alabama & New Hampshire

Indiana Capital Chronicle – Indiana governor summons lawmakers for redistricting session amid national GOP pressure 
Indiana Gov. Mike Braun – Gov. Mike Braun Calls Special Session on Redistricting and Federal and State Tax Issue
STATE OF INDIANA EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT – Proclamation  
Kansas Reflector – Kansas redistricting ‘hellscape’ and presumed special session get spotlight in Johnson County forum

KCUR – Kansas Senate President Ty Masterson said that enough Republican lawmakers signed on in his chamber to call a special session to consider gerrymandering the state’s congressional map. It’s not clear if the Kansas House has enough support yet, though.
Princeton Gerrymandering Project – Indiana 2021 Congressional – Enacted 
Princeton Gerrymandering Project – Kansas 2022 Congressional – Enacted

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

U.S. Election Assistance Commission – How to Register And Vote in Your State

Please follow us on Facebook and Bluesky Social, and SHARE! 

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

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Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#News #Democracy  #DemocracyNews #Gerrymandering #Indiana #Kansas #FairMaps #2026Midterms

The post Indiana is the Latest State to Consider Trump’s Mid-Decade GOP Gerrymandering Scheme, Kansas Edges Closer appeared first on American Democracy Minute.