Alabama absentee votes

A federal appeals court has ruled that a portion of a new Alabama law limiting help with absentee ballot applications will remain blocked. The decision on Friday sides with voting rights groups who argued that it discriminated against voters who are blind, disabled or cannot read.

A federal judge on Friday refused to stay an injunction against a portion of a new Alabama law that limits who can help voters with absentee ballot applications. Chief U.S. District Judge David Proctor last week issued a preliminary injunction stating that the law's ban on gifts and payments for help with an absentee ballot application "are not enforceable as to blind, disabled, or illiterate voters."

While the practice of ballot collection is legal in 35 states, the rules vary significantly from state to state. In some states, the laws are so vague that they are open to interpretation. Alabama is the only state where only the voter is permitted to return the ballot unless there is an emergency situation.

A federal court is ruling that the State of Alabama cannot restrict assistance for disabled, blind and low-literacy voters in 2024 election when it comes to the absentee application process. A U.S. District on Tuesday blocked a portion of a new Alabama law violates the Voting Rights Act.

Voting will begin in many states in just a few weeks. Alabama became the first state to begin sending out mail-in ballots on Sept. 11. It’s one of 10 states that send mail-in ballots to voters more than 45 days before Election Day. Here's a step-by-step guide for Alabamians looking to register to vote and cast a ballot in the 2024 election.

An Alabama lawmaker and voting rights advocates are introducing Senate Bill 7, also known as the Alabama Voting Rights Act. The legislation is being billed by supporters as a way to protect democracy and ensure equal access at the ballot box.

Opposing lawyers are battling in court over a new Alabama law that makes it illegal for outside parties to deliver or prefill someone’s absentee ballot application. A federal judge heard arguments Wednesday over a lawsuit challenging the new restrictions.

A coalition of civil rights, voting rights and disability rights organizations are suing Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, Alabama’s 42 District Attorneys and Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen to block Alabama’s recently enacted law that bans paid assistance with absentee ballot applications.

A ruling that weakened a key part of the Voting Rights Act is spurring lawmakers in several states to enact state-level protections to plug gaps that the courts opened in the landmark federal law. The biggest blow to the federal law in the view of voting rights advocates was a 2013 Supreme Court ruling in an Alabama case that stripped the government of a potent tool to stop voting bias.

Governor Kay Ivey is giving approval to the so-called absentee voting bill, which makes it a misdemeanor to distribute a pre-filled absentee ballot application to a voter or return another voter's completed application. The legislation also outlaws paid assistance with absentee ballot applications.