A federal judge ripped into a top Democratic law firm that was attempting to challenge an absentee ballot witness requirement in Wisconsin.
“Normally, the court would begin by searching for other textual clues in the statute. But in this case, the most obvious problem with plaintiffs’ interpretation is that it simply does not make any sense,” U.S. District Judge James Peterson said in a ruling against the Elias Law Group, the firm founded by Democratic super lawyer and former Clinton campaign general counsel Marc Elias, which was attempting to challenge the Wisconsin law.
At the heart of the issue is Wisconsin’s state statute under § 6.87(2), which lays out absentee voting requirements in the state.
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James Peterson testifies during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Jan. 8, 2014, on Capitol Hill.
The Wisconsin law requires voters to both certify that they meet the requirements to vote and that they have followed the correct process for filling out an absentee ballot, which includes a section that requires “witness certification.”
Elias said the witness requirement violates the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and Civil Rights Act of 1964, arguing that a witness would be forced to verify the eligibility of the voter filling out the ballot.
“Under plaintiffs’ interpretation, every witness would have to determine the voter’s age, residence, citizenship, criminal history, whether the voter is unable or unwilling to vote in person, whether the voter has voted at another location or is planning to do so, whether the voter is capable of understanding the objective of the voting process, whether the voter is under a guardianship, and, if so, whether a court has determined that the voter is competent,” Peterson, an Obama appointee, wrote.
Attorney Marc Elias outside of the Sandra Day O’Connor U.S. Courthouse in Phoenix, Arizona, on Aug. 3, 2016. (David Jolkovski for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
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“Many witnesses would be unable to independently verify much of the required information,” Peterson continued. “The statute allows any adult U.S. citizen to serve as a witness, suggesting that a wide variety of people should be able to do the job… It makes no sense to interpret § 6.87 in a way that would make compliance virtually impossible.”
The decision follows the top firm’s failure in another Wisconsin case, which saw Elias attempt to force the state to redraw its congressional maps. But the Wisconsin Supreme Court opted not to hear the case, a victory for Republicans in the state.
Jonathan Turley, Fox News Media contributor and the Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University, noted that Elias himself has been at the center of several controversies and courtroom losses in recent memory.
An example of an absentee ballot.
“Elias has been sanctioned in past litigation. Yet, other Democrats have continued to hire Elias despite his checkered past,” Turley wrote Saturday. “Elias unsuccessfully led efforts to challenge Democratic losses. Elias also was the subject of intense criticism after a tweet that some have called inherently racist.”
The Elias Law Group did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment.
