Ohio Federal Appeals District Court verdict overturned by Supreme Court. The Democratic Sec of State wins her case!
MSNBC link
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/
WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court sided Friday with Ohio's top elections official in a dispute with the state Republican Party over voter registrations.
The justices overruled a federal appeals court that had ordered Ohio's top elections official to do more to help counties verify voter eligibility.
Supreme Court link:
http://www.scotusblog.com/...
Update shortly
MSNBC has Pete Williams commenting in a moment from the Supreme Court
MSNBC reporting:
Victory for state of Ohio. Supreme Court statement says lower court was wrong in giving positive verdict to GOP.
Supreme Court says Fed law does not give GOP right to sue to enforce Federal law...it's up to the state. Ohio will process and accept absentee ballots now..
The Supreme Court said they were granting Brunner's request because it appears that the law does not allow private entities, like the Ohio GOP, to file suit to enforce the provision of the law at issue.
More to come with links
Reports the AP:
The justices on Friday overruled a federal appeals court that had ordered Ohio's top elections official to do more to help counties verify voter eligibility.
Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, a Democrat, faced a deadline of Friday to set up a system to provide local officials with names of newly registered voters whose driver's license numbers or Social Security numbers on voter registration forms don't match records in other government databases.
The ruling could make it easier to vote for thousands of Ohioans whose voter registration information did not match up with other government records.
And the McCain campaign has already responded. On a conference call with reporters just now, campaign manager Rick Davis said: "If you look at what the ruling said, it said that the Republican party didn't have standing in order to bring the suit, it didn't make a deicion on the merits of the case." Davis added: "I think that the Secretary of State ought to do her job."
Reports the AP:
The justices on Friday overruled a federal appeals court that had ordered Ohio's top elections official to do more to help counties verify voter eligibility.
Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, a Democrat, faced a deadline of Friday to set up a system to provide local officials with names of newly registered voters whose driver's license numbers or Social Security numbers on voter registration forms don't match records in other government databases.
About 200,000 of 666,000 voters who have registered in Ohio since Jan. 1 have records that don't match. Brunner has said the discrepancies most likely stem from innocent clerical errors rather than fraud but has set up a verification plan.
Now..food for thought..imagine what would have happened if the egregious republican Ken Blackwell had still been Ohio Secretary of State? America thanks you Jennifer Brunner. We must elect more Democrats to keep elections open and fair!