American Democracy Minute A 90 second radio news report & podcast on U.S. democracy issues %

Elections Expert Testifies in DOJ Seizure of Fulton County, Georgia Ballots that Evidence Used to Justify the Warrant had ‘No Basis in Reality’

March 30, 2026March 30, 2026

After the FBI seized hundreds of boxes of 2020 election records from Fulton County, Georgia in January, county officials sued to get back their ballots. Expert testimony in the case suggests the justification cited by a Trump administration official to obtain the warrant had “no basis in reality.”

California Sheriff Obtains Warrant from Judge He Endorsed, Then Seizes More than 650,000 Ballots for ‘Recount’ of 2025 Redistricting Referendum

March 29, 2026March 29, 2026

A California county sheriff running for governor obtained a warrant from an elected judge he endorsed, then seized over 1,000 boxes of ballots from last November’s Proposition 50 redistricting referendum. After a warning from the state attorney general, he seized 426 more.

MO Supreme Court Upholds Legislature’s Mid-Decade Redistricting Authority, But a Pending Ballot Measure May Yet Invalidate its Map

March 26, 2026March 26, 2026

The Missouri Supreme Court ruled March 24th that the state legislature did have the authority to redistrict mid-decade, and not just after the release of the decennial U.S. Census. The legislature’s HB 1 gerrymandered Congressional map diluted majority-Black Kansas City to gain one GOP-leaning seat.

President Trump Ties Ending the Partial Government Shutdown to Passage of the SAVE America Act. The Draconian Voting Bill Still Doesn’t Have the Votes.

March 25, 2026March 25, 2026

March 22nd, President Donald Trump tied ending the partial government shutdown to passage of the GOP’s draconian voting bill, the Save America Act. It still doesn’t have the votes.

The Supreme Court’s Conservatives Appear Likely to End Mail-In Ballot Grace Periods, Affecting Dozens of State Laws and Millions of Voters

March 24, 2026March 24, 2026

During oral arguments in Watson v. Republican National Committee on March 23rd, the U.S. Supreme Court’s majority appeared ready to end grace periods for mail-in ballots. A decision could come in the early summer, four months before the midterm.