If you only read Democracy Docket or follow Marc Elias on Twitter, you might think that the left has never lost an election case ever. However, liberal election law professor Rick Hasen pointed out on Friday that this is simply not true:
The pre-election story is not documented quite as well, but it should be, as the outcomes were instructive. On the left, party committees, Super PACs, advocacy organizations and, to a lesser extent, civil rights groups brought dozens of suits challenging state election laws, regulations, or practices – particularly, though not exclusively, as they related to voting during the pandemic. Overall, the litigation was unsuccessful, with losses outnumbering even partial wins by a ratio of more than 7:1.
A number of these unsuccessful cases achieved some success at the trial court level, only to be stayed – and ultimately, overturned – on appeal. Many, though, were rejected at every level. The sums spent on these cases appear from public reporting to be considerable – well into the tens of millions of dollars.
As RNC Chief Counsel Justin Riemer has pointed out, the losses are not limited to the pre-2020 election litigation.
This lawsuit by Elias didn’t even survive a month. Like so many of his, it appears to have been DOA. https://t.co/KuxbeUie82
— Justin Riemer (@Justin_Riemer) January 7, 2022
The court savagely summarized what is pretty much every lawsuit they file: "misleading", "argumentative", "advocates partisan interests." It did "not accurately describe the Initiative". "Criticisms not well founded" and "an advocacy piece for his opposition to the Initiative." https://t.co/hAqhWKfJ3I
— Justin Riemer (@Justin_Riemer) January 7, 2022
As we detailed earlier this week, even the left is turning against Elias, who brought many of these cases. No doubt, the left's shoddy litigation will continue as we head into the 2022 midterms, especially as things look worse for them.
🚨🚨🚨DEMS IN DISARRAY🚨🚨🚨https://t.co/nxxX4MqBZY
— Elise Stefanik (@EliseStefanik) February 4, 2022