# Election lawsuits are underway: What voters need to know

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/election-lawsuits-are-underway-what-voters-need-to-know/
- Published: 2026-10-28T15:35:19+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-04T00:45:45+00:00
- Original publisher: The Hill (publisher lean: Centre)
- Original article: https://thehill.com/newsletters/the-gavel/the-gavel-live-briefing/6178074-election-lawsuits-2026-what-to-know-midterms-live-discussion/
- Topics: Americas, Business, Elections, Markets, Politics, World

## Key points

- Election lawsuits were already under way before the midterms.
- The Supreme Court declined to order California to separate roughly 20,000 disputed ballots.
- A judge dismissed a bid to delay certification of Alaska’s Senate race.

## Summary

Lawsuits over the 2026 US midterm elections began before polling day, with disputes over who may vote, how ballots are handled and when results can be certified. A live briefing published on 28 October drew attention to two cases: the Trump administration’s attempt to have California set aside mail ballots from roughly 20,000 people it said might be non-citizens, and a challenge involving two candidates named Dan Sullivan in Alaska’s Senate race. The government argued that the California measure would prevent potentially ineligible votes from being counted; California disputed the reliability of the list and the need to change its ballot procedures.

Subsequent rulings clarified the immediate position for voters. On 2 November, the US Supreme Court rejected the administration’s emergency request to separate the California ballots. A federal judge also dismissed the Justice Department’s attempt to delay certification in Alaska if the Republican incumbent lost. Those decisions addressed specific requests rather than every allegation or case, and election litigation could continue during counting and certification. Voters should follow instructions from their state and local election officials, whose published procedures remain the practical guide to casting a ballot.

## Coverage

- [The Hill: Election lawsuits are underway: What voters need to know](https://thehill.com/newsletters/the-gavel/the-gavel-live-briefing/6178074-election-lawsuits-2026-what-to-know-midterms-live-discussion/)
- [California Department of Justice: Attorney General Bonta Secures Fourth Legal Victory as U.S. Supreme Court Delivers Final Blow to Trump Administration’s Emergency Court Efforts to Disrupt California Elections](https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-secures-fourth-legal-victory-us-supreme-court-delivers)

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.