Federal Court Says ID, Witnesses Required For Absentee Voting
People who want to vote by absentee ballot now must provide a photo ID to apply for an absentee ballot and have the signatures of two witnesses or a notary to cast the ballot itself.
A federal court ruled Tuesday that the state should enforce those requirements.
Photo ID and witnesses have been required under the law for previous elections in Alabama. But a federal judge ruled last month that they were overly burdensome during a pandemic for older people and people with health conditions. The U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday overruled the earlier order issued by U.S. District Court Judge Abdul Kallon.
“The photo ID and witness requirements are necessary deterrents for those looking to commit voter fraud, and I am glad the 11th Circuit has recognized their importance in safeguarding the elections process,” Secretary of State John Merrill said in a statement.
However, the 11th Circuit did uphold a portion of Kallon’s ruling that said the state could not bar counties from offering curbside voting. Merrill’s statement said his office had not been notified of any counties that wanted to offer curbside voting, but the state intends to appeal that portion of the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court.
In Birmingham, Black men’s groups work to save young men from the cycle of gun violence
As the city inches closer to its homicide record, community members are trying to address a sense of fatalism and lack of opportunity felt by some young men.
How do you solve a crime at a retirement home? Get ‘A Man on the Inside’
Michael Schur wrote for the The Office and created The Good Place. His new show for Netflix features Ted Danson as a widowed retiree who goes undercover in a retirement community.
SEC Chair Gary Gensler, who took aim at crypto industry, to step down in January
Gensler said he would step down on Jan. 20, when Donald Trump will inaugurated as the next president. Gensler took big enforcement actions against the crypto industry.
Russia launched an experimental ballistic missile at Ukraine, the U.S. says
Ukraine raised alarm suggesting Russia may have used an intercontinental ballistic missile to hit the city of Dnipro, but the U.S. National Security Council does not believe it was an ICBM.
Former Rep. Matt Gaetz withdraws as Trump’s attorney general nominee
Allegations of sex trafficking and drug use had stirred controversy over Matt Gaetz's nomination as attorney general.
This year’s FAFSA is officially open. Early review says it’s ‘a piece of cake’
The FAFSA form is now open to students hoping to get help paying for college in the 2025-26 academic year. Students can expect a much smoother process compared to the last cycle.
