In Georgia, Democrats are suing to stop new election certification rules

In Arizona, proof of citizenship is currently required to register to vote

In North Carolina, there are new rules for voting by mail

In Texas, there is outcry over home searches tied to a voter fraud probe

There’s a coordinated effort by activists to purge or ‘clean’ voter rolls

There is a single case of alleged double voting

A note from Mark Zuckerberg on election integrity

Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz will sit with CNN for their first joint interview on Thursday as Democrats work to broaden their base’s excitement from last week’s Democratic National Convention.

The interview, conducted by CNN’s chief political correspondent and anchor Dana Bash, will air at 9 p.m. ET on Thursday. It occurs as the candidates embark on a bus tour through the battleground state of Georgia and marks the first time Harris has sat with a journalist for an in-depth, on-the-record conversation since President Joe Biden dropped his bid for a second term and endorsed her on July 21.

The 37 days since her candidacy began have generated a swell of enthusiasm and momentum for Harris, including at last week’s convention in Chicago. But her lack of a formal news conference or interview has generated criticism from her Republican rivals. Thursday’s interview fulfils a vow she made earlier in August to schedule a sit-down before the end of the month.

The recent US Supreme Court decision changing voter registration rules in Arizona has voting rights advocates anxious about how the justices will approach emergency election appeals in the runup to the November election.

Not only was the Arizona ruling a missed opportunity for the justices to explain when they will engage in election and voting cases, experts say it has also heightened concern that the court is unevenly applying a murky legal principle intended to reduce chaos rather than add to it.

The “Purcell principle,” rooted in a 2006 Supreme Court decision, warns federal courts to avoid making last minute changes to the status quo of voting rules before an election.

The Justice Department is suing Georgia over new voting restrictions enacted as part of Republican efforts nationwide to limit voting access in the wake of President Donald Trump’s election defeat.

The state law imposes new voter identification requirements for absentee ballots, empowers state officials to take over local elections boards, limits the use of ballot drop boxes and makes it a crime to approach voters in line to give them food and water.

Republicans had cast the measure as necessary to boost confidence in elections after the 2020 election and Trump’s repeated and unsubstantiated claims of fraud, but Democrats in the state have called the new law voter suppression and likened it to Jim Crow-era voting laws.

The 36-page indictment, secured Tuesday by the special counsel, is an attempt to recalibrate the case after the Supreme Court’s immunity decision.

A federal grand jury in Washington, D.C. has reindicted Donald Trump on four felony charges related to his effort to subvert the 2020 presidential election.

The 36-page indictment, secured Tuesday by special counsel Jack Smith, is an attempt by prosecutors to streamline the case against Trump to address the Supreme Court’s ruling last month that concluded presidents enjoy sweeping immunity from prosecution for their official conduct.

The new indictment removes some specific allegations against Trump but contains the same four criminal charges, including conspiracy to defraud the United States. It’s a signal that Smith believes the high court’s immunity decision doesn’t pose a major impediment to convicting the former presiden

Blame John Roberts and Donald Trump.

The complaint in United States v. Georgia, which is signed by the most senior lawyers in the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, alleges that several provisions of the Georgia law “were adopted with the purpose of denying or abridging Black citizens’ equal access to the political process, in violation” of the Voting Rights Act.

The DOJ does not attack the entire Georgia law, and it does not directly attack the single most troubling provision of the law, which allows Republican officials to effectively take over local election boards that have the power to close polling places and disqualify voters.

Instead, the lawsuit focuses on several provisions making it harder to cast an absentee ballot in Georgia. It also targets provisions that disenfranchise many voters who cast a ballot in the wrong precinct, as well as the Georgia law’s provision prohibiting pro-democracy groups from distributing food and water to voters waiting in long lines to cast a ballot.

Poll question
Is Trump really trying to get out of debating Harris, or is he involved in some other type of gamesmanship?

Selection of Smerconish Daily Headlines

Dow Jones Climbs to Record Peak. MarketWatch
The Dow Jones reached a record high as positive economic data restored investor confidence, reversing recession fears and leading to the market’s 23rd record close of the year.

Smith Appeals Docs Case Dismissal, NPR
Special Counsel Jack Smith is appealing Judge Aileen Cannon’s dismissal of the classified documents case against Trump, seeking to have the case reinstated by the 11th Circuit Court.

Republican Alumni Endorse Harris, USA Today
Over 200 former Bush, McCain, and Romney staffers endorsed Harris, citing fears of Trump’s leadership and its threat to American democracy, urging moderates to back the VP.
Gabbard Endorses Trump, KITV
Tulsi Gabbard, former Democratic Rep., endorsed Trump, distancing herself further from her former party and siding with his criticism of Harris and the Biden administration.

RFK’s Secret Service Protection Ends, For the Left
Not long after finally securing it, RFK Jr. lost his Secret Service protection after suspending his presidential campaign, following protocol that ends protection when candidates exit the race.