A flurry of U.S. election-related lawsuits are playing out in courts nationwide with more than 160 cases already on the books, and experts say that’s just par for the course during a modern presidential contest.
At least 165 election-related lawsuits have already been filed, the majority focusing on issues such as who should be eligible to vote, how ballots are cast and counted, and how to ensure election security and protect against alleged voter fraud.
But several legal analysts say they doubt that any of these lawsuits will have a protracted impact on the 2024 election and describe the nature of the claims as fairly standard fare, especially during the more than two decades since George W. Bush fended off Al Gore and a mountain of legal challenges to win the 2020 presidential election.
“I think we’re going to have a lot of litigation, but I would be surprised if we have any jugular hints,” George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley told Fox News Digital.
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A person drops off their vote-by-mail ballot in Portland. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)
The most high-profile lawsuits to date have been filed in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, which are the seven battleground states that carry a combined total of 93 electoral votes and which are widely expected to help decide the election in favor of either Democrat Vice President Harris or Republican former President Trump.
The close race and wave of recent court cases have led some observers to fear that the lawsuits will either disenfranchise would-be voters, keep one or the other candidate’s supporters from participating in the election, or generate doubts over voting results after the race is decided.
But such concerns are likely unfounded, Turley notes.
“In the five presidential elections I’ve covered, I don’t think any pre-election challenge had a huge impact,” he said.
Turley added that…
