N.M. GOP sue over early voting locations

In the recent past, we witnessed controversy over the early voting locations. Both times, Republicans accused Democratically controlled elections offices, mostly located in urban areas, of partisan bias in choosing the number, and location, of early voting centers. In many cases, the disparities are a result of state laws requiring that early voting locations be at government offices–most commonly, in the most populated, urbanized, and Democratically leaning areas in a county or state.

For instance, during the Illinois primary, suburban and downstate Republicans claimed that Cook County officials unfairly benefitted urban voters. County officials claimed that there were more locations in urban locales because there were more voters there. They also encountered some difficulty finding cooperative property owners in suburban areas.

The same accusations were made in Maryland, prior to the end of early voting by court decree.

The Albuquerque , NM Tribune reports a similar set of charges. Polling places are at or near county courthouses, and officials report difficulty in finding property owners in suburban locations who were willing to rent their facilities for a short period of time.