GOP-controlled local boards with tight Senate races restrict voting on Sundays and make voting harder

Voters in at least 22 states face new obstacles compared with 2024, according to a Brennan Center report, as Republican-run legislatures and county boards tighten access ahead of midterms that will decide control of Congress. CNN reports the changes have drawn less notice than President Donald Trump's moves on mail voting and voter rolls, yet may sway turnout in tight Senate contests in Iowa, Ohio, North Carolina and Texas. Celina Stewart, CEO of the League of Women Voters, said she had never seen such a coordinated push to limit ballot access in 17 years of voting rights work.

In Texas, the Tarrant County commissioners court split 3-2 by party on September 1 to remove close to a third of polling sites. County Judge Tim O'Hare cited savings. Opponents, including Brianna Brown of the Texas Organizing Project, say the cuts burden minority and young voters. Mail-in applicants there must now supply an ID number. Governor Greg Abbott has defended the state's rules as the toughest in the country, though no evidence shows significant noncitizen voting.

Ohio, where Sen.

Summarized by PolitiKool from CNN’s reporting. Read the full story at CNN →