Watson v. Republican National Committee · ¶15

In our Nation’s early years, voters had to cast their ballots in person in the district where they lived. See, e.g., J. Benton, Voting in the Field: A Forgotten Chapter of the Civil War 4–5 (1915) (Benton). Elections were “lively public events,” marked not only by “‘continuous electioneering and political arguments’” but also by “‘picnics, drinking, and boisterous celebration.’” T. El-Haj, Changing the People: Legal Regulation and American Democracy, 86 N. Y. U. L. Rev. 1, 14 (2011) (quoting Silbey 143). Public assembly was not just a matter of merriment—it also helped ensure that only those qualified to vote did so. See, e.g., E. Evans, A History of the Australian Ballot System in the United States 48 (1917). Ballots were cast “in the company of neighbors and under the watchful eyes of community leaders.” D. Collins, Absentee Soldier Voting in Civil War Law and Politics 1–13 (2014)…

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