Disability Rights California (DRC), Disability Rights Advocates (DRA), and Brown, Goldstein & Levy (BGL) filed this federal class action on March 8, 2024, on behalf of the California Council of the Blind, the National Federation of the Blind of California, individual voters, and a class of California voters with print disabilities. The case challenges the inaccessibility of California’s vote-by-mail program. Because the program requires voters to return a paper ballot in an envelope they must sign and seal by hand, voters who are blind or have other print disabilities must rely on others to vote by mail, denying them the right to vote privately and independently. The lawsuit seeks an accessible electronic ballot return option.

On October 2, 2026, the court granted summary judgment for the plaintiffs and the class, holding that requiring voters with print disabilities to get another person’s help to return their ballots denies them meaningful access to vote-by-mail in violation of the ADA, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and California law. The court will next decide the remedy, including what California must do to make ballot return accessible.

Significant Documents

• Plaintiffs’ Second Amended Complaint (.pdf)
• Order on Plaintiffs’ Motion for Preliminary Injunction (.pdf)
• Defendant’s Answer to Plaintiffs’ Second Amended Complaint (.pdf)
• Order on Plaintiffs’ Unopposed Motion for Class Certification (.pdf)
• Order on Motion for Summary Judgment and Motion to Exclude Expert Testimony (.pdf)

Press Release

Federal Court Rules California Vote-by-Mail Program Discriminates Against Class of Voters with Print Disabilities