Become part of the movement for unbiased, accessible election information. Donate today.
State of Election Administration Legislation 2024 Year-End Report: Vetoes and veto overrides
 |
Absentee/mail-in voting • Early voting • Electoral systems • Voting rights for convicted felons • Private funding • Primary systems • Redistricting • Voter identification |
December 12, 2024
By Ballotpedia staff
Vetoes and veto overrides
Governors vetoed 38 bills in 2024, less than last year but more than 2022.
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) vetoed the most election-related bills (13) and governors of states with a divided government also took the second and third spot in terms of vetoes. California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) vetoed the most bills (5) out of any state with a partisan trifecta. All but 10 of this year’s vetoes were in states with divided governments.
Among the five bills vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) was SB 299 which would have removed an option to opt out of automatic voter registration at the state DMV, as well as AB 544 which would have created a pilot program to increase access to voting for incarcerated but eligible individuals. He also vetoed two bills related to independent redistricting in Los Angeles.
In Louisiana, Gov. Jeff Landry (R) vetoed SB 96, which would have allowed eligible voters without internet access to complete an electronic voter registration application in-person at the registrar’s office in their parish. The bill passed both chambers of the legislature unanimously. In his veto message, Landry said: “I believe current law adequately allows voters with a Louisiana driver’s license or special identification card to register online, without making these additional exceptions.”
In Mississippi, Gov. Tate Reeves (R) vetoed HB 922, which would have made county election commissioners a nonpartisan office, instead of a partisan elected office. The bill passed with bipartisan support. In a veto message, Reeves said that the bill would have violated the First Amendment rights of political parties and concluded: “(w)hile I do not believe it was the intention of the members of the Mississippi Legislature who voted in favor of House Bill 922 to infringe upon the constitutional rights of political parties, I am compelled to veto House Bill 922 to protect such fundamental rights and avoid the litigation it will inevitably generate.”
In North Carolina, Gov. Roy Cooper (D) vetoed S 382 on November 26. The senate voted to override the governor’s veto 30-19 on December 2, and the lower chamber will vote to sustain or override the veto on December 11, after the publication of this report. The bill combines disaster relief funding for communities and businesses impacted by Hurricane Helene with various changes to state law, including several related to elections. The bill makes the state board of elections an agency under the state auditor instead of the governor, moves up the deadline to request an absentee ballot by one week, and standardizes a deadline to return cured ballots, among other changes.
In Oklahoma, Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) vetoed SB 1196, a bill that would have allowed cabinet secretaries to hold leadership positions in state agencies. The bill relates to an ongoing dispute about the legality of holding dual offices in the state. Several members of Stitt’s cabinet also hold agency or other state leadership positions. Despite the bill ostensibly supporting Stitt’s position in the dispute, he issued a veto, saying: “This legislation is unnecessary because the law is already clear: The Governor can choose his cabinet from among the agency directors.”
In Virginia, Gov. Youngkin vetoed 13 bills, including:
- SB 606, which would have required the state to reapply to join the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), a voter list maintenance compact. Virginia was a founding member of ERIC in 2012 but resigned in 2023.
- HB 904 / SB 300, which would have required the Department of Elections to keep a record of cancellation of a voter’s registration for four years, instead of two, and would have created new security standards for state and county voter registration systems.
- SB 428, which would have established new counting, tabulation, and certification procedures for ranked-choice voting (RCV) elections in Virginia. According to the bill’s sponsor, “The bill made a series of changes the Department [of Elections] asked for to ensure for a smoother and more legally sound process for ranked-choice voting.” Former state attorney general Ken Cuccinelli said, “We viewed the bill as seeking to expand and ingratiate ranked-choice voting further into Virginia, and we're happy to see the governor's veto.”
Elsewhere, lawmakers in Kentucky overrode three vetoes by Gov. Andy Beshear (D), adopting a new law banning RCV, and another that removed the governor’s authority to fill U.S. Senate vacancies. Kentucky is one of three states with a Democratic governor and a veto-proof Republican-controlled legislature.
Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker
State election laws are changing. Keeping track of the latest developments in all 50 states can seem like an impossible job.
Here's the solution: Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker.
Ballotpedia's Election Administration Tracker sets the industry standard for ease of use, flexibility, and raw power. But that's just the beginning of what it can do:
- Ballotpedia's election experts provide daily updates on bills and other relevant political developments.
- We translate complex bill text into easy-to-understand summaries written in everyday language.
- And because it's from Ballotpedia, our Tracker is guaranteed to be neutral, unbiased, and nonpartisan.
About the authors
Joe Greaney is a staff writer on Ballotpedia's Marquee Team.
Ballotpedia Editor in Chief Geoff Pallay reviewed the report and provided feedback, as did Managing Editor Cory Eucalitto and Marquee Team Lead Janie Valentine.
See also
- Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker
- About Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker
- Voting laws in the United States
- Election Policy
