Private Rights of Action for Election Litigation in the Federal Courts

Authors

• Derek T. Muller, Notre Dame Law SchoolFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2026

Publication Information

48 U. Ark. Little Rock L. Rev. 307 (2026).

Abstract

Election litigation is surging. But just as litigants pursue more election claims in federal courts than ever before, federal courts are growing more skeptical about their authority to hear them. This Essay, a contribution to the 2025 Arnold Lecture at the University of Arkansas Little Rock, William H. Bowen School of Law, examines the narrowing landscape of private rights of action in election law with a particular focus on claims brought ahead of the 2024 election. It traces the Supreme Court's shift toward formalism, the heavy emphasis on remedies found in federal statutes, and the diminishing avenues for private enforcement under statutes such as the Voting Rights Act and the Help America Vote Act. With courts increasingly demanding clear congressional authorization to sue, the executive branch must shoulder more enforcement responsibility. And if the executive branch fails to enforce federal election laws, courts may face even greater challenges when problems arise in elections.

Recommended Citation

Derek T. Muller, Private Rights of Action for Election Litigation in the Federal Courts, 48 U. Ark. Little Rock L. Rev. 307 (2026)..
Available at: https://scholarship.law.nd.edu/law_faculty_scholarship/1969