Fair Fight Action, Inc. v. Raffensperger, CIVIL ACTION FILE NO. 1:18-cv-5391-SCJ

• Decision Date: 30 May 2019
• Docket Number: CIVIL ACTION FILE NO. 1:18-cv-5391-SCJ
• Citation: 413 F.Supp.3d 1251
• Parties: FAIR FIGHT ACTION, INC., et al., Plaintiffs, v. Brad RAFFENSPERGER, in his official capacity as Secretary of State of the State of Georgia and as Chair of the State Election Board of Georgia, et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Northern District of Georgia

413 F.Supp.3d 1251

FAIR FIGHT ACTION, INC., et al., Plaintiffs,

v.Brad RAFFENSPERGER, in his official capacity as Secretary of State of the State of Georgia and as Chair of the State Election Board of Georgia, et al., Defendants.

CIVIL ACTION FILE NO. 1:18-cv-5391-SCJ

United States District Court, N.D. Georgia, Atlanta Division.

Signed May 30, 2019

Andrew D. Herman, Nina C. Gupta, Sarah A. Dowd, Miller & Chevalier Chartered, Dara Lindenbaum, Sandler Reiff Lamb Rosenstein & Birkenstock, P.C., Matthew G. Kaiser, Norman G. Anderson, Sarah R. Fink, KaiserDillon, PLLC, Scott Bernstein, Kaiser, LeGrand & Dillon, PLLC, Washington, DC, Jeremy Hale Ershow, Jenner & Block LLP-NY, New York, NY, Lovita T. Tandy, Tandy Legal, Smyrna, GA, Thomas Robinson Bundy, III, Pro Hac Vice, Lawrence & Bundy, LLC-MD, Fulton, MD, Kurt G. Kastorf, The Summerville Firm, LLC, Elizabeth Vranicar Tanis, Elizabeth Tanis, Attorney At Law, Leslie J. Bryan, Maia J. Cogen, Allegra J. Lawrence, Lawrence & Bundy, LLC-Atl, Suzanne Smith Williams, King & Spalding, LLP-ATL 40, Atlanta, GA, for Plaintiffs.

Andrew M. Swindle, Brian Edward Lake, Carey Allen Miller, Joshua Barrett Belinfante, Kimberly K. Anderson, Vincent Robert Russo, Jr., Robbins Ross Alloy Belinfante Littlefield, LLC-Atl, Bryan Francis Jacoutot, Diane Festin LaRoss, Taylor English Duma LLP, Bryan P. Tyson, Strickland Brockington Lewis, LLP, Atlanta, GA, for Defendants.

ORDER

HONORABLE STEVE C. JONES, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

This matter appears before the Court on Defendants' Renewed Motion to Dismiss Plaintiffs' Amended Complaint (Doc. No. [48] ).

I. BACKGROUND

On February 19, 2019, Plaintiffs Fair Fight Action, Inc. ("Fair Fight Action"), Care in Action, Inc. ("Care in Action"), Ebenezer Baptist Church of Atlanta, Georgia, Inc. ("Ebenezer"), Baconton Missionary Baptist Church, Inc. ("Baconton"), Virginia-Highland Church, Inc. ("Virginia-Highland"), and The Sixth Episcopal District, Inc. ("Sixth Episcopal District") (collectively, the "Plaintiffs") filed an Amended Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief against Defendants Brad Raffensperger (in his official capacity as Secretary of State of the State of Georgia and as Chair of the State Election Board of Georgia), Members of the State Election Board in their official capacities (Rebecca N. Sullivan, David J. Worley, and Seth Harp), and the State Election Board (collectively, the "Defendants"). Doc. No. [41].¹

In their Amended Complaint, Plaintiffs allege that there are "serious and unconstitutional flaws in Georgia's elections process" and that Defendants' actions with respect to the recent 2018 General Election "deprived Georgia citizens ... particularly citizens of color, of their fundamental right to vote." Doc. No. [41], ¶ 2. More specifically, Plaintiffs allege that with respect to the 2018 General Election, "[t]he Secretary of State, the State Election Board, and its members ("Defendants") enforced unconstitutional and otherwise unlawful legislation (such as O.C.G.A. § 21-2-234, which Plaintiffs refer to as the "Use it or Lose it" or voter-list purge statute² ); created and enforced unconstitutional and otherwise unlawful policies (such as the "Exact Match" policy, which Plaintiffs say prevented Georgians from registering to vote); and engaged in gross mismanagement (through the use of technology that is vulnerable to hacking and manipulation, overseeing an election system dependent on unreliable voting machines, promoting the moving and closing of precincts and polling places, maintaining inaccurate voter registration rolls, not providing adequate resources to polling places, and inadequately overseeing and training election officials on provisional and absentee ballots). Id. ¶¶ 2, 39–157.

Plaintiffs assert six causes of action: (1) violation of the fundamental right to vote (First and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution, as enforced by 42 U.S.C. § 1983 ) (Count I); (2) violation of the ban on racial discrimination in voting (Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as enforced by 42 U.S.C. § 1983 ) (Count II); (3) violation of Equal Protection (Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as enforced by 42 U.S.C. § 1983 ) (Count III); (4) violation of Procedural Due Process (Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as enforced by 42 U.S.C. § 1983 ) (Count IV); (5) violation of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (Count V); and (6) violation of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (Count VI). Plaintiffs seek injunctive and declaratory relief as to each count of the Amended Complaint. Doc. No. [41], ¶¶ 168, 181, 200, 208, 230, and 240.

On March 5, 2019, Defendant filed a Motion to Dismiss Plaintiffs' Amended Complaint on various grounds, which include: lack of standing, failure to join necessary parties, failure to state a claim, Eleventh Amendment immunity, and shotgun pleading. Doc. No. [48]. The motion has been fully briefed by the parties. The Court also held a hearing on the pending motion on April 29, 2019. The purpose of this hearing was for the parties to address the grounds of the pending motion, as well as the mootness doctrine due to the enactment of new election legislation by the Georgia General Assembly (House Bill 316 and House Bill 392, hereinafter "HB 316" and HB 392") after the close of the briefing. Doc. No. [56]. Post-hearing, the Court permitted both sides an additional seven days to submit supplemental briefing. The briefing deadline expired on May 6, 2019, and this case is now ripe for review.

II. DISCUSSION

The Court's discussion is divided into four parts. First, the Court considers the jurisdictional threshold matters (i.e., standing, mootness, ripeness, and Eleventh Amendment Immunity). Second, the Court considers the joinder/necessary party issue. Third, the Court considers the failure to state a claim arguments and, last, the Court addresses the shotgun pleading assertions.

A. Standing

1. The Plaintiffs

Plaintiff Ebenezer is a 501(c)(3) non-profit entity organized under the laws of Georgia. Doc. No. [41], ¶ 21. Its purpose is "to be a global ministry dedicated to individual growth and social transformation through living in the message and carrying out the mission of Jesus Christ." Id. As a church serving Atlanta's African-American community, Ebenezer "has been engaged in the fight for voting rights since at least 1935." Id. ¶ 22. Consistent with its overall mission of social transformation, Ebenezer "regularly sponsors voter registration drives and activities, partners with community organizations to raise awareness regarding voting, provides information and education to the community about voting, and provides community members with rides to voting locations." Doc. No. [41], ¶ 22. Plaintiffs allege that due to Defendants' conduct, Ebenezer engaged in an extensive vote-by-mail campaign in connection with 2018 General Election in an attempt to counter voter suppression tactics. Id. ¶ 23. Plaintiffs also allege that Ebenezer will have to undertake new activities in future election cycles to address the voting issues that arose in the 2018 election cycle. Id. According to Plaintiffs, Ebenezer was required to divert resources from its generalized voter awareness and registration efforts (and from other ministry activities) and will be required to do so in the future. Id.

Baconton is a non-profit religious corporation organized under the laws of the state of Georgia. Id. ¶ 25. Its mission is to build "a biblically-based community of loving relationships where members love, follow, and model Jesus on a daily basis." Id. Baconton views voting as "an integral part of its community-building mission." Id. It hosts activities such as voter registration drives and prayer meetings for candidates. Id. Plaintiffs allege that in the 2018 election cycle, due to the "Use it or Lose it" statute and voter purges, Baconton diverted time and resources away from its regular voter activities to assisting community members with determining whether they had been purged from the voter rolls. Doc. No. [41], ¶ 26. Plaintiffs allege that Baconton will have to continue to divert resources in future election cycles due to the Defendants' conduct. Id.

The Sixth Episcopal District is a 501(c)(3) non-profit entity, consisting of twelve church districts that represent 534 Georgia African Methodist Episcopal churches. Id. ¶ 31. Its mission is "church growth, Christian education, handling money God's way, and social justice." Id. As part of its social justice mission, the Sixth Episcopal District encourages voter registration of its congregants and provides funding to transport voters to the polls. Id. ¶ 32. In connection with the 2018 General Election, the Sixth Episcopal District focused on encouraging early voting and increasing voter education. Id. ¶ 33. Plaintiffs claim that the Sixth Episcopal District will have to divert resources from general "Souls to the Polls" work in future elections to counteract voter suppression. Id. ¶ 34. The resources that it will employ to ensure its congregants' votes are counted will be diverted from other ministry activities and programs, including those for food banks and homeless shelters. Id. ¶ 35.

Virginia-Highland is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation with a mission to "do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly." Doc. No. [41], ¶ 28. As part of its focus on social justice, Virginia-Highland engages in activities such as voter registration, training congregants to help others register, voter engagement efforts, and assisting with election-day transportation. Id. As a result of the voter suppression Virginia-Highland observed in the 2018 General Election, it is creating programs to educate voters on how to overcome voter-suppression obstacles in upcoming elections. Id. ¶ 29. To do so, Virginia-Highland must divert resources away from other church ministries and activities. Id. ¶ 30.

Fair Fight Action, formerly known as Voter...