Michigan election law challenge will take time, judge says

PORT HURON, Mich. (AP) - A lawsuit that challenges Michigan’s restrictions on young first-time voters won’t be heard in time for the fall election.

Federal Judge Robert Cleland says the case won’t be on a fast track. He says the lawsuit is a “work of extraordinary complexity and scope.”

The lawsuit seeks to overturn rules that require some voters to cast a ballot in person when they vote for the first time. The lawsuit also targets a law that requires a voter’s registration to match a voter’s address on a driver’s license.

Lawyers for college Democrats say the restrictions prevent students from voting in college towns and discourage them from participating in elections. The secretary of state wonders why critics waited until five weeks before the registration deadline to file the lawsuit.