⚖ Oral Arguments, with Context

The Fourth Circuit hears Susan Hogarth’s First Amendment challenge to North Carolina’s ballot-selfie restrictions. In March 2024, Hogarth photographed herself with her marked primary ballot inside a Wake County voting booth and posted the image on X to promote her candidates and criticize the photo ban. A State Board investigator’s letter dated eight days later said taking and sharing the photo was unlawful, warned of possible prosecution, and told her to remove it. Hogarth refused and sued over five state-law provisions. The district court ruled for the election officials, applying the reasonableness standard for speech restrictions in a nonpublic forum. Hogarth says several provisions also ban photographing absentee ballots and sharing ballot photos outside a polling place. The appeal therefore asks how broadly her challenge reaches and which First Amendment test applies: strict scrutiny demands a compelling interest and narrow tailoring, while polling-place and election-law doctrines can be more deferential.

Susan Hogarth v. Sam Hayes (No. 26-1328) — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, argued September 15, 2026.