A recent lawsuit filed in The United States District Court for the Central District of California is still attempting to impugn the integrity of the last election.
Brought by the nonprofit Electoral Integrity Project in Los Angeles, its aim is not to reverse the 2020 election results but to begin dismantling election rules that tend to hurt Republican candidates at the polls.
Among the plaintiffs is James Bradley, a Republican who has run unsuccessfully in California for the U.S. Senate and the 48th and 33rd congressional districts.
The complaint takes aim at election rules like ballot harvesting and mass vote by mail. The lawsuit claims these laws, and others, harm the legitimacy of elections in the state. The complaint also argues that election observers were not granted proper access to the polls.
Election experts say the lawsuit has no chance.
"I don't believe this lawsuit has merit," said Rick Hasen, an elections law expert and professor at the University of California, Irvine. "There has been no credible evidence of major problems in how the 2020 election was run in California, and I do not believe the kinds of federal constitutional claims raised in this lawsuit are likely to get any traction."
When Donald Trump lost the presidential election last November, he promised lawsuits that would overturn a legitimate election.
Those lawsuits, scattered across the country, have been crumbling as plaintiffs have failed to convince judges of voter fraud.
Critics say the California lawsuit attempts to make voting more difficult by cutting down on rules created to make voting as accessible as possible.
The complaint calls the California voting laws unconstitutional.
"Over the past three decades in California, however, these rights have been intentionally eroded by an onslaught of unconstitutional statutes, regulations, executive orders and voting practices which, taken together, are designed to create an environment in which elections could be manipulated and eligible voters of all political viewpoints disenfranchised," the complaint said.
The lawsuit was filed by Josh Kroot, a lawyer for the Los Angeles-based Electoral Integrity Project.
The defendants named in the lawsuit include Gov. Gavin Newsom and Xavier Becerra, former California Secretary of State and recently appointed U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services.
State election results have been tough on Republicans over the past decade. Democrats have dominated California politics for years and have controlled the Assembly, state Senate and Governor's seat for 11 years.
Republicans suggest that if the rules were different, more wins would go their way.
The website banner promoting the lawsuit sports the catchy name "F.A.T.E.," or fair and transparent elections. It asks for donations and has a copy of the complaint.
"This is possibly the most important legal action taking place in the country," the website reads.
Critics of these lawsuits consider them frivolous at best. At worst, such legal actions are considered willful attempts to distort the legitimacy of the last election.
"It's a narrative we've all heard this election cycle but if we stay firm on the position that all legal votes are counted then how can they argue that's the case?" Bradley said.