As if the 2016 election needed any more drama, a battle is unfolding in Colorado over whether people have a right to post pictures of their election ballots on social media.

On Monday, State Sen. Owen Hill, R-Colorado Springs, filed a federal lawsuit against fellow Republicans Secretary of State Wayne Williams and Attorney General Cynthia Coffman to argue that the state law is outdated.

Hill was joined in the lawsuit by 18-year-old University of Denver student Scott Romano, a Democrat who is voting in his first election.

“In order to promote political speech and discussion, plaintiffs would like to join thousands of citizens nationwide who take ‘ballot selfies,’ or photographs of their marked ballots, and post them on social media,” the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit asks that a judge declare the law unconstitutional.

The Libertarian Party also is calling on Coffman and Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey to declare the state law unconstitutional and to announce they will not enforce it, according to a letter written by Denver lawyer Adam Frank on behalf of Caryn Ann Harlos, spokeswoman for the Libertarian Party of Colorado and a representative on the party’s national committee.

Harlos has threatened to file a lawsuit asking a judge to intervene if Coffman and Morrissey do not meet her demands by Wednesday, according to the letter.

The secretary of state’s office responded to the lawsuit through a statement by Suzanne Staiert, deputy secretary of state:

“We believe the current law protects the integrity of the election and protects voters from intimidation or inducement. In fact, given Colorado’s unique election system and rise of social networking, the prohibition may be more important in Colorado than in other states and may be more timely today than ever. “

Annie Skinner, a spokeswoman for Coffman, declined to comment, citing pending litigation.

The firestorm over the so-called ballot selfies started last week after Morrissey issued a news release to remind people that it is illegal to show someone else a completed ballot, including selfies and other pictures posted on social media.

The ACLU of Colorado then issued a counter-news release saying it would be a violation of the First Amendment right to free speech should anyone in law enforcement try to arrest someone who posted a ballot picture online.

The ACLU pointed to cases in Indiana and New Hampshire where courts have upheld an individual’s right to post ballot selfies. And seven other state have passed laws specifically allowing ballot selfies.

Colorado’s law is more than 100-years-old and was enacted to prevent vote-buying. For example, a saloon owner in Wray offered pigs feet and whiskey to voters in 1902 who would support moving the Yuma County seat to his town instead of the town of Yuma. The final vote was 707-324 in favor of Wray, according to an article in the Yuma Pioneer newspaper.