Election integrity groups press Supreme Court to require ballots by Election Day
FIRST ON FOX: A coalition of election integrity groups is urging the Supreme Court to uphold a lower court ruling that found federal law requires mail ballots to be received...
By Fox News · Fox News
FIRST ON FOX: A coalition of election integrity groups is urging the Supreme Court to uphold a lower court ruling that found federal law requires mail ballots to be received by Election Day. The conservative-leaning groups, including the Honest Elections Project and the Center for Election Confidence, filed an amicus brief on Tuesday supporting the Republican National Committee’s challenge to Mississippi’s postmark deadline. They argue that federal law establishing a single Election Day requires ballots to be in election officials’ hands by the close of polls. The case could determine whether similar postmark-based deadlines in 14 states remain valid ahead of the 2026 midterms. Supporters of the RNC's position say a ruling affirming the lower court would establish a clear standard for when ballots must be received, though curtailing acceptance of late-arriving ballots would not guarantee that election officials won't still be tabulating ballots in close races beyond Election Day. "Counting ballots that are received after Election Day unnecessarily damages public trust in election outcomes, delays results, and violates the law," Jason Snead, Honest Elections Project executive director, told Fox News Digital in a statement. SUPREME COURT SAYS ILLINOIS CONGRESSMAN CAN SUE OVER STATE MAIL-IN VOTING LAWS Oral arguments in the case, Watson v. Republican National Committee, are set for March 23, and a decision is expected by the summer. The case arose from a lawsuit brought by the RNC challenging Mississippi’s practice of counting mail ballots received up to five business days after Election Day if postmarked by that day. The RNC chose to bring the case in the Republican-friendly U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, which ruled in the RNC's favor and found that federal law trumps the state's deadline and requires ballots to be received by Election Day. At issue is whether statutes establishing a single Election Day mean that all ballots must be received by t…