Should Ballots Be Counted After Election Day?

Election integrity is making a comeback one state at a time, mainly because the U.S. Supreme Court is taking up more cases. One such case, brought by Judicial Watch, challenges the authority of federal courts “to hear disputes over ballots received after Election Day. 

Rep. Mike Bost, R-Ill., and two electors sued over ballots counted after Election Day. Illinois allows for mail-in ballots to be counted up to two weeks after Election Day, if the ballots are postmarked by Election Day.

The case was dismissed for lack of jurisdiction in a lower court, but the U.S. Supreme Court announced Monday it will review it, according to Bost’s attorney Russell Nobile.

“This isn’t about whether counting ballots after Election Day is unlawful – that’s not what’s being decided yet,” Nobile told The Center Square shortly after the Supreme Court agreed to look at the case. “The Supreme Court is first going to decide whether federal courts even have the power to hear these types of challenges.”

Nobile explained the case is key to resolving a split between appeals courts, with the 5^th U.S. Circuit calling late ballot counting unlawful and the 7^th Circuit Court refusing to hear such cases.

“This practice of counting late ballots is relatively new – it really started gaining ground after Bush v. Gore,” Nobile said. “For most American history, ballots had to be received by Election Day.”

If the Supreme Court affirms jurisdiction, the case returns to the 7^th Circuit. A win there could affect federal elections in that circuit. A possible Supreme Court ruling on the issue down the road could apply nationwide.