Supreme Court to hear case on counting mail ballots after Election Day

TLDR:

• Supreme Court will decide whether states can count mail ballots arriving after Election Day, a practice used in nearly 30 states
• Mississippi warns of election “chaos” if its five-day grace period is struck down, potentially upending laws nationwide
• Late-arriving ballots have swung close races, including California congressional contests where election-night leaders later lost
• President Trump ordered Justice Department to punish states counting post-Election Day ballots, though courts have blocked the directive

The Supreme Court said Monday it will settle whether states can count mail-in ballots received after Election Day, taking up a case that could affect election laws in nearly 30 states.

The justices agreed to hear Mississippi’s challenge to a lower court ruling that struck down its pandemic-era policy allowing ballots to be counted if received within five days of the election.

Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch warned of election “chaos” unless the high court intervenes, arguing that if the state’s law falls, so do similar policies across most states.

“The stakes are high: ballots cast by — but received after — election day can swing close races and change the course of the country,” Ms. Fitch told the court.

Those late-arriving votes have indeed swung elections. In California, congressional candidates leading on election night have lost after ballots arriving up to seven days late were counted.

The case comes as Mr. Trump has ordered his Justice Department to punish states that count post-Election Day ballots, calling the practice “absurd.” Federal courts have largely blocked that directive.

Oral arguments are expected later this term, with a decision by June.

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• Supreme Court to weigh mail ballots arriving after Election Day