The Republican National Convention (RNC) won a massive election integrity victory, undermining unlawful ballot counting laws in Democrat states.
On Friday, the RNC secured a win in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled that mail-in ballots that arrive after Election Day cannot be counted under federal law. This comes as Democrats have claimed it will take days to count all the ballots due to late mail-in votes.
Circuit Judge Andrew S. Oldham ruled that “Congress statutorily designated a singular ‘day for the election’ of members of Congress and the appointment of presidential electors. Text, precedent, and historical practice confirm this ‘day for the election’ is the day by which ballots must be both cast by voters and received by state officials.”
RNC Chairman Michael Whatley (R-NC) called it a significant win for preserving the integrity and fairness of the presidential election.
“This is a major win for election integrity, upholding the law and commonsense ballot safeguards. Voters deserve nothing less than a fair and transparent election which ends on November 5th,” Whatley said. “We will continue to defend the law, fight for the protection of every legal vote, and stop election interference in our country's most important election."
MASSIVE ELECTION INTEGRITY VICTORY:
— Michael Whatley (@ChairmanWhatley) October 25, 2024
The 5th Circuit has just ruled that ballots must be received BY ELECTION DAY to be counted — not days after — following an RNC lawsuit.
This is a seismic win for fair, accurate, secure, and transparent elections.
The victory came after the RNC sued over Mississippi’s five-day deadline, which allowed late-arriving ballots to be still counted. The law went into effect during the COVID-19 pandemic. The GOP argued that the state’s post-Election Day deadline “harms” Republican voters, who are historically less inclined to vote by mail. The lawsuit also stated that the former law violates Republicans' constitutional right to vote, claiming it results in “valid ballots” being “diluted by untimely, invalid ballots,” which they say are “fraudulent” and “illegitimate.”
The RNC said that extending ballot deadlines after Election Day undermines the trust and confidence Americans once had in U.S. elections.
“Elections must end on Election Day,” the RNC argued.
— GOP (@GOP) October 25, 2024