{"id":763,"date":"2026-06-29T19:42:50","date_gmt":"2026-06-29T19:42:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=763"},"modified":"2026-06-29T19:42:50","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T19:42:50","slug":"supreme-court-rules-states-can-count-mail-in-ballots-after-election-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=763","title":{"rendered":"Supreme Court Rules States Can Count Mail-In Ballots After Election Day"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Supreme Court ruled on Monday that states are allowed a grace period for collecting mail-in ballots, quashing a lawsuit that would have restricted voting by mail.<\/p>\n

Read more Trump\u2019s Pick for Ethics Czar Is a Political Operative<\/a><\/p>\n

In 15 states and the District of Columbia, a ballot is valid if election officials receive it up to five days after Election Day. The 5-4 ruling in Watson v. Republican National Committee permits states to count late-arrivingmail-in ballots postmarked by Election Day.<\/p>\n

Justice Amy Coney Barrett, a justice appointed by President Donald Trump who sided with the majority, wrote in her opinion that the question before the Supreme Court was \u201ca narrow one about timing.\u201d She wrote that federal laws dictate \u201cthe day when the electorate must make its choice\u201d but do not set a deadline for when the ballots should be received.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Constitution requires the \u2018Day on which [the electors] shall give their Votes\u2019 to be \u2018the same throughout the United States,\u2019\u201d Barrett wrote. \u201cBut it says nothing about the day for receipt, and, of course, 18th-century modes of transmission did not offer same-day delivery. The Constitution therefore envisions a system in which receipt is necessarily divorced from voting, and it sets the crucial, uniform day as the day of voting, leaving receipt to happen down the line.\u201d<\/p>\n

In his dissent, conservative Justice Samuel Alito argued that the majority\u2019s ruling \u201cleaves open opportunities for voter fraud that may further undermine Americans\u2019 faith in the integrity of this country\u2019s elections.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBy allowing States to continue receiving new ballots during these drawn-out processes, today\u2019s decision will only exacerbate voters\u2019 distrust,\u201d Alito wrote.<\/p>\n

Read more Ethics Panel Dismisses Misconduct Complaint Against Sen. Ruben Gallego<\/a><\/p>\n

Voter fraud happens rarely in the U.S., but conservatives have long argued otherwise.<\/p>\n

The state of Mississippi changed its election laws in 2020 to accept mail-in ballots within five days of the election. But the state\u2019s Republican Party and the RNC sued in 2024, claiming the state\u2019s law conflicted with the federal law that sets Election Day. Mississippi argued that the election is not hinged on which day ballots are received.<\/p>\n

The Trump administration filed an in support of the RNC, writing that \u201cfederal law designates a single day for federal elections.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump has rallied against mail-in voting, claiming without evidence that it\u2019s riddled by fraud. The most recent version of the SAVE America Act would require documentary proof of citizenship to vote by mail, with no instructions as to how states should collect that information.<\/p>\n

Older adults, people with disabilities, rural Americans and service members stationed overseas often utilize mail-in voting, but it\u2019s a common practice in general \u2014 nearly one in three Americans voted by mail<\/u><\/span> in the last election.<\/p>\n

Read more Nancy Pelosi Lines Up Her Next Gig<\/a><\/p>\n

Editor\u2019s Note: This story has been updated with additional reporting.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The ruling is a blow to Republican efforts to curb mail-in voting.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":762,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-763","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-courts"],"yoast_head":"\nSupreme Court Rules States Can Count Mail-In Ballots After Election Day - Modern Home Journals<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=763\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Supreme Court Rules States Can Count Mail-In Ballots After Election Day - Modern Home Journals\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The ruling is a blow to Republican efforts to curb mail-in voting.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=763\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Modern Home Journals\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-29T19:42:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=763#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=763\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/533de239efc09a2ab59959cc1bff86d0\"},\"headline\":\"Supreme Court Rules States Can Count Mail-In Ballots After Election Day\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-29T19:42:50+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=763\"},\"wordCount\":490,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=763#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/e85f6beb43cc15d9c0f185ee691a249d-scaled.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Courts\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=763#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=763\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=763\",\"name\":\"Supreme Court Rules States Can Count Mail-In Ballots After Election Day - Modern Home Journals\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=763#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=763#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/e85f6beb43cc15d9c0f185ee691a249d-scaled.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-29T19:42:50+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/533de239efc09a2ab59959cc1bff86d0\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=763#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=763\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=763#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/e85f6beb43cc15d9c0f185ee691a249d-scaled.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/e85f6beb43cc15d9c0f185ee691a249d-scaled.jpg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1707,\"caption\":\"FILE - Chester County, Pa., election workers process mail-in and absentee ballots at West Chester University in West Chester, Pa., Nov. 4, 2020. 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