Take Action Now

The GOP’s lawsuits against mail-in voting could pave the way for vote suppression and election denial in swing states.

By Sasha Abramsky, Truthout

With the election less than one month away, the Republican Party is engaged in an unprecedented 11th-hour effort to change the way mail-in votes are processed.

Last year in Mississippi, the party filed suit against a state law allowing ballots that are postmarked by Election Day to arrive — and be counted — up to five days after the election. The case was dismissed, but the GOP appealed. On September 24, the court of appeals began hearing their arguments. If the lawsuit wins, it will impact the 17 other states around the country, plus Washington, D.C., that also allow for mail-in ballots to arrive in the days following the election. Voting advocacy groups fear this would disproportionately impact Democratic vote counts, since Democrats are more likely than Republicans to mail in their ballots.

Voting booths lined up in a gym

A similar lawsuit was filed earlier this year in the state of Nevada, where voters rely heavily on vote-by-mail, and where the election is likely to come down to the wire. And although the courts ended up tossing that suit and allowing these late-arriving ballots to be counted, the GOP has appealed the ruling.

Read More
Political Reform