LAS VEGAS (AP) – The Republican National Committee on Friday filed a federal lawsuit seeking to stop Nevada from counting ballots received after Election Day, as state law currently allows.
The law, passed by Democrats in 2021, allows votes received by mail to be counted up to four days after Election Day, as long as the envelopes are postmarked before the end of the day. The lawsuit states that the provision also assumes that envelopes received three days after Election Day that do not have a postmark indicating otherwise were postmarked on time.
Republicans say this violates the U.S. Constitution’s requirement that there be a single day for elections.
“Nevada’s ballot receipt deadline clearly violates federal law and undermines election integrity in the state,” RNC Chairman Michael Whatley said in a statement. “Ballots received days after Election Day should not be counted.”
The lawsuit comes after the Republicans processed to overturn laws allowing the counting of votes received after Election Day in Mississippi and North Dakota, and is the 83rd election-related lawsuit filed by the party six months before Election Day. This is a sign of both the accelerated pace of election-related litigation and the focus on the fight for electoral rules after former president Donald Trump installedlegalists who parroted your False allegations about the 2020 election being stolen from him.
Nineteen states, including Nevada, allow ballots to be counted if they are received after Election Day. Supporters of these rules say they make voting easier and ensure that those who vote by mail have as much time to make up their mind as those who vote on Election Day. Opponents claim that these delay election results, undermine confidence in the system and can be exploited.
“I hope the RNC is investing as much time and energy in educating voters about how to participate in elections as it has invested in the lawsuit against the state of Nevada,” the state’s Democratic Secretary of State, Francisco Aguilar, said in a statement.
