As we've learned over the years watching tight presidential races, each state holds its own election and has its own set of rules as to how it is administered. This makes for some stark differences in, for instance, deadlines set by states for accepting absentee or mail-in ballots. Mississippi allows ballot receipt up to five days after Election Day.

Until now, that is. On Friday afternoon, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision holding that ballots must be both cast and received by Election Day and that Mississippi's law is preempted by federal law. //

The State’s problem is that it thinks a ballot can be “cast” before it is received. What if a State changes its law to allow voters to mark their ballots and place them in a drawer? Or what if a State allowed a voter to mark a ballot and then post a picture on social media? The hypotheticals are obviously absurd. But it should be equally obvious that a ballot is “cast” when the State takes custody of it. //

That is not to say all the ballots must be counted on Election Day. Even if the ballots have not been counted, the result is fixed when all of the ballots are received and the proverbial ballot box is closed. The selections are done and final. By contrast, while election officials are still receiving ballots, the election is ongoing: The result is not yet fixed, because live ballots are still being received. Although a single voter has made his final selection upon marking his ballot, the entire polity must do so for the overall election to conclude. So the election concludes when the final ballots are received and the electorate, not the individual selector, has chosen. //

In January 2020, before the COVID-19 pandemic, only 14 States and the District of Columbia accepted ballots postmarked by Election Day—with the other 36 requiring receipt on or before that date. //

As Justice Kavanaugh recently emphasized: “To state the obvious, a State cannot conduct an election without deadlines . . . A deadline is not unconstitutional merely because of voters' own failures to take timely steps to ensure their franchise.” //

Federal law requires voters to take timely steps to vote by Election Day. And federal law does not permit the State of Mississippi to extend the period for voting by one day, five days, or 100 days. The State’s contrary law is preempted. //

Tech in RL
3 hours ago edited
If this is such a Constitutional question, why did the Fifth Circuit limit its ruling to just the states under its jurisdiction when we know a single judge can make a ruling that covers the entire country? I’m rather surprised the RNC didn’t push the Fifth Circuit court to apply its ruling nationally since that ruling isn’t all that useful when not applied uniformly across the nation.

If the Democrats were wise, they wouldn’t appeal this ruling since it only really applies to one deep red state. If this goes to the Supreme Court and the High Court affirms the Fifth Circuit ruling, then it would apply nationally.