The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a pivotal case over whether states may count mail-in ballots received after Election Day if they were sent on time, setting up a ruling that could shape how votes are tallied ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
At issue is a Mississippi law permitting the counting of ballots postmarked by Election Day but received later. The Republican National Committee (RNC) successfully argued in a lower court that the statute conflicts with federal law, which designates the first Tuesday in November as Election Day. The state has asked the justices to overturn that decision, warning that continued uncertainty could undermine election integrity.
“The stakes are high: ballots cast by—but received after—Election Day can swing close races and change the course of the country,” Mississippi’s attorney general’s office wrote in its petition.
Sixteen states currently allow late-arriving ballots to be counted, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Republicans contend that the practice erodes public confidence and opens the door to disputes in tight contests.
The Supreme Court’s decision to take up the case highlights the growing tension within the GOP over election procedures. In this instance, the RNC is opposing Mississippi’s Republican officials, arguing that the lower court correctly found the state’s policy inconsistent with federal law and that the justices need not intervene.
The case follows another election-related dispute the Court agreed to hear this term over who has legal standing to challenge state voting laws. In that matter, Rep. Mike Bost (R-Ill.) and two of President Trump’s electors are appealing a ruling barring them from contesting Illinois’s mail voting rules.
Unlike that case, Mississippi’s challenge is not bogged down by procedural questions, offering the Court a clearer opportunity to decide whether federal law prohibits states from counting ballots that arrive after Election Day — a question that could redefine voting rules nationwide.
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