Republican Nat'l Comm. v. Democratic Nat'l Comm.

Background

A group of Wisconsin voters, community organizations, and the state and national Democratic parties sued members of the Wisconsin Elections Commission seeking changes to absentee voting because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The District Court extended the deadline to request ballots and extended the deadline for municipal clerks to receive completed absentee ballots from April 7 to April 13, and it ordered that ballots postmarked after April 7 could still be counted if received by April 13. The District Court also enjoined release of election results before April 13.

Reasoning

The narrow question before the Court was whether absentee ballots could be mailed and postmarked after election day and still be counted. The Court granted a stay of the District Court’s order, explaining that plaintiffs had not asked for counting ballots postmarked after election day, and stressing that lower courts should not change election rules on the eve of an election. The Court said that, subject to state-law changes, to be counted a mailed absentee ballot must be postmarked by April 7 and received by April 13 at 4:00 p.m., or be hand-delivered by April 7 at 8:00 p.m. The stay is in place while the Seventh Circuit appeal and any petition for certiorari proceed.

Real world impact

The decision limits the ability of voters who receive absentee ballots after April 7 to vote by mail, even though clerks may accept ballots until April 13. It creates immediate effects for Wisconsin voters, election officials, and anyone relying on the District Court’s earlier schedule, and it is temporary while appeals continue.

Dissents or concurrances

Justice Ginsburg, joined by three colleagues, dissented, arguing the Court’s intervention will likely disenfranchise many voters because the pandemic caused a surge in absentee requests and a backlog of ballots not yet mailed; she would have left the District Court’s relief in place.