“We’re fighting to uphold commonsense measures backed by over 80% of Americans: accurate voter rolls, voter ID, stronger mail-in ballot security, and ensuring only American citizens vote. This is about protecting the ballot box and restoring trust in our elections,” RNC’s Election Integrity Communications Director Ally Triolo told the Washington Examiner in a statement. 

The Senate is currently debating the SAVE America Act, which would require an ID to cast a ballot and proof of citizenship to register to vote. The legislation is expected to fall far short of the 60-vote filibuster threshold needed to advance legislation. Despite the looming defeat in Congress, the RNC is confident its parallel legal strategy will succeed.

“We are doing through a judicial, piecemeal approach — which is what’s available to us — what the SAVE Act is trying to do through legislation, which is to defend these laws,” one RNC official told the Washington Examiner.

The RNC’s legal push — which the official described as “aggressive” — reflects a broader post-2020 effort to shape election rules through the courts, and has the potential to influence how elections are conducted nationwide.

RNC taps Supreme Court

On Monday, the RNC is appearing before the Supreme Court for oral arguments in Watson v. RNC, where the national committee is asking the court to strike down laws that allow states to count late-arriving mail-in ballots. 

The case stems from a Mississippi law that allows mail-in ballots to be counted up to five days after Election Day, provided they are postmarked by Election Day. The RNC argues that federal law sets Election Day as the deadline for ballot submission and that states are not allowed to enact laws extending the deadline. 

The RNC is also asking the Supreme Court to intervene in two other cases, one in Pennsylvania over undated ballots, and another over Arizona’s proof of citizenship requirement to register to vote. 

The Pennsylvania case challenges the state’s requirement for mail-in ballots to be correctly dated in order to be counted. According to the Elias Law Group, which represents parties in the case, over 10,000 ballots were thrown out in the 2022 general elections because of the requirement.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit ruled in August 2025 that the state’s date requirement violates the First and 14th amendments, meaning that the state cannot throw out mail-in ballots just because they are undated or incorrectly dated.

“This ruling is a decisive victory for voting rights and democratic participation in Pennsylvania,” Elias Law Group partner Uzoma Nkwonta said about the ruling. “The court recognized what we’ve long argued: that discarding otherwise valid ballots over trivial errors that have nothing to do with the voter’s eligibility is a violation of voters’ fundamental constitutional rights.”

The RNC is now asking the Supreme Court to review that decision, arguing that such requirements are necessary to maintain ballot integrity. It’s unclear if the high court will take on the case. A decision from the court could decide the fate of Pennsylvania’s mail-in ballot requirement. 

In Arizona, the RNC is asking the Supreme Court to review a circuit court ruling striking down the state’s proof-of-citizenship requirement to vote and placing limits on removing voters from the state’s registration rolls within 90 days of a federal election.

“Over two decades ago, Arizona voters overwhelmingly approved a commonsense law requiring documentary proof of citizenship to vote,” Joe Gruters, the chairman of the RNC, said in a statement announcing the filing. “Federal law is clear: only U.S. citizens have the right to vote in American elections. The RNC will never stop fighting to protect our democracy and the integrity of every Arizona voter’s ballot.”

Democrats are already pushing back on the RNC’s legal strategy, signaling the fight over election rules will play out in both courts and campaigns.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which is part of the Pennsylvania lawsuit, told the Washington Examiner the group was “ready to fight back — and win.”

“They’ve lost the American public over their broken promises on rising prices and their failure to solve the nation’s affordability crisis, so they’re resorting to a flood-the-zone lawfare strategy to weaken the power and vote of the American people,” said DCCC spokesperson Viet Shelton.

RNC TELLS SUPREME COURT TO STRIKE DOWN LATE-ARRIVING BALLOT LAWS

Andie Levien, general counsel for the Democratic National Committee, said in a statement to the Washington Examiner, “While the DNC is fighting every day to protect free and fair elections and safeguard the rights of voters, the RNC is chasing debunked conspiracy theories and trying to make it harder for eligible American citizens to vote. Simply put, the Republican Party is not going to win November’s elections at the courthouse.”

With Congress unlikely to act, the courts may ultimately decide how U.S. election rules are reshaped — one case at a time.