{"id":2186948,"date":"2024-02-26T15:33:02","date_gmt":"2024-02-26T20:33:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/court-turning-election-day-into-election-week-and-creating-permanent-mail-voters-violates-delawares-constitution\/"},"modified":"2024-02-26T15:38:31","modified_gmt":"2024-02-26T20:38:31","slug":"court-turning-election-day-into-election-week-and-creating-permanent-mail-voters-violates-delawares-constitution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/court-turning-election-day-into-election-week-and-creating-permanent-mail-voters-violates-delawares-constitution\/","title":{"rendered":"Court: Expanding Election Period and Mail Voting Violates Delaware Constitution"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fcourt-turning-election-day-into-election-week-and-creating-permanent-mail-voters-violates-delawares-constitution%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2186948&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>Delaware Court Rules Democrat-Backed\u200b Laws on Early and\u2062 Permanent Absentee Voting Violate State Constitution<\/h2>\n<p>A \u200cstate court in Delaware has ruled \u200bthat laws supporting early and permanent absentee voting, which\u2063 were backed by Democrats, are unconstitutional. The ruling, delivered by Judge Mark Conner \u2062of the\u2064 Superior \u200cCourt\u200d of the State of Delaware, states that\u2062 these laws do not\u2062 align with the state&#8217;s founding document. The\u2062 lawsuit \u200bchallenging these statutes was \u200dfiled by \u200dthe\u200b Public Interest Legal Foundation (PILF) on behalf of Michael Mennella, an inspector\u200d of elections for the Delaware Department of \u200cElections. The\u200d defendants in the case are State\u200d Election Commissioner Anthony Albence\u200b and the Delaware Department of Elections.<\/p>\n<p>According \u200dto Judge Conner,\u200d &#8220;The enactments of\u2062 the General Assembly challenged today\u200b are inconsistent with our Constitution and therefore cannot stand.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>In 2019,\u200d the Democrat-controlled General Assembly \u2064passed\u200d legislation allowing eligible voters to cast their ballots\u200b in person 10 days before Election Day. Additionally, in 2010, they passed\u200b a\u200b law granting individuals the ability to apply\u200c for &#8220;permanent absentee status,&#8221; which allowed them to vote\u200c by \u200babsentee ballot in \u200cperpetuity, without considering their \u2064eligibility in each subsequent election.<\/p>\n<p>Mennella initially filed his complaint against these \u2062statutes in\u200b February 2022. However, due to\u200b a separate lawsuit he filed challenging different Delaware \u2062election\u2064 procedures, his \u2062case \u2062was not\u2064 considered \u200dby the judiciary until \u200calmost a year\u2063 later. In that separate case, the\u2062 Delaware\u200c Supreme Court ruled in October 2022 that the Democrats&#8217; law\u2063 permitting same-day voter registration and no-excuse mail-in voting violated the state&#8217;s\u2063 constitution.<\/p>\n<p>The defendants in Mennella&#8217;s challenge to Delaware&#8217;s early and permanent absentee voting laws attempted to have\u2062 the case dismissed, arguing that the superior \u2063court\u200b lacked \u200bjurisdiction and that Mennella had waived his right to contest the statutes. However, Judge Conner disagreed with both arguments and denied the motion \u2064to\u200d dismiss. \u200bHe stated that the \u200cfailure\u2063 to file a written transfer of elections did not strip the court \u2062of subject matter jurisdiction, and that a citizen&#8217;s right \u200cto challenge \u2062an allegedly \u2064unconstitutional statute is not waived\u2062 by the mere passage of time.<\/p>\n<p>On the merits of the case, Judge Conner ruled that the plaintiffs had not only stated claims upon which relief can be granted, but they had also \u2063proven by clear and convincing evidence that the challenged statutes violate the Delaware Constitution. Specifically, \u2062he highlighted how the 10-day early \u200cvoting period circumvents the state&#8217;s constitution, and how the permanent absentee voting statute \u2063is inconsistent\u2063 with the constitution&#8217;s\u2063 requirements for \u200cabsentee\u200b voting.<\/p>\n<p>PILF President\u200c J. Christian Adams hailed the decision \u2064as a\u2062 victory for the rule of \u200blaw, stating, &#8220;States cannot pass election laws that conflict with their \u2063state constitution.&#8221;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Shawn Fleetwood \u2062is \u200ba \u2062staff writer for The Federalist \u2063and a \u2064graduate of\u200b the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a \u2064state\u200d content writer for Convention\u2064 of States Action\u2063 and his work has been featured in numerous \u200coutlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth,\u200c and\u2062 Conservative \u200cReview. \u2064Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2>What is the significance of the court&#8217;s\u200c ruling in favor of PILF and Mennella in relation to the principles established in \u2062the state\u2062 constitution?<\/h2>\n<p>Regarding the \u2064state&#8217;s election \u2063laws, the case was put on hold until the resolution of \u2063that lawsuit. Once the previous lawsuit was concluded, PILF was able to proceed with \u2063Mennella&#8217;s case challenging the constitutionality of the early and permanent absentee voting laws.<\/p>\n<p>PILF argued that these\u2064 laws violate the Delaware Constitution, which clearly outlines the conditions under which an individual can vote in\u200b the state. The plaintiffs contended that the state\u2064 legislature overstepped its authority by enacting laws that contradict the fundamental principles established\u200c in the\u2063 state constitution.<\/p>\n<p>The court&#8217;s ruling in favor\u2064 of PILF and Mennella affirms the principle that \u2064any \u200clegislation must be in harmony with the state&#8217;s founding document. Judge Conner emphasized that the General Assembly exceeded\u200d its\u2063 constitutional authority by enacting \u2062laws that are \u200cincompatible with the state constitution&#8217;s provisions on voting.<\/p>\n<p>Early and permanent absentee voting laws have been a subject of contention in many states across the United States. Proponents argue that\u200b these laws enhance voter access and participation, while opponents raise concerns about potential \u2064fraud and the dilution of the voting process.<\/p>\n<p>This ruling in Delaware adds to the ongoing national discussion surrounding voting rights and election laws. It\u200d highlights\u200c the importance of adhering strictly \u200bto the constitutional framework in state legislation, particularly\u2064 when it comes to \u200bmatters as crucial as elections.<\/p>\n<p>The decision of the Delaware court will likely have implications beyond the state itself. It may serve as \u2064a precedent for other states grappling with similar issues surrounding early and permanent \u2064absentee voting laws. Furthermore,\u2064 it underscores the significance of upholding constitutional\u2064 principles and ensuring that any\u200c legislation passed does not undermine the democratic foundation upon \u200bwhich a country is built.<\/p>\n<p>It remains\u2064 to be seen how \u200dthe Delaware legislature will respond to this ruling, and whether they will seek to modify\u2064 the\u2063 existing laws or propose alternative measures. Nevertheless, this court ruling undoubtedly establishes an important\u2063 precedent in \u2062Delaware and beyond, serving \u2064as a reminder of the\u2064 vital role played \u200cby the judiciary in safeguarding the \u200cintegrity of the democratic process.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A state court ruled that Democrat-backed laws allowing early and permanent absentee voting in Delaware are unconstitutional. Judge Mark Conner stated that these laws do not align with the state&#8217;s founding document<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2186949,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Federalist-Mail-in-ballot.png","fifu_image_alt":"Court: Expanding Election Period and Mail Voting Violates Delaware Constitution","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2186948","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Federalist-Mail-in-ballot.png","fifu_image_alt":"Court: Expanding Election Period and Mail Voting Violates Delaware Constitution","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2186948","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2186948"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2186948\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2186949"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2186948"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2186948"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2186948"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}