{"id":2238366,"date":"2024-05-06T13:28:02","date_gmt":"2024-05-06T17:28:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nevada-law-allowing-late-ballots-to-be-counted-is-unconstitutional-lawsuit-alleges\/"},"modified":"2024-05-06T13:32:07","modified_gmt":"2024-05-06T17:32:07","slug":"nevada-law-allowing-late-ballots-to-be-counted-is-unconstitutional-lawsuit-alleges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nevada-law-allowing-late-ballots-to-be-counted-is-unconstitutional-lawsuit-alleges\/","title":{"rendered":"Lawsuit claims Nevada&#8217;s late ballot counting law is unconstitutional"},"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\">18<\/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%2Fnevada-law-allowing-late-ballots-to-be-counted-is-unconstitutional-lawsuit-alleges%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=2238366&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--><p>The Republican National Committee (RNC)\u200c leads a lawsuit \u2064in Nevada challenging a law allowing late counting of mail-in ballots without postmarks. The\u2062 lawsuit argues that\u200b this practice \u2063contradicts federal election law. The RNC contends that the extended ballot deadline dilutes\u2063 valid votes and \u2064<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/justice-department-sues-georgia-over-new-election-law\/\" title=\"Justice Department sues Georgia over new election law\">undermines election integrity<\/a>, especially impacting party polarization in mail-in voting. The lawsuit emphasizes the importance of upholding federal election laws to maintain fair elections.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<figure>                         <\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The Republican National Committee (RNC) is heading up a lawsuit challenging a Nevada law that permits mail-in ballots to be counted several days after the election \u2014 even if they lack a postmark. <\/p>\n<p>The RNC, the Nevada Republican Party, and the Trump campaign \u2014 along with a registered Nevada voter \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/prod-static.gop.com\/media\/documents\/NV_Election_Day_Complaint_filed_05.03.20243_1714757420.pdf?_gl=1*rwk76x*_gcl_au*MTQ2MTg4NjgwNy4xNzE0NTA5Njk1&#038;_ga=2.243593413.1772150727.1715002494-1335934802.1714509696\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">contend<\/a> that the 2021 state <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leg.state.nv.us\/App\/NELIS\/REL\/81st2021\/Bill\/7842\/Overview\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">statute<\/a> contradicts federal election law, which designates the Tuesday after the first Monday of November as Election Day. The 2021 Nevada measure closely <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncsl.org\/elections-and-campaigns\/the-evolution-of-absentee-mail-voting-laws-2020-through-2022\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">mirrors<\/a> a temporary pandemic-related measure that first extended the mail-in ballot deadline in 2020.<\/p>\n<p>The lawsuit, filed May 3, states that Congress \u201chas established a uniform, national day to elect members of Congress and to appoint presidential electors\u201d but that Nevada \u201ccontravenes those <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/constitutional-crisis-or-political-war\/\" title=\"Constitutional Crisis or Political War\">federal laws<\/a> by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pennsylvania-gop-senate-race-too-close-to-call\/\" title=\"Pennsylvania GOP Senate Race Too Close To Call\">counting mail ballots<\/a> that are received up to four business days after Election Day \u2026 and by presuming that ballots received up to three days after Election Day \u2018have been postmarked on or before the day of election.&#8217;\u201d <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe result of Nevada\u2019s violation of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/waffle-arizona-house-speaker-claims-they-cant-enforce-constitution-wont-commit-to-calling-legislative-hearing\/\" title=\"WAFFLE: Arizona House Speaker Claims They Can\u2019t Enforce Constitution, Won\u2019t Commit To Calling Legislative Hearing\">federal law<\/a> is that timely, valid ballots are diluted by untimely, invalid ballots, which violates the rights of candidates, campaigns, and voters under federal law,\u201d the suit alleges. \u201cDilution of honest votes, to any degree, by the casting of fraudulent or illegitimate votes violates the right to vote.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The RNC contends that one reason it has standing to bring the claim is that the belated ballot deadline causes \u201ccompetitive electoral harms.\u201d Democrats are more inclined to use mail ballots than Republicans, the lawsuit notes, and \u201cvoting by mail is even more polarized by party in Nevada specifically. For example, in Nevada\u2019s 2020 general election, 60.3% of Democratic voters voted by mail, compared to just 36.9% of Republican voter.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNevada\u2019s ballot receipt deadline clearly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/group-our-vote-matters-is-suing-facebook-dominion-mark-zuckerberg-certain-state-officials-others-for-infringing-upon-right-to-vote-assemble-and-speak-freely-you-can-jo\/\" title=\"Group \u201cOur Vote Matters\u201d Is Suing Facebook, Dominion, Mark Zuckerberg, Certain State Officials, Others for Infringing Upon Right to Vote, Assemble and Speak Freely \u2013 You Can Join Too\">violates federal law<\/a> and undermines election integrity in the state,\u201d RNC Chairman Michael Whatley said in a statement. \u201cBallots received days after Election Day should not be counted.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>[READNEXT:[READNEXT:<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/03\/30\/more-mail-in-ballots-were-rejected-than-margin-of-victory-in-nevada-senate-race\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>More Mail-In Ballots Were Rejected Than Margin Of Victory In Nevada Senate Race<\/strong><\/a><strong>]<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This isn\u2019t the first challenge to Nevada\u2019s extension of mail-in ballot deadlines.<\/p>\n<p>A 2020 challenge by the Trump campaign to the initial <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leg.state.nv.us\/App\/NELIS\/REL\/32nd2020Special\/Bill\/7150\/Overview\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">pandemic-era law<\/a>, enacted just months before the November election, was dismissed by a judge for lack of standing. That law extended the deadline for mail-in ballots, allowed certain ballots lacking postmarks to be counted, and sent mail-in ballots to every voter unprompted; additionally, it only applied to elections \u201cadversely affected by certain emergencies or disasters.\u201d The <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2021\/05\/28\/nevada-democrats-push-to-make-emergency-2020-election-changes-permanent\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Democrat-run legislature<\/a> then <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leg.state.nv.us\/App\/NELIS\/REL\/81st2021\/Bill\/7842\/Text\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">codified<\/a> the \u201cemergency\u201d mail-in ballot extension with a nearly identical bill in June of 2021.<\/p>\n<p>During the 2020 presidential election, in which the state sent mail-in ballots to every voter regardless of whether they had requested one, a man named Fred Strokes Jr. was mailed his ballot on Oct. 9. The ballot was later returned to the county and marked as \u201ccompleted,\u201d as my colleague Tristan Justice <a href=\"https:\/\/thefdrlst.wpengine.com\/2020\/11\/06\/nevada-records-show-deceased-voter-rose-from-the-grave-to-cast-mail-in-ballot\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>But Stokes Jr. died in 2017 at the age of 92, according to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.findagrave.com\/memorial\/182248228\/fred-stokes\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">gravestone<\/a>. The Nevada Republican Party sent a staffer to the address listed on his registration, and a female resident confirmed that Stokes Jr. died in 2017 but had previously resided at the location. The woman did note that a Fred Strokes III was living and voted at the same address, but Stokes III voted in person on Oct. 23 as a registered Democrat, according to county <a href=\"https:\/\/www.clarkcountynv.gov\/government\/departments\/elections\/reports_data_maps\/early_voting_turnout_data.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">records<\/a>.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Brianna Lyman is an elections correspondent at The Federalist.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The RNC leads a lawsuit against a Nevada law allowing mail-in ballots to be counted post-election without postmarks. Joined by Nevada Republican Party, Trump campaign, and a Nevada voter, they argue the law\u2019s constitutionality<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":74,"featured_media":2238367,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/2015-11-03_14_18_35_22Welcome_to_Nevada22_sign_along_southbound_U.S._Route_95_entering_Clark_County_Nevada_from_San_Bernardino_County_California-2-e1715010098712.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2238366","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/2015-11-03_14_18_35_22Welcome_to_Nevada22_sign_along_southbound_U.S._Route_95_entering_Clark_County_Nevada_from_San_Bernardino_County_California-2-e1715010098712.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2238366","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\/74"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2238366"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2238366\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2238367"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2238366"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2238366"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2238366"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}