{"id":2620982,"date":"2026-06-29T13:35:02","date_gmt":"2026-06-29T17:35:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/scotus-upholds-state-laws-allowing-ballots-to-be-accepted-after-election-day\/"},"modified":"2026-06-29T13:37:49","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T17:37:49","slug":"scotus-upholds-state-laws-allowing-ballots-to-be-accepted-after-election-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/scotus-upholds-state-laws-allowing-ballots-to-be-accepted-after-election-day\/","title":{"rendered":"SCOTUS Approves States&#8217; Acceptance Of Late-Arriving Ballots"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">14<\/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%2Fscotus-upholds-state-laws-allowing-ballots-to-be-accepted-after-election-day%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=2620982&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 article reports that the U.S. Supreme Court upheld state laws allowing election officials to accept ballots postmarked by Election Day for a few days afterward, in a 5-4 decision. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy coney Barrett joined the majority, which reversed a lower court ruling and emphasized that federal election laws focus on voting on Election Day but do not specify when ballots must be received. The ruling was part of the Watson v.RNC case, challenging Mississippi&#8217;s law that permitted counting <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/alaskas-elections-should-encourage-clear-choices-and-clear-winners-by-tim-griffin\/\" title=\"Alaska\u2019s ... Should Encourage Clear Choices and Clear Winners. \u2013 By Tim Griffin\">late-arriving ballots<\/a>. Justice Barrett stated that the federal laws do not set a deadline for ballot receipt, supporting the state&#8217;s practice of accepting ballots postmarked before Election Day. Justice Alito dissented, arguing that counting ballots received after Election Day violates federal statutes and undermines the integrity of the election process. The decision raises concerns about election law consistency and public confidence. The article includes social media sharing options and provides background on the case and its implications.  <\/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 class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/photo\/person-holding-white-envelope-1550334\/\">Element5 Digital\/Pexels<\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/06\/29\/scotus-upholds-state-laws-allowing-ballots-to-be-accepted-after-election-day\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=SCOTUS Upholds State Laws Allowing Ballots To Be Accepted After Election Day&#038;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/06\/29\/scotus-upholds-state-laws-allowing-ballots-to-be-accepted-after-election-day\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=SCOTUS Upholds State Laws Allowing Ballots To Be Accepted After Election Day&#038;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/06\/29\/scotus-upholds-state-laws-allowing-ballots-to-be-accepted-after-election-day\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/06\/29\/scotus-upholds-state-laws-allowing-ballots-to-be-accepted-after-election-day\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=SCOTUS Upholds State Laws Allowing Ballots To Be Accepted After Election Day&#038;body=%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/06\/29\/scotus-upholds-state-laws-allowing-ballots-to-be-accepted-after-election-day\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &#038; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a blow to the integrity of U.S. elections, the Supreme Court upheld state laws permitting election officials to accept postmarked ballots after Election Day on Monday. The ruling was 5-4, with Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy Coney Barrett joining the court\u2019s liberal justices in the majority. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The dispute in <em><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/watson-v-rnc\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Watson v. RNC<\/a><\/em>  dates back to 2024, when the Republican National Committee (RNC) and the Mississippi GOP filed a lawsuit against a Mississippi election law governing late-arriving ballots. The plaintiffs alleged that the law authorizing mail-in ballots that are postmarked by Election Day to be accepted up to five days after the day of the election violates existing federal laws establishing an Election Day for federal contests.<\/p>\n<div id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-1838400097\" class=\"d-flex justify-content-center fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 fdrlst__b89e9-entity-placement\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The practice recently came under magnified scrutiny during California\u2019s recent (and chaotic) <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/06\/04\/californias-latest-election-mess-demands-supreme-court-cleanup\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">primary elections<\/a>. The Golden State accepts postmarked ballots up to a week after Election Day.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Writing for the majority, Barrett <a href=\"https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov\/opinions\/25pdf\/24-1260_g3cn.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ruled<\/a> that the <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >federal \u201celection-day statutes require<\/a> the electorate\u2019s choice to be made on election day,\u201d and that this \u201coccurs so long as election day is the deadline for individuals to vote \u2014 as it is in Mississippi.\u201d She further argued that these federal laws do not, however, \u201cset a deadline for ballot receipt, so they do not prevent Mississippi from counting ballots postmarked before election day yet received afterward.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe Framers recognized the difficulty of crafting election laws \u2018applicable to every probable change in the situation of the country.\u2019 \u2026 So instead of constitutionalizing election law, they decided that \u2018a discretionary power over elections\u2019 needed to be lodged \u2018somewhere,\u2019\u201d Barrett wrote. \u201cSuffice it to say, that power was not lodged in this Court. The election-day statutes say nothing about ballot receipt, and we cannot add to the words Congress chose.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Writing for the dissent, Justice Samuel Alito argued that \u201c[i]f ballots received after election day are added to the set of ballots that dictate the election\u2019s outcome, the electorate\u2019s choice does not occur on election day, and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/supreme-court-to-review-legality-of-counting-mail-ballots-arriving-after-election-day\/\" title=\"Supreme Court to review legality of counting mail ... arriving after ...\">federal election-day statutes<\/a> are violated.\u201d Mississippi and other states\u2019 acceptance of late-arriving ballots, he wrote, \u201ceffectively postpones the date on which the electorate\u2019s choice is made, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/scotus-takes-up-oil-companies-challenge-to-colorado-citys-climate-lawfare\/\" title=\"SCOTUS Takes Up Challenge To Colorado City&#039;s Climate ...fare\">federal law precludes<\/a> that postponement.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cToday\u2019s decision is inconsistent with the terms of the election-day statutes, contemporary election-law principles, two centuries of historical practice, and the case law on the question presented,\u201d Alito wrote. \u201cIt opens up and fails to resolve a host of questions for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/new-trump-campaign-takes-fight-over-pennsylvania-election-and-mail-in-ballot-laws-to-us-supreme-court\/\" title=\"NEW: Trump Campaign Takes Fight Over Pennsylvania Election and Mail-In Ballot ...s to US Supreme Court\">state election officials<\/a> and courts. And it creates a serious risk of further undermining public confidence in our elections and our system of self-government. I therefore respectfully dissent.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The court\u2019s decision reverses the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals\u2019 ruling on the matter and remands it back to the lower judiciary for further proceedings consistent with the majority opinion. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He is a co-recipient of the 2025 Dao Prize for Excellence in Investigative Journalism. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics and RealClearHealth. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Shawn Fleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ShawnFleetwood\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@ShawnFleetwood<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/shawnfleetwood\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/absentee-ballots\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">absentee ballots<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/amy-coney-barrett\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Amy Coney Barrett<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/election-day\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Election Day<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/elections\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Elections<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/mail-in-voting\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">mail-in voting<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/mississippi\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Mississippi<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/rnc\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">RNC<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/scotus\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">SCOTUS<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/supreme-court\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Supreme Court<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/watson-v-rnc\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Watson v. RNC<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Supreme Court upholds postmarked ballots after Election Day<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2620983,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Absentee-voting.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[39518,33739,58023,32275,32570],"class_list":["post-2620982","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-ballot-deadlines","tag-election-law","tag-judicial-decision","tag-supreme-court","tag-voting-rights"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Absentee-voting.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2620982","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=2620982"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2620982\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2620986,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2620982\/revisions\/2620986"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2620983"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2620982"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2620982"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2620982"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}