The Pennsylvania Supreme Court rules in favor of enabling individuals whose mail-in ballots are disqualified due to errors to cast their votes provisionally.
The decree is a setback for the Republican National Committee, who appealed against a lower court's judgment in favor of Butler County residents. They had filed a lawsuit after the county declined to count their provisional ballots in the 2024 primary election primaries, following their ballots being rejected.
Under provisional voting, electors are given the chance to cast their votes in person at polling places when there's some uncertainty about their voting eligibility. The provisional vote is only counted once the individual's right to vote has been verified. In this situation, the provisional vote would only be valid if the individual's mail-in ballot had been rejected first.
The consequences of this judgment in this crucial swing state aren't entirely predictable. Around two-thirds of Pennsylvania's counties do not notify mail voters in advance if there's an issue with their ballot envelopes by Election Day. However, another case before the state Supreme Court aims to make this notification mandatory across all counties. Additionally, at least 36 of Pennsylvania's 67 counties allow mail voters to rectify errors in their ballots.
Although the case originated in Butler County, the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania, who represented the voters, is interpreting the ruling as applicable to all Commonwealth counties. The RNC, who aligned with Butler County to defend the policy, failed to comment on CNN's request for a statement. The Democratic National Party intervened to back allowing provisional voting.
In their majority ruling, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court declared that the relevant state laws cannot be interpreted as prohibiting provisional voting for mail-in ballots rejected due to errors such as missing outer envelopes or incorrect dates on envelopes. The court noted that this interpretation aligns with the Pennsylvania Constitution's voter protections.
"It is challenging to comprehend any logical interpretation of the Free and Fair Election Clause that would authorize disenfranchising voters as punishment for failing to adhere to mail-in voting prerequisites when voters have utilized the provisional voting mechanism appropriately," the majority ruling stated.
Democrats, including the Democratic National Committee's Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd and Harris-Walz campaign spokesperson Charles Lutvak, lauded the court's decision in a joint statement on Wednesday.
"As Republicans try to thwart your vote, Democrats are defending it and upholding the principle that every eligible voter has the right to express their views, regardless of their voting method. This judgment reaffirms that principle," they stated.
This court ruling could significantly impact future politics in Pennsylvania, as it allows for the counting of provisional ballots in cases where mail-in ballots are rejected due to errors. The Democratic National Committee has welcomed this decision, seeing it as a defense of voters' rights and an affirmation of every eligible voter's ability to express their views, regardless of voting method.
