[US Midterm Elections] Pennsylvania, Key Battleground State, Intensifies Legal Battle Over 'Mail-In Voting'

Significant Time Expected to Confirm Senate Election Winners
Democrats and Republicans Clash Over Whether to Record Voting Date

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] In Pennsylvania, one of the most competitive battleground states in the U.S. midterm elections, the Democratic and Republican parties are engaged in a fierce legal battle over 'mail-in voting.' As the two parties dispute details such as the date notation on mail-in ballots, it is expected that confirming the winning Senate candidate will take considerable time even after the voting has ended.

According to CNN on the 8th (local time), John Fetterman, the Democratic candidate running for the U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, filed a lawsuit in federal court the day before, arguing that ballots with incorrect or missing dates on the outer envelope of mail-in ballots should be counted.

This move was in response to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court accepting a lawsuit from the Republican National Committee requesting that mail-in ballots without properly noted voting dates on the envelopes not be counted. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court included envelopes that arrived before Election Day in the category of uncounted ballots.

Given that Democratic supporters typically use mail-in voting more frequently in the U.S., both parties are reacting sensitively to the mail-in voting issue in the highly contested state of Pennsylvania. So far, it has been reported that over one million people in Pennsylvania have voted by mail. If ballots with errors or omissions in date notation are excluded as per the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling, it is possible that at least 10,000 to 15,000 votes could be invalidated.

As the Democratic and Republican parties continue their legal dispute over mail-in voting in this key battleground state, there is a high likelihood that the official election results will be delayed until the court's final decision. In the lawsuit, Fetterman argued that not counting ballots due to date issues violates the Civil Rights Act of 1964. According to the Civil Rights Act, election authorities cannot deny voting rights based on non-specific ballot errors when determining whether an individual is qualified to vote under state election laws.

Pennsylvania law requires voters to write the date on the outer envelope when submitting their ballots. However, Fetterman claims this also violates the Constitution. He pointed out, "The date on the mail-in ballot envelope has no relation to the voter's eligibility, and it serves no purpose other than to erect a barrier preventing qualified voters from exercising their fundamental constitutional right to vote."