(Scypre.com) – In a significant ruling, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has upheld the requirement for mail-in ballots to include a handwritten date, blocking efforts to allow undated ballots to be counted in the 2024 election. This decision reverses an earlier ruling by the Commonwealth Court, which had declared that the state law mandating a date was unconstitutional. Following the Commonwealth Court’s decision, the Pennsylvania GOP promptly appealed to the state’s highest court, resulting in this definitive ruling.
VICTORY.🚨
— Kyle Becker (@kylenabecker) November 1, 2024
Pennsylvania Supreme Court rules ballots must have dates in order to be counted in the 2024 election pic.twitter.com/VZ9fOB1nQl
Justice Kevin Dougherty issued a sharply worded opinion criticizing the Commonwealth Court’s earlier decision. “This Court will neither impose nor countenance substantial alterations to existing laws and procedures during the pendency of an ongoing election,” Dougherty wrote, referencing a previous statement by the court. He emphasized, “Today’s order…rights the ship. And it sends a loud message to all courts in this Commonwealth: in declaring we would not countenance substantial alterations to existing laws and procedures during the pendency of an ongoing election, we said what we meant and meant what we said.” This firm response underscores the court’s commitment to maintaining election integrity and stability during an active election cycle.
The Pennsylvania GOP praised the ruling, contending that the dating requirement is an essential measure to protect the electoral process. RNC Chairman Michael Whatley expressed approval, stating, “The Pennsylvania Supreme Court upheld the law, and the dated ballot requirement will be in effect for this election. Democrats have repeatedly tried to eliminate this important ballot safeguard, and we have stopped them each time.” Whatley reaffirmed the party’s commitment to “protecting critical ballot safeguards to ensure every ballot is cast and counted properly.”
On the other side of the debate, some state officials have argued that the dating requirement imposes unnecessary burdens on election workers, who must manually review each mail-in ballot envelope to verify dates. Before the ruling, the Pennsylvania Department of State filed a brief advocating for the removal of the date requirement. “The requirement that county boards set aside mail ballots with declaration-date errors — and particularly the requirement that they set aside mail ballot envelopes with ‘incorrect’ dates — imposed a significant burden on county boards,” the department stated, according to the Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
This ruling marks the second time in recent weeks that the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has intervened to prevent changes to the dating requirement, emphasizing its stance on election laws as the 2024 election approaches.