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FIRST ON FOX: The Democratic National Committee filed a Supreme Court amicus brief Thursday seeking to counter the Republican Party in a major election law case this year — setting the stage for a high-stakes court clash that could determine the fate of millions of mail-in ballots nationwide.
The Supreme Court agreed in November to take up the case, Watson v. Republican National Committee, which centers on states' ability to count mail-in ballots that are received within five days of an election.
At issue is a lawsuit filed by the Republican National Committee and Mississippi GOP in 2024, which seeks to overturn a state voting law that allows for the counting of late-arriving mail-in ballots that are postmarked on or before Election Day, so long as they arrive within five business days of the election. The RNC and state GOP have argued that they break with federal voting laws — a point vehemently disputed by other states and the DNC.
In the amicus brief, provided exclusively to Fox News Digital, lawyers for the party urged the Supreme Court to reverse a lower court ruling handed down by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, noting the dozens of states that currently allow mail-in ballots to be counted, so long as they are postmarked before, or on Election Day. They also noted the long history of mail-in ballots in the U.S., which stretches back elections since the Civil War.
"Throughout this Nation's history, the term 'election' has been universally understood to refer to the voters' act of choosing an officeholder—not to the later administrative acts of receiving or counting ballots," the DNC said in its amicus brief.
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The United Center is packed on the first night of the Democratic National Convention, as President Biden addresses the crowd, on August 19, 2024, in Chicago, Illinois. (Fox News - Paul Steinhauser)
Similar laws are in place in 30 other states, including the District of Columbia, prompting additional concerns about the outsize impact a ruling from the high court could have on millions of voters, including in the run-up to the midterm elections.
In their amicus brief, lawyers for the DNC emphasized the widespread use of mail-in ballots by many voters, including by seniors, voters with disabilities or members of the military.
"If the Supreme Court rules for the RNC, voters around the country will be disenfranchised by mail delays, and key protections for military and overseas voters could be eliminated," they noted in a press release sent alongside the brief.
"Republicans’ continued assault on mail-in voting is an attack on our democracy and is wholly un-American," DNC Chairman Ken Martin told Fox News Digital in a statement.
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Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
"Donald Trump and the RNC want to limit the rights of voters because they know that when more eligible voters make their voices heard, Republicans lose," he added. "Voting by mail is safe, secure, and empowers voters who would otherwise struggle reaching a ballot box, including seniors and people with disabilities, members of the military and their families, and working families who are unable to take the day off to vote."
Mississippi's attorney general appealed the case to the Supreme Court in June after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled in 2024 that the state's mail-in ballot laws violated federal law, ruling that all mail-in ballots must be cast and received by Election Day in order to be legally counted.
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The Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
The court's decision to take up the case prompted outrage by some, who noted that a ruling could impact the fate of millions of ballots across the country. Critics also noted that the timing of a possible ruling could wreak havoc on the 2026 midterm elections, primarily for voters that live overseas, including members of the military.
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The RNC has urged the high court to leave the 5th Circuit ruling in place. They argued that upending the ruling before an election could yield "chaos and suspicions of impropriety," especially if "thousands of absentee ballots flow in after election day and potentially flip the results of an election."
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