This article was originally published By Let him votea nonprofit organization focused on local election administration and voting access.
by Carter Walker, Votebeat
What happened? The Pennsylvania Supreme Court said Friday it would hear the case Baxter v. Philadelphia, on whether requiring voters to date mailing envelopes containing ballots violates the state constitution.
What is the dispute? Pennsylvania’s 2019 No-Excuse Absentee Voting Act 77 states that absentee voters must sign and date the return envelope containing their ballot in order for their vote to be counted. In every election, thousands of voters rejected ballots because the envelopes were not dated correctly. The validity of the dating requirement has been questioned for years, but the issue in this case is whether it violates the “free and equal” suffrage clause of the Pennsylvania Constitution, which prohibits any interference with the “free exercise of the right to vote.” Voting rights advocates argue that because election officials do not operate the handwritten date to determine ballot eligibility, it creates an unnecessary — and unconstitutional — burden that disrupts voting.
Who are the plaintiffs? There are plaintiffs Brian Baxter AND Susan Kinnirytwo Philadelphia voters whose absentee ballots for the September 2024 special election were rejected because they were missing a date. They are represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania and the Public Interest Law Center. On the other side, there are Republican groups that have tried to defend this requirement. Other groups also intervened on both sides, including the Pennsylvania Department of State, the state Democratic Party and House and Senate Republicans.
What are they asking for? They initially asked a local court in Philadelphia to declare that the Philadelphia Board of Elections had violated their constitutional rights by deciding not to count the votes. The court agreed, as did the Commonwealth Court, as an appellate court. Republican groups challenged the decision in the state Supreme Court.
What will happen now? The Supreme Court is taking up the case and ordered the plaintiffs to notify the state attorney general of Republican objections. Republican Dave’s Sundaywho will soon be sworn in as prosecutor general, will be able to decide whether he will intervene in the matter. The court may then order a written or oral presentation of the case.
Read more recent Votebeat coverage on the challenges of the dating requirement:
- Pennsylvania Supreme Court prohibits three counties from counting undated and misdated ballots, November 18, 2024
- Philadelphia must count undated and misdated absentee ballots from September election, Pennsylvania court rulesOctober 30, 2024
- The Pennsylvania Supreme Court reinstates the date requirement for absentee ballots, overturning a lower court ruling, September 13, 2024
- An absentee ballot cannot be rejected because the date on the envelope is incorrect, a Pennsylvania court has ruled., August 30, 2024
- Pennsylvania’s dating absentee ballot laws face a up-to-date challenge in state court, May 29, 2024
Carter Walker is a Votebeat reporter with Spotlight PA. Contact Carter at cwalker@votebeat.org.
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