Michigan Appeals Court Denies Absentee Ballots That Come After Election

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — The Michigan appeals court denied a request to require the counting of absentee ballots received after the time polls close on Election Day, ruling that the deadline remains intact despite voters' approval of a constitutional amendment that expanded mail-in voting.

The court, in a 2-1 decision released Wednesday, said it is up to lawmakers to change the deadline. The League of Women Voters of Michigan and three voters sued in May, seeking a declaration that absentee ballots be counted as long as they are mailed on or before Election Day and are received within days of the election.

The suit noted absentee voting is increasingly popular under a 2018 constitutional change that allows people to vote absentee without needing a reason, and pointed to new voter fears of visiting polling places during the coronavirus pandemic.

The court also rejected a request to compel Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson to direct local clerks to provide paid postage on return envelopes.

The plaintiffs will appeal to the Michigan Supreme Court.

The suit had said inherent variations in mail delivery schedules could result in one person having the ballot counted and another not, even if they send them back on the same day.

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