Minnesota Sued Over Mail-In Ballot Ruling

State representative Eric Lucero (R.) and Republican elector James Carson filed a lawsuit Tuesday challenging secretary of state Steve Simon's consent decree that allows mail-in ballots to be counted as late as eight days after Election Day with or without a postmark. The lawsuit argues the decree violates the U.S. Constitution by moving the ballot deadline without the authority of the state legislature and violates federal law by permitting "ballots with no post mark and no evidence of having been cast on November 3" to be counted.

"This means that persons in Minnesota may vote for days after Election Day and have their votes counted," the lawsuit states. It also warns that the decree will likely lead to disputed results, disenfranchised voters, and may even cause the results of the vote in Minnesota to be rejected entirely.

The consent decree states that if a ballot is not postmarked, "the election official reviewing the ballot should presume that it was mailed on or before Election Day unless the preponderance demonstrates it was mailed after Election Day." Simon described the seven-day window as "an automatic seven-day cushion" for Minnesota voters.