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Supreme Court upholds counting of mail ballots that arrive after Election Day

Supreme Court upholds counting of mail ballots that arrive after Election Day

Rule Changes Boston, MA local

A 5-4 ruling in Watson v. RNC keeps grace-period laws alive in about 15 states, and a September follow-up blocks an administration attempt to change mail voting rules before the November midterms

September 15th, 2026: Court blocks USPS mail-in voting rule change

Overview

Updated Sep 15

If you mail your ballot by Election Day in about 15 states, it still counts when it lands a few days late. The Supreme Court said so on June 29, voting 5-4 to uphold a Mississippi law that gives mail ballots a five-day grace period.

The ruling locked in grace-period rules for the November midterms. On September 15, the Court went further, refusing to let the administration gut mail-in voting through a USPS rule change. The Republican National Committee had argued for a hard receipt deadline; the justices rejected that reading of federal law.

Why it matters

A ballot you mail by Election Day still counts in about 15 states even if it arrives days later, and courts are blocking attempts to change that before November.

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Key Indicators

5–4
Court's margin
Barrett and Roberts joined the three liberal justices to form the majority.
5 days
Mississippi grace period
Ballots postmarked by Election Day count if they arrive within five business days.
15
States with postmark grace periods
These states, plus D.C., count mail ballots received after Election Day.
1845
Election Day statute
The year Congress set a single national Election Day, the law at the center of the case.

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People Involved

Amy Coney Barrett
Amy Coney Barrett
Associate Justice, U.S. Supreme Court
Wrote the majority opinion
 Samuel Alito
Samuel Alito
Associate Justice, U.S. Supreme Court
Wrote the principal dissent
 Michael Watson
Michael Watson
Mississippi Secretary of State
Won the case as lead petitioner

Organizations Involved

Republican National Committee
Republican National Committee
Political party committee
Lost the challenge it brought

The national governing body of the Republican Party, which filed the lawsuit seeking to bar states from counting late-arriving mail ballots.
Supreme Court of the United States
Supreme Court of the United States
Federal Court
Issued the 5-4 ruling

The nation's highest court, which decided whether federal Election Day law bars states from counting ballots received after Election Day.

Timeline

January 2024 September 2026

7 events Latest: September 15th, 2026 · 2 weeks ago
Tap a bar to jump to that date

  1. Court blocks USPS mail-in voting rule change

    Latest Legal

    The Supreme Court refused to let the administration enforce a USPS rule that would have limited how election mail is handled. The Court said the government is unlikely to win on the merits and that states need time to implement existing rules. Kavanaugh joined the majority for the November election, citing the Administrative Procedure Act.

  2. Court upholds the grace period 5-4

    Legal

    Justice Barrett's majority held that federal Election Day statutes govern when votes are cast, not when ballots arrive, preserving grace-period laws in about 15 states.

  3. Oral arguments at the Supreme Court

    Legal

    The justices questioned both sides on whether 'election' covers ballot receipt or only the act of voting.

  4. Supreme Court takes the case

    Legal

    The justices granted Mississippi Secretary of State Michael Watson's petition to review the 5th Circuit ruling.

  5. 5th Circuit strikes the law down

    Legal

    The appeals court reversed, holding that federal law requires ballots to be received by Election Day and preempts Mississippi's grace period.

  6. District court upholds the law

    Legal

    A federal district court in Mississippi ruled the five-day grace period does not conflict with federal Election Day statutes.

  7. RNC sues over Mississippi grace period

    Legal

    The Republican National Committee, the state GOP, and Mississippi's Libertarian Party sued to stop officials from counting mail ballots received after Election Day.

Scenarios

1

Grace-period states count late ballots in the 2026 midterms

Likely Resolves by Dec 15, 2026

Discussed by: Voting Rights Lab; Bipartisan Policy Center

With the law upheld, the roughly 15 grace-period states keep their rules for the November 3 midterms. Election officials count ballots postmarked by Election Day that arrive within each state's window. This is the default path absent new federal legislation.

2

Congress passes a hard Election Day receipt deadline

Unlikely Resolves by Jan 3, 2027

Discussed by: Republican lawmakers backing the SAVE Act framework

Republicans respond by trying to write a uniform ballot-receipt deadline into federal law, since the Court said Congress has not done so. Such a bill would need to clear both chambers and reach the president's desk. A narrow Senate majority and the filibuster make passage hard.

3

A grace-period state repeals its rule on its own

Possible Resolves by End of 2026

Discussed by: Democracy Docket; state legislative trackers

A Republican-led legislature in a grace-period state moves to repeal the rule rather than rely on the courts. The Court's ruling leaves states free to keep or drop grace periods. Most grace-period states are Democratic-led, which narrows the pool of likely repealers.

4

Administration appeals the USPS rule ruling

Unlikely Resolves by Nov 3, 2026

Discussed by: Universal Hub; Supreme Court docket

The administration could file another emergency application or pursue a full appeal of the district court's injunction. The Court's September 15 order signals the majority is skeptical of the rule's legality, so a full appeal would face an uphill climb.

Historical Context

3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

December 2000

Bush v. Gore (2000)

The Supreme Court halted Florida's presidential recount in a 5-4 decision. The ruling effectively handed the presidency to George W. Bush by about 537 votes. It turned on how and when ballots could be counted under state and federal law.

Then

Al Gore conceded within a day, and Bush became president.

Now

The case became the benchmark for the Supreme Court resolving disputes over ballot-counting mechanics with national stakes.

Why this matters now

Like Watson, it shows the Court deciding the technical rules of which ballots count, with control of government hanging on the answer.

October–November 2020

Republican Party of Pennsylvania v. Boockvar (2020)

Pennsylvania let mail ballots arrive up to three days after Election Day. Republicans asked the Supreme Court to block the extension. The justices deadlocked and declined to stop it, leaving the grace period in place for the 2020 election.

Then

Pennsylvania counted the late-arriving ballots, though it set them aside separately.

Now

The Court left the underlying legal question unsettled, setting up the fight that Watson finally resolved.

Why this matters now

This is the same dispute over post-Election-Day mail ballots. Watson answers the question the Court ducked in 2020.

June 2023

Moore v. Harper (2023)

The Supreme Court rejected the 'independent state legislature' theory, which argued that state courts cannot review legislatures on federal election rules. The 6-3 ruling kept normal checks on how states run federal elections.

Then

State courts retained power to police election laws.

Now

The decision clarified the federal-state balance over election administration that Watson builds on.

Why this matters now

Both cases sort out who controls the rules of federal elections, the states or Congress. Watson confirms states keep wide latitude over ballot receipt.

Sources

(7)
+1
NPR CBS News Voting Rights Lab Bipartisan Policy Center Justia Universal Hub NPR

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