The Michigan and national Republican parties are asking a judge to reconsider her decision to allow absentee ballots to be counted if they arrive at clerks’ offices after 8 p.m. on Election Day.
This latest lawsuit comes as absentee voting has already begun in Michigan. Republicans are asking Judge Cynthia Stephens to rule that ballots that arrive after 8 p.m. on Election Day – regardless of when they were mailed or postmarked – cannot be counted. That appears unlikely since it would require Stephens to reverse an earlier ruling.
Republicans also want her to strike down a rule that allows voters to let someone else deliver their ballots to clerks. Stephens said the COVID-19 crisis requires extraordinary measures to ensure that every vote is delivered and counted.
The lawsuit said the ruling creates the possibility of widespread ballot fraud. The state argues there’s no evidence of that.
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