GOP appeals federal judge's mail-in ballot decision
Republicans are appealing a federal court ruling that found Pennsylvania’s date requirement for mail-in ballots violates the First and 14th Amendments of the U.S. Constitution, appealing the decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
The appeal comes after Judge Susan. P. Baxter, who was nominated by President Donald Trump in 2017, wrote in an opinion this week that the date requirement “does not pass constitutional muster.”
The original 2022 lawsuit was filed by Erie County voters Bette Eakin and Ines Massella. Other plaintiffs included John Fetterman’s U.S. Senate campaign, the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. The lawsuit asked the court to declare the date requirement unconstitutional and to enjoin county election boards from rejecting mail ballots that were improperly dated or lacked a handwritten date.
“Since there is no evidence that the date requirement serves any state interest, even a slight burden on voting rights cannot withstand constitutional scrutiny. Put another way, even the slightest burden that results from the enforcement of the date provision is too much when there is no counterbalance,” Baxter’s opinion reads.
https://www.cityandstatepa.com/politics/2025/04/gop-appeals-federal-judges-mail-ballot-decision/404281/?oref=ng-homepage-top-story