HARRISBURG (AP) – PA voters could have their mail-in ballots thrown out if they do not write accurate dates on envelopes they use to return them under a state Supreme Court ruling. The state’s high court ruled on procedural grounds saying a lower court that found the mandate unenforceable should not have taken up the case because it did not draw in the election boards in all 67 counties. The left-leaning groups that filed the case only sued two of them. Recently, Commonwealth Court halted enforcement of the handwritten dates on exterior envelopes. Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley called it a victory for election integrity “that will protect commonsense mail ballot safeguards and help voters cast their ballots with confidence.” In previous PA elections, ballots have been rejected for lacking any date on the envelope or for clearly inaccurate dates. Although state law requires envelope dates, election officials do not use them to ensure ballots arrive on time. Mail-in ballots are logged in and time-stamped when received, and must arrive at county elections offices before polls close on Election Day.
