Maryland Can Begin Counting Mail-In Ballots Earlier

By BRIAN WITTE, Related Press

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — A Maryland choose granted an emergency petition on Friday filed by the Maryland State Board of Elections to allow the counting of mail-in ballots sooner than they had been through the state’s July main.

Montgomery County Circuit Courtroom Decide James Bonifant granted the petition, which is able to enable native elections officers throughout the state to start canvassing mail-in ballots on October 1. Bonifant wrote that with so many mail-in ballots, native boards of election wouldn’t be capable of confirm the vote depend inside 10 days of the final election as required.

“There isn’t any doubt that the elevated variety of mail-in ballots may have an unlimited have an effect on on the method of this election,” Bonifant wrote in his ruling. “Obligatory deadlines can be missed if the Courtroom takes no motion.”

The state elections board mentioned the ruling supplies election officers with extra time to canvass and tabulate mail-in ballots to make sure that all important election-related deadlines established by legislation are met.

“It additionally allows elections officers to return to a well-established strategy of canvassing mail-in ballots previous to Election Day, which was allowed within the 2020 Common Election,” the board mentioned in an announcement.

Counting mail-in ballots earlier than Election Day was allowed in 2020 throughout a state of emergency, when voting by mail elevated because of the pandemic. However as a result of the state of emergency expired, the state went again to a legislation that does not enable mail-in ballots to be counted till after Election Day.

The state elections board voted 4-0 final month to file the emergency petition in hopes of rushing up the vote depend for mail-in ballots, which have develop into rather more fashionable with voters within the state.

After the board’s vote final month, board members mentioned the continued growth of mail-in balloting and the lack of the native boards of elections to depend mail-in ballots earlier than Election Day might have important implications. For instance, they mentioned it might go away native, statewide, and even federal contests with out licensed outcomes till late December 2022 or early January 2023.

The board additionally famous that Maryland is at present the one state within the union that forbids any form of processing of mail-in ballots till after Election Day. That triggered delays in figuring out winners within the state’s July main.

About 345,230 mail-in ballots had been acquired from across the state within the main. That compares to 671,160 whole votes forged within the Democratic gubernatorial main and 295,068 whole votes forged within the Republican gubernatorial main.

Pre-Election Day canvassing can be performed in public on revealed dates, the board mentioned. The outcomes of pre-election canvasses can be withheld till the polls shut on Election Day.

The Common Meeting, which is managed by Democrats, handed laws this 12 months to permit the sooner mail-in poll depend. However Republican Gov. Larry Hogan vetoed the invoice, saying he opposed different measures within the laws whereas he supported the sooner vote depend.

Hogan mentioned he welcomed the choose’s choice Friday.

Copyright 2022 The Related Press. All rights reserved. This materials is probably not revealed, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.