The Supreme Court of the United States has rejected a challenge to a Texas law that requires voters under the age of 65 to provide a reason in order to use mail-in voting. This decision signifies a setback for the Democratic Party’s attempt to significantly expand the “no-excuse” mail-in voting in the Lone Star State, with potential repercussions for other states as well.
According to the order issued on April 22, the Supreme Court declined to hear the case, which originated from a federal lawsuit filed in 2020 by the Texas Democratic Party and several voters seeking to lift the age restriction on “no-excuse” mail-in voting in Texas.
The Texas law currently only allows voters aged 65 and above to vote by mail without providing a valid reason. The plaintiffs argued in their initial complaint that the Texas voting law violated the 26th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits the denial of voting rights based on age.
The Supreme Court’s refusal to hear the appeal means that the Texas law remains in effect, a victory for election integrity advocates who argue that no-excuse mail-in voting can lead to fraudulent activities and compromise the security of elections.
However, for some groups, the Supreme Court’s decision not to review the case is a setback. They view Texas’ restrictions on no-excuse mail-in voting, such as the age limit, as voter suppression or as barriers to voting for certain demographics.
The impact of the Supreme Court’s decision extends beyond Texas, as six other states – Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Tennessee – also have similar laws that only allow elderly voters to vote by mail without providing a reason.
Surveys indicate a divergence of opinions among Texans on the issue of no-excuse mail-in voting.
In a petition filed initially in 2020 amidst the COVID-19 pandemic by the Texas Democratic Party and a group of voters, the plaintiffs requested the lifting of the age restriction on no-excuse mail-in voting in Texas due to public health risks associated with the outbreak.
In May 2020, a district court judge sided with the plaintiffs and temporarily blocked the Texas law.
Led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, state officials then appealed to the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, which stayed the district court’s ruling pending the appeal.
The plaintiffs subsequently sought the Supreme Court to enforce the district court’s injunction or reconsider the case, both of which were dismissed by the Supreme Court.
Ultimately, the Fifth Circuit Court completely reversed the district court’s May 2020 order. This prompted the plaintiffs to submit a revised complaint to the district court, raising additional claims, including issues of racial discrimination under the Voting Rights Act and asserting that the age restriction on mail-in ballots violated the Equal Protection Clause.
In a ruling in July 2022, the district court judge rejected all the plaintiffs’ claims, leading them to appeal again to the Fifth Circuit, which upheld the district court’s dismissal.
In December 2023, the plaintiffs submitted a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court, asking for a declaration that Texas’ age-based voting law is unconstitutional.
The court’s refusal to review the plaintiffs’ appeal upholds Texas’ age restriction and denies the proposal to expand no-excuse mail-in voting in Texas.
The Epoch Times has reached out to the lawyers for both plaintiffs and defendants for comments on the Supreme Court’s ruling.
The Supreme Court’s decision comes amidst a broader struggle between those who view election integrity efforts as voter suppression and those who believe that U.S. elections are too lenient on security and should be strengthened.
According to the left-leaning Brennan Center for Justice, by 2023, expansive voting laws will far surpass restrictive voting laws.
Last year, at least 23 states introduced at least 53 expansive voting laws, while 14 states passed 17 restrictive laws, indicating a lag in election integrity efforts.
Concerns about election fraud have prompted former House Speaker Newt Gingrich to recently state that to win the November presidential election, Republicans need to defeat Democrats by a significant margin.
“Everyone who wants an honest election needs to know that in the long run, we need the French model: everyone votes on the same day, everyone has ID with a photograph, everyone is seen as a person,” Gingrich said in a Fox News interview in February.
“But until we get there, if Republicans want to win this year under the existing rules, they need to defeat the Democrats by about 5%, a margin large enough to ensure it’s not stolen,” he added.
Elsewhere, election integrity watchdogs have proposed more than a dozen “key” reforms deemed necessary to ensure voter integrity in the 2024 elections, including banning ranked-choice and non-citizen voting, consolidating election dates, requiring voter identification, and safeguarding vulnerable mail-in ballots.