Maine’s Supreme Judicial Court held Friday that absentee ballots must arrive at the election office before polls close on Election Day (November 3). If the ballots arrive after the polls close, they will not be counted in the election.

The Alliance for Retired Americans, Vote.org, and two residents of Maine brought this lawsuit on June 24. The plaintiffs filed a complaint against Maine’s Secretary of State and Attorney General. Donald J. Trump for President, Inc.; the Republican National Committee; the National Republican Senatorial Committee; and the Republican Party of Maine later intervened as defendants.

The plaintiffs contended that due to the ongoing pandemic, many voters would “return their absentee ballot by mail in lieu of returning their ballot to their municipal clerk in person.” The plaintiffs also alleged that problems experienced by the United States Postal Service would “prevent some of those ballots from being received before the deadline.”

Therefore, the plaintiffs sought a declaration that the Election Day deadline for absentee ballots, as well as statutory provisions governing the validation and rejection of such ballots, violated the U.S. Constitution and the Maine Constitution. Additionally, the plaintiffs asked the court to prohibit the Secretary from rejecting any absentee ballots postmarked on or before Election Day and arriving within ten days after Election Day.

On August 7, the plaintiffs then moved for a preliminary injunction to grant the relief requested in their complaint. However, the lower court denied the injunction. The plaintiffs appealed to the Supreme Judicial Court. After an expedited briefing and oral argument, the Supreme Judicial Court of Maine affirmed the lower court’s decision and denied the injunction.

The court emphasized that “States retain the power to regulate their own elections.” Additionally, the court found that the absentee ballot deadline imposes “only a modest burden on the right to vote.” The court also noted that the deadline “serves an important state interest in maintaining voter confidence in the integrity of the election.”

Ultimately, the court concluded that the “government’s interest is sufficient to justify the restriction that the [deadline] requirement places on [the plaintiffs’ voting] rights.” Therefore, the court rejected the plaintiffs’ motion for injunctive relief.

This outcome differs from various other states who have adjusted their deadlines to allow for mail-in ballots postmarked prior to Election Day.