The Supreme Court allowed the counting of ballots in North Carolina received up to nine days after the election as long as the ballots are postmarked by Election Day, a victory for Democrats in another key state.
Republicans and the Trump campaign had asked the court to reinstate a three-day extension that had been set by the state legislature last June. The court rejected the request without comment.
Justice Amy Coney Barrett took no part in the decision because she had not had time to fully review the briefs, the court said.
A federal appeals court had allowed the nine-day extension that was set by the State Board of Elections amidst the pandemic, as part of a legal settlement.
“The extension simply makes it easier for more people to vote absentee in the middle of a global pandemic that has killed over 200,000 Americans, ” the appeals court ruled.
This story is breaking and will be updated.
