The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has upheld a 2019 law that permits universal mail-in voting in the swing state.
The 5-2 ruling this week divided the court’s five Democratic justices from the two Republicans, with the majority saying the state had decades of history regarding universal mail-in balloting.
“We find no restriction in our Constitution on the General Assembly’s ability to create universal mail-in voting,” wrote Justice Christine Donohue for the majority. “Absentee voting has a long history in the Commonwealth, dating to 1864.”
Republican lawmakers had challenged the legislation, which was passed in 2019 with bipartisan support, arguing the universal mail-in voting provision ran afoul of the state Constitution.