Supreme Court Rules Candidates can Stop “LATE” Ballots from Being Counted

Bost v. Illinois State Board of Elections, is a United States Supreme Court case, in which the Court considered the legal standing of federal candidates in challenging regulations governing federal elections.

Lower court history:

In May 2022, Illinois representative Mike Bost, joined by two Republican officials, sued the Illinois State Board of Elections. The plaintiffs, represented by Judicial Watch, contended that a state law allowing postal ballots postmarked on or before Election Day to be counted if they are received within fourteen days, while ballots with an illegible postmark or lacking a postmark may be counted so long as the ballot was signed and dated before Election Day. The lawsuit cited the establishment of Election Day and claimed that Bost was subject to harm. The plaintiffs filed their lawsuit in the District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. In November, hours after midterm elections had closed, Judge John F. Kness set oral arguments over a motion to dismiss the lawsuit for December, averting uncertainty over the counting of ballots in the states. Kness dismissed the lawsuit in July 2023, stating that the plaintiffs lacked legal standing to sue the board of elections. In August 2023, the Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit upheld Kness’s decision in a 2–1 vote.

The Court agreed to hear the case on June 2, 2025 and heard oral arguments on October 8, 2025. Reversed and remanded, 7-2, in an opinion by Chief Justice Roberts on January 14, 2026. Justice Barrett filed an opinion concurring in the judgment, joined by Justice Kagan. Justice Jackson filed a dissenting opinion, joined by Justice Sotomayor. The court held that as a candidate for office, Congressman Michael Bost has standing to challenge the rules that govern the counting of votes in his election.

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