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Biden campaign asks court to dismiss GOP lawsuit challenging Nevada mail ballot deadline

Democrats are weighing in on Republicans’ lawsuit challenging the length of time that the state accepts mail ballots.
Gabby Birenbaum
Gabby Birenbaum
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The Biden campaign is getting involved in another Nevada election lawsuit, challenging the legal merit and intent of a Republican effort to object to the deadline for how long mail ballots can be accepted after Election Day in the Silver State.

The Republican National Committee (RNC), the Donald Trump campaign and the Nevada GOP filed suit in early May challenging the state’s law permitting the acceptance of mail ballots up to four business days after polls close, so long as the ballots are postmarked before Election Day. The RNC alleges that the practice does not conform with the federally established deadline of Election Day.

In a motion to dismiss the case filed Monday and shared with The Nevada Independent, the Democratic National Committee (DNC), with the support of the Biden campaign, note that Nevada is one of several states that have such a policy, which has been held up around the country in other court challenges.

This is the Biden campaign’s second legal challenge to Republican lawsuits of the cycle; earlier this month, it filed an amicus brief to support the Nevada secretary of state after the RNC sued the state over alleged inconsistencies in counties’ voter rolls. In both legal filings, the Biden campaign argued that the Republican lawsuits are legally unserious and an effort to undermine confidence in the electoral process before it begins.

“Just like in every lawsuit in every state, we will fight these efforts to sow distrust and defend the right to free and fair elections by defeating Republicans in court and Donald Trump at the ballot box,” Biden campaign national spokesperson Charles Lutvak said in a statement to The Nevada Independent.

In addition to the motion to dismiss, the Biden campaign is also filing a motion to intervene, which would allow them to be a party to the case filed in federal court.

Two Democratic-aligned groups representing veterans and retirees filed a motion to intervene in the suit as well on Friday.

Democrats argue in the legal filing that statutes allowing the collection of mail ballots received after Election Day have a long precedent nationally. Any finding against the law would disenfranchise Nevadans, they argue.

“Plaintiffs contend that states cannot count ballots that are mailed on or before election day, and arrive in the mail shortly after election day, because this would purportedly violate federal laws establishing a uniform national election day,” the motion reads. “Every court that has considered this claim has rejected it, and this Court should do the same.”

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