A federal appeals court this week rejected a lawsuit from U.S. Rep. Mike Bost, R-Murphysboro, that argued Illinois’ policy of accepting mail-in ballots for two weeks after election day violates federal law.
In its 2-1 decision, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals panel agreed with a circuit court that Bost and other plaintiffs in the case lacked standing, because they didn’t have evidence that they were tangibly harmed by the law.
Illinois allows mail-in ballots to be counted up to 14 days after Election Day, as long as they are postmarked by Election Day. Bost and other plaintiffs argued their votes would be diluted, and that candidates would have to spend more money, in part by maintaining campaign offices for longer periods.
Writing for the majority, Judge John Lee said Bost’s claims failed to show voters were harmed by ballots being counted after Election Day.
“Even if we were to accept Plaintiffs’ premise that inclusion of these ballots would cause vote dilution, their votes would be diluted in the same way that every other vote cast in Illinois prior to Election Day would be diluted,” Lee wrote. “Thus, to the extent Plaintiffs would suffer any injury, it would be in a generalized manner and not “personal and individual” to Plaintiffs, as the Supreme Court requires.”
U.S. District Judge John Kness dismissed the case last year. Bost appealed, and that appeal was heard nine days after the 2024 primary he narrowly won over challenger and former state Sen. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia.
Read more: Appeals court skeptical of Mike Bost’s case to stop ballot counts after Election Day
Judge Michael Scudder Jr. agreed the votes would not be unfairly diluted, but he disagreed with the other two judges on Bost’s standing in the suit. Rather, Scudder classified Bost as an “active stakeholder.”
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