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Supreme Court to Decide Candidate Standing in Challenge to Illinois’ Late Ballot Law

By taking up Bost v. Illinois State Board of Elections, justices will determine whether federal candidates can challenge state laws that count mail ballots up to two weeks after Election Day.

FILE - Supreme Court is seen on Capitol Hill in Washington, April 25, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
The facade of the Supreme Court building in Washington.
In this October 2019 file photo, Rep. Mike Bost, an Illinois Republican, walks up the steps to the US Capitol.
U.S. Rep. Mike Bost speaks during a hearing of the House Agriculture Committee about the impact of economic policies on farm country on Feb. 11, 2025, on Capitol Hill in Washington. Bost is challenging Illinois' post-Electiion Day ballot-counting law in court. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)

Overview

  • The Supreme Court granted certiorari on June 2 to review Bost v. Illinois State Board of Elections, a case filed in May 2022 by Rep. Mike Bost and two Republican presidential electors.
  • Plaintiffs argue that Illinois’ statute allowing mail-in ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted up to 14 days later violates federal laws establishing a uniform Election Day.
  • A federal district court dismissed the suit in 2023 and a Seventh Circuit panel upheld that decision, finding the challengers lacked Article III standing to sue.
  • The high court’s review will clarify the threshold for federal candidates to contest state time, place and manner regulations governing federal elections.
  • Oral arguments are expected in the Supreme Court’s next term beginning October 2025, with a decision due by June 2026 that could influence similar laws in at least 17 states.