The top court in the battleground state of Georgia has disallowed Cobb County from extending the deadline for counting about 3,000 absentee ballots sent out before Election Day, handing a victory to the Republican National Committee and presidential candidate Donald Trump.
Refusal To Extend Deadline
Siding with the RNC, the Georgia Supreme Court overturned a judge’s ruling extending the deadline until Friday in Cobb County, located in suburban Atlanta.
The court decided that only absentee ballots that arrive by 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday (0000 GMT Wednesday) can be counted.
Argument Of Civil Rights Groups
Civil rights groups had sued last week seeking to extend the deadline, arguing that the county violated state law by failing to promptly send out about 3,000 absentee ballots.
County officials said they were overwhelmed by a surge in requests.
Argument Against Extension Of Deadline
The Republican National Committee had argued that extending the deadline would violate state law.
“Election Day is Election Day – not the week after,” RNC Chair Michael Whatley wrote in a post on social media.
Diverse Nature Of Cobb County
Cobb County is a large and racially diverse area in Atlanta’s northern suburbs.
The county voted for Democrat Joe Biden over Trump by 14 percentage points in the 2020 election.
Biden defeated Trump in Georgia in 2020.
A spokesperson for Cobb County did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Segregation Of Ballots
The state high court ordered that ballots received after Election Day be separated from other ballots and set aside.
Voters who did not receive an absentee ballot or did not have enough time to mail it can vote in person on Tuesday.
Significance Of Georgia
Georgia is one of seven closely contested states expected to decide the outcome of the race between former U.S. President Donald Trump and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris.