Bill nixing mail ballot grace period dies in Kansas Senate

TOPEKA (KSNT)— Kansas lawmakers have failed to override Governor Laura Kelly's veto of a bill that would get rid of the three-day grace period for advance mail-in ballots.

The Senate voted 25-15 on Wednesday, failing to reach the constitutional majority needed to override the Governor’s veto.

Senate Bill 209 would have eliminated the three-day grace period for advance voting ballots, requiring all advance voting ballots to be returned by 7 p.m. on election day.

During debates earlier this year, some Republicans argued that the change would boost voter confidence in elections.

“We had ballots that continued to come in for three days and flipped a couple of races before it was all over, and that erodes voter confidence,” said Rep. Pat Proctor, R-Leavenworth, who carried the bill in the House.

However, some Democrats argued the grace period should stand so that mail has time to be processed at the post-office. 

“There is no good reason to pass this legislation other than somebody thinks that somebody’s getting an advantage over someone else and so they want to even it out,” said House Minority Leader, Rep. Vic Miller, D-Topeka.