ACLU signals effort to target disparate ‘notice and cure’ policies for flawed mail ballots

Since Pennsylvania introduced no-excuse mail voting in 2020, thousands of ballots have been rejected over missing dates, signatures, or other mistakes. A successful legal challenge could have a profound effect.

By Carter Walker, Votebeat

This article was originally published by Votebeat, a nonprofit news organization covering local election administration and voting access.

The ACLU of Pennsylvania is suing one county, and may file more cases, in an effort to challenge a policy that it says disenfranchises voters who make an error when casting ballots by mail.

The case against Butler County, filed after the April primary, appears to be the start of a broader statewide effort by the group targeting the “notice and cure” process, a major gray area in state law that leads to uneven rules for voters across Pennsylvania.

Along with that lawsuit, the organization has signaled it is considering another lawsuit, and has been filing public records requests to identify more counties that don’t allow voters to correct flawed mail ballots or provide notice to voters that their ballot will be rejected. Such records requests are often a precursor to a lawsuit.