The highest court in the state has affirmed the lower court's ruling after hearing arguments over whether mail-in ballots can be counted early.
The decision came just hours after the Friday morning hearing allowing to begin counting mail-in ballots, though many voters have likely not yet received them yet.
When asked about that today, the lawyer for the State Board of Elections said, that's because the primary election was held so late, and the issues counting mail-in ballots delayed the entire calendar for the general election.
Normally, he said, the mail-in ballots would've been sent out earlier.
The heart of the State Board of Elections' argument to have the Court of Appeals keep the decision from the Circuit Court in place, was that this is an emergency that was not foreseen and could the state could potentially miss statutory deadlines following the general election, in getting elected officials into their new roles.
Their lawyer argued that the remedy they found for this emergency was "narrowly tailored" and that the Circuit Court was right in granting it's petition.
The appellant, Republican gubernatorial nominee Dan Cox, argued, through his legal team, that the statute that allows the Court to grant this kind of remedy is unconstitutional.
His lawyer said in briefs, oral arguments and rebuttal, that this statue "blurs the lines" when it comes to separation of the branches of government.
They added that this wasn't an emergency, because the Maryland State Board of Elections could have, and did, foresee this issue and should've have come up with other solutions to it, rather than seeking this remedy in the Court.
Dan Cox spoke with the press following the oral arguments, but before the court ruled. He would not answer whether he would accept the results if the Court of Appeals upholds the Circuit Court's order.
When asked if this ruling would be the last word in the case, he responded, "Well, certainly this is the last word in the state of Maryland and I'm not going to speculate on any attorney advice or any options."
He added, "As a member of the Supreme Court bar, I am always proud of the constitutional process that you can always appeal to the Supreme Court, but that's not something that we've even considered at this point."
Dan Cox made statement following the ruling.
“While we await the court’s final opinion, we disagree with their conclusion. Now it is up to each of the local jurisdictions to do the right thing and count mail-in votes according to Laws of Maryland, as written. Fortunately, thirteen County Boards of Elections have decided to wait until after Election Day to count mail-in ballots. I implore the remaining localities to follow the law as well.”
The State Board of Elections has and here is what they had to say:
"The Maryland State Board of Elections (SBE) is pleased the Court of Appeals has upheld the Circuit Court’s ruling to permit local elections officials to begin statewide canvassing of mail-in ballots prior to Election Day. This decision will be instrumental in assisting local election officials complete the timely canvassing and tabulation of these ballots and meet all relevant statutory deadlines."
