Court Pauses Kansas Law Eliminating Three-Day Mail Ballot Grace Period
- Kirk Haskins
- Jul 16
- 2 min read
A Kansas court delivered a significant win for voters this July, temporarily blocking the Republican-backed law that eliminated the three-day grace period for mail-in ballots — a law Kirk has been fighting against since it was first introduced.
A judge in the District Court of Douglas County granted a temporary injunction on July 16, halting Senate Bill 4 from applying to upcoming elections. The injunction requires election officials to allow a three-day grace period for advance mail-in ballots postmarked on or before Election Day.
The lawsuit was brought by Kansas Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, Loud Light, and the Disability Rights Center of Kansas. The groups argued the bill disenfranchised older adults and Kansans with disabilities, making it very difficult to vote by mail. KSNT
The stakes are real. If the 2025 law had been in place in November 2024, more than 2,100 ballots that arrived at county offices in Kansas during the three-day period would have been disqualified.
The grace period was originally enacted in 2017 on a 40-0 vote in the Senate and a 123-1 vote in the House, and was signed into law by a Republican governor. Republicans later reversed course, passing SB 4 to eliminate it. Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed the bill, but the House voted 84-41 and the Senate voted 30-10 to override her veto.
Attorney General Kris Kobach announced his intention to file an emergency appeal to the Kansas Supreme Court, calling the injunction "unprecedented" and "poorly-reasoned." The Supreme Court ultimately declined to take the emergency appeal, leaving the injunction in place ahead of the August 4 primary.
Kirk has consistently opposed SB 4 and the broader pattern of voting restrictions coming out of the Kansas Statehouse. This ruling is a reminder that the fight to protect your right to vote is far from over.
Source:
KSNT 27 News
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