Biden clears another election hurdle

All but one state submitted their Electoral College slates to Congress in time for Tuesday’s “safe harbor” deadline. The law precludes any congressional challenges to states’ certified election results before the official Electoral College vote on Monday. The deadline’s passing strengthens Joe Biden’s hold on at least 296 electors. A pending lawsuit held up Wisconsin’s vote submission, but Biden is expected to win that state’s 10 electors, as well.

What about election fraud? President Donald Trump’s campaign continues to argue that large numbers of voters cast absentee ballots illegally in several swing states. Federal and state judges have mostly rejected those arguments for lack of evidence or for technical reasons such as not filing lawsuits in time. One case filed on Monday in Georgia makes specific allegations of 143,986 ballots cast by ineligible voters, including felons, minors, and people who did not properly notify the state of their address change. The case could lead to changes in election procedures in Georgia but likely will not get resolved in time to alter the state’s certified and submitted results. The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected a request by U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa., to overturn Pennsylvania’s certification of its election outcome on the basis that its mail-in voting law is unconstitutional.

Any other lawsuits that could change things? On Tuesday, the state of Texas filed a petition directly with the Supreme Court against Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, saying those states had so many election irregularities that they should not be allowed to participate in the Electoral College vote. It’s unclear whether the Supreme Court, which has original jurisdiction in lawsuits between states, will agree to hear the case.

Dig deeper: Read Emily Belz’s report on the use of Dominion Voting Systems’ ballot-counting technology.