The federal lawsuit argues that counting vote-by-mail ballots that arrive up to seven days after Election Day violates federal law and directly led to the defeats of two Republican incumbents in last fall’s election.

In late October 2024, a three-judge panel of the U.S. appeals court based in New Orleans said it was illegal for states to count mail-in ballots received after Election Day, siding with Republicans in a case challenging Mississippi’s five-day grace period.

U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Bonsall, sued California on Thursday in an attempt to block the state from counting future mail-in ballots that arrive after Election Day, arguing that “late-arriving (vote-by-mail) ballots tend to favor Democratic candidates and provide an unfair electoral advantage for opponents of Republican congressional incumbents.”