Mississippi officials are appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court a federal court ruling that struck down Mississippi’s five-day grace period for mail-in absentee ballots to arrive after Election Day. 

Attorneys for the state filed court documents stating their intention to petition the nation’s highest court to overturn a decision from an appellate court that found a state election law conflicted with federal election laws. 

U.S. District Judge Louis Guirrola halted all lower court action until the proceedings with the Supreme Court are completed. 

The Republican National Committee, the state Republican Party and the Libertarian Party of Mississippi sued Secretary of State Michael Watson and local elections officials over a state law that allows election workers to process absentee ballots postmarked by Election Day for up to five days after the election. 

The political parties argue that Congress is the only entity that can set specific parameters for federal elections, while state officials contend that federal law defers to states on specific details for conducting elections.

Judge Guirrola initially ruled in favor of the state, but the plaintiffs appealed. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, one of the most conservative appellate courts in the nation, overturned Guirrola’s ruling and struck down the state law. 

Now Mississippi officials are asking the Supreme Court to uphold the state law, a decision that could have broad implications for more than a dozen states that have similar laws on the books. 

The litigation does not impact state or local races, including Mississippi’s current municipal elections. Mississippi’s next federal election will be the 2026 midterm, where all four of Mississippi’s U.S. House members are up for reelection, as well as U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith.