The U.S. Supreme Court has been asked to halt a recent Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling concerning mail-in ballots.

The Republican National Committee has sought emergency intervention to block the acceptance of provisional ballots improperly cast via mail, as Newsmax reports.

Last week, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court decided by a narrow margin of 4-3 to allow voters who failed to use secure envelopes for their mail ballots the option to cast a provisional ballot on Election Day.

This decision is now being challenged by the Republican National Committee (RNC).

Emergency Application Filed by RNC

The RNC filed an emergency stay application with the U.S. Supreme Court, asserting that the state's highest court's decision contravenes existing Pennsylvania voting laws.

In the RNC's estimation, Pennsylvania law explicitly prohibits such provisional ballots under these circumstances.

According to the legal team of the RNC, the state's legislature has clear stipulations that some ballots cannot be counted, and it's not within a state court's jurisdiction to modify this directive.

RNC Raises Concerns Over Voting Integrity

RNC Chair Michael Whatley expressed concerns about the implications of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court's decision on the integrity of ballots.

He stressed the importance of legal protections to ensure each legal vote is counted accurately, particularly highlighting the upcoming election's significance.

"Pennsylvania law has critically important safeguards to ensure every legal vote is counted properly. We have filed an emergency application in the Supreme Court to preserve those safeguards. Pennsylvanians' mail ballots must be protected for our country's most important election," stated Whatley.

Supreme Court's Quick Response Sought

The U.S. Supreme Court, with Justice Samuel Alito overseeing emergency appeals from Pennsylvania, has asked for responses to the RNC's application by this Wednesday.

The timing is crucial as the RNC seeks a ruling before Friday, just ahead of the election next week.

This urgency underscores the high stakes and the compressed timeframe within which the Supreme Court is expected to make a decision.

The case is one of four election-related emergency motions currently before the Supreme Court, highlighting broader national scrutiny of election integrity and legal frameworks.

Legal Arguments and National Election Integrity

The attorneys for the RNC emphasized in their filing the legislature's clear mandate regarding ineligible ballots.

The contend that the state court system in Pennsylvania has overstepped its bounds by altering this mandate.

"When the legislature says that certain ballots can never be counted, a state court cannot blue-pencil that clear command into always. And here, the General Assembly could not have been clearer," the RNC's attorneys wrote.

This legal battle not only impacts voters in Pennsylvania but also may set a precedent that could influence how electoral disputes are handled in other states across the nation.