(NewsNation) — With just two days until the presidential election, more than 77 million Americans have already cast their votes amid mounting legal challenges and concerns about election integrity.
In Iowa, a federal judge ruled the state can continue challenging hundreds of ballots from potential noncitizens, a decision critics say threatens the voting rights of new U.S. citizens. Recent polling shows Vice President Kamala Harris leading in Iowa by 3 percentage points.
Legal battles are intensifying in key swing states, with both parties filing lawsuits challenging various aspects of the election process. The Republican National Committee has filed 135 lawsuits across 26 states over the past year, primarily concentrated in seven battleground states representing 93 electoral votes.
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In Pennsylvania, considered a crucial swing state, the Trump campaign secured a legal victory when early voting was extended in Bucks County after Republican voters reported being turned away. The state’s Supreme Court also ruled in favor of Republicans by rejecting mail-in ballots without handwritten dates for the 2024 election.
“I think those cases are indicative of this overall strategy, which is kind of throw spaghetti at the wall strategy in challenging the integrity of our elections,” said Danielle Lang, Senior Director for the Voting Rights Program at Campaign Legal Center. “It failed in 2020. They’re getting a head start this time, but it’s going to fail here as well, and the voters will decide this election, not political actors or litigation.”
A Trump-aligned group is reportedly preparing to challenge this year’s election results, citing concerns about voter fraud without providing evidence. If either candidate contests the results, they could file lawsuits or request recounts, potentially leading to Supreme Court involvement.
The situation echoes the aftermath of the 2020 election when former President Donald Trump filed multiple lawsuits challenging the results. The Supreme Court declined to hear several of these cases, effectively upholding lower court rulings and the election outcome.
Election officials and law enforcement are currently preparing for potential threats at polling locations as Americans express growing concern over election denialism.