Where does the lawsuit stand?

A Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge sided with the State Board of Elections , suspending the law and allowing election officials to tabulate ballots starting Oct. 1. Cox appealed , first asking the state’s second-highest court to halt the counting until judges could consider his arguments. A panel of judges denied the request but agreed to hear his case. Both sides argued Oct. 7 before a Maryland Court of Appeals panel. The court sided with the State Board of Elections that afternoon, and upheld the Circuit Court’s decision to allow early counting. While no local boards had started counting on Oct. 1, as mail-in ballots were first delivered at the end of September, they have the freedom to begin counting whenever they are prepared. Montgomery County, which is the state’s most populous county and had the longest delays during the primary, plans to begin its count on Oct. 15.

What does this mean for voters?

The legal battle has no immediate impact on when or how voters can cast ballots. The court’s rulings had the chance to impact when voters know election results — and whether Cox will accept the results. Cox, who has described the 2020 presidential election as “stolen,” has said he would accept results only if the law prohibiting early counting stayed in place. He has repeatedly avoided committing to accepting the results of the election if mail-in ballots are counted early — a move that the state’s Democrats have criticized as a threat to democracy. When asked in a news conference Friday if he plans to accept the results of the election if mail-in ballots are counted early, Cox did not directly answer, saying instead that he would “uphold the Constitution and the law, which includes the entire election process.” In landslide races, margins could be wide enough for analysts to project a winner on election night. The governor’s race appears to have a wider margin, according to a recent Washington Post-University of Maryland poll that showed Democratic candidate Wes Moore leading Cox by 32 percentage points about five weeks before the election. But naming winners in other local and congressional races could take longer.

Why does Dan Cox oppose the move to count mail-in ballots early?

Cox has said that he is fighting the petition because the change would sow mistrust in the election system and because the power to change elections rules should rest with the legislature, not the judiciary — a case his lawyers made in court filings and oral arguments. State lawmakers tried to change the law during this year’s legislative session when they passed a bill that would have permanently removed the provision. But, Gov. Larry Hogan (R), who said he supported counting mail-in ballots early, vetoed the bill, citing other concerns with the legislation. “We’re in a position where we’re simply responding to Wes Moore’s support of the State Board’s request to overturn the governor’s veto and to allow early counting,” Cox said in a news conference Friday. “I actually support early counting, but not without the safeguards and the adequate protections that the Constitution and law mandates.”

Will voters see who’s leading if mail-in ballots are counted early?

No. The circuit court’s initial ruling directed elections officials to withhold results until polls close on Election Day.

Does the ongoing legal battle change how votes are counted?

No. The court decision only determines when ballots are counted, not how they are counted . Mail-in ballots require a specific counting process, or canvass, to ensure that every vote is accurately and securely recorded. Each ballot is reviewed by a two-person canvassing team — made up of one Republican and one Democrat — for any rips, tears or alterations that would prevent a machine from reading it. For damaged ballots that cannot be scanned, the canvassing team copies the voter’s choices onto a blank ballot, checks the work and sends the ballot off to be scanned. Voters also are required to sign an oath on the outside of the envelope. Only signed ballots can be opened and counted. If a ballot is missing a signature, local election officials will try to contact the voter to come in and sign it. Web delivery mail-in and provisional ballots have additional steps that take more time to ensure accuracy and validity.

Why do mail-in ballots need to be counted early?

The State Board of Elections estimates that more than 1 million mail-in ballots could be cast in the general election. Not starting the canvassing process for mail-in ballots until two days after the election, the board argued, could delay election results by weeks. During the primary races this summer, voters submitted more than 345,000 mail-in ballots, and the State Board of Elections took nearly a month to certify results. Montgomery County, which received more than 74,000 mail-in ballots, took nearly four weeks to complete its canvass . In its petition, the State Board of Elections argued that with even more mail-in ballots, certifying the results could take months — which could bump up against federal, state and local certification deadlines, such as terms in office for county executive and council positions in some counties. Some elected officials’ tenures are slated to begin on the first Monday in December, and Congress is to convene Jan. 3. The law prohibiting early canvassing of mail-in ballots dates to when mail-in ballots made up only a small fraction of the vote and did not pose a challenge to be counted. But, surging interest in voting by mail, propelled by the coronavirus pandemic, changed the dynamics.

How do I vote by mail?

Any Maryland registered voter can request a mail-in ballot , by filling out a paper form or requesting a ballot online. The online request form requires each voter to enter a Social Security number and a driver’s license number to request a ballot. Requests must be received by Nov. 1. In-person requests can be made and ballots can be picked up at local election offices until Election Day. Voters can check the status of their requested mail-in ballot and verify whether their local board of elections received a request by consulting the voter lookup website . Once received, mail-in ballots will include specific instructions. Mail-in ballots can be sent in the mail, placed in a drop box or delivered to your local election office. Any valid ballot placed in a drop box by 8 p.m. on Election Day or postmarked by Nov. 8 and received by Nov. 18 will be counted. A list of drop box locations statewide can be found here . Each ballot envelope also has a bar code so voters can track their ballots. Voters can log in to the board of elections website to see the status of their vote. Once that ballot has been opened and scanned, it will be labeled “counted.” This story has been updated with context from the appeals court ruling and a news conference.

D.C., Md. & Va.

What you need to know about Maryland’s mail-in ballot legal battle

The court fight has no immediate impact on when or how voters can cast ballots

By Karina Elwood

Updated October 7, 2022 at 10:30 a.m. EDT|Published October 6, 2022 at 2:31 p.m. EDT

Ballots to be reviewed by canvassers for the Montgomery County Board of Elections for the primary election on July 21 in Germantown, Md. (Bonnie Jo Mount/The Washington Post)

Just over a month before Election Day, mail-in voting was at the center of a legal battle between Maryland’s State Board of Elections and Republican gubernatorial candidate Dan Cox that would determine how long it takes to finalize results for the general election in November.

The debate between Donald Trump-aligned Cox and the election board concerns an outdated state law that prohibits election officials from counting mail-in ballots until two days after the election.

After a primary cycle plagued by long delays arising from counting a surge of mail-in ballots, the State Board of Elections petitioned a judge to suspend the law, a move that Cox opposed in court on grounds that judicial intervention was unconstitutional and unnecessary.

On Friday, the Maryland Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s decision to grant the state board’s petition, allowing local election officials to start counting mail-in ballots whenever they’re ready.

Here’s what you need to know:

2022 Maryland Gubernatorial Election: What to know

Races to watch: Wes Moore is projected to become Maryland’s first Black governor. In other historic races, Anthony G. Brown declares victory as Maryland’s first Black attorney, and Aruna Miller will be the state’s first immigrant and first woman of color to serve as lieutenant governor.

Key issues: Maryland’s vote to legalize recreational marijuana is among key issues that residents care about. Here’s what to know about Maryland’s recreational marijuana law.

What’s at stake: Why are midterm elections important? Democrats could dominate all branches of government if they prevail in November, and Republicans hope to keep a seat at the table.