New Bill Targets California’s Weeks-Long Vote Counts With Election Day Deadline

Clear Facts

• Senate Republicans James Lankford and Mike Lee are introducing legislation requiring all ballots to be received by the time polls close on Election Day
• The bill targets states like California and Washington where ballot counting can take weeks beyond Election Day
• Oklahoma currently counts all votes by 9 p.m. on election night, demonstrating efficient counting is achievable

A pair of Senate Republicans are introducing federal legislation to force blue states to dramatically reduce the time it takes to count ballots, capitalizing on an opening left by the Supreme Court.

Sens. James Lankford, R-Okla., and Mike Lee, R-Utah, are introducing the Ballots by Election Day Act, which would create a federal deadline requiring states to accept only ballots received by the time polls close on Election Day across all time zones. The measure directly targets states like California and Washington, where ballot counting routinely extends for days or weeks after polls close.

Lankford framed the legislation as essential to restoring confidence in American elections.

“I have made fun of other states for years because there’s quite a few states around the country that can’t seem to figure out how to be able to count,” Lankford told Fox News Digital in an interview. “In Oklahoma, our election ends at 7 p.m. on a Tuesday night.”

“Usually by 9 p.m., all of our thousands of precincts are all in and counted,” he continued. “We start the verification process. We do an audit after that. We have great trust in our elections because we know. We all vote. But we get them all in on that.”

The proposed legislation would establish a nationwide deadline for counting absentee and mail-in ballots. Any ballots not received by the time polls close across the nation’s time zones would not be counted, regardless of postmark date.

The bill directly addresses prolonged counting processes in Democratic-controlled states that have drawn criticism from across the political spectrum. California’s ballot counting, which can extend for weeks, has become a particular point of contention in recent election cycles.

“States counting late ballots are inviting fraud and sowing doubt in their own election results,” Lee told Fox News Digital in a statement. “Our bill will clarify protocol and restore trust by counting only ballots received before the polls close on Election Day.”

Lankford argued that extended counting timelines in states “like California and others, New York” undermine public confidence in electoral integrity.

“When you vote you may not know for weeks to months what the final election count is,” he said. “That shouldn’t be in the United States of America.”

The Republican push follows the Supreme Court’s recent decision allowing mail-in ballots postmarked before Election Day to be counted if they arrive later. While the court permitted the practice of mail-in voting to continue, it did not explicitly establish a deadline for when those ballots must be counted.

“Once the court made their ruling, as that came out, they left a clear door open to say this could be defined by the United States Congress,” Lankford said. “So I said, let’s step in and actually do that. Let us provide some real clarity for that. This shouldn’t be controversial. This should just be something to build trust in our elections.”

The legislation represents a significant federal intervention into state election procedures, particularly affecting states that have built their voting systems around extended mail-in ballot acceptance periods. Supporters argue the measure is necessary to prevent fraud and ensure timely, transparent election results that Americans can trust.

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