Kentucky AG Cameron joins fight against Pennsylvania ballots

The attorney general has not responded to questions about whether he thought Kentucky mail-in ballots received after Election Day should be thrown out.

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron has joined other Republican attorneys general in asking the U.S. Supreme Court to invalidate some mail-in ballots in Pennsylvania.

The lawsuit is unlikely to change the outcome of the election in Pennsylvania, which tipped the scales of the presidential election in favor of Joe Biden over the weekend. He won the state by about 45,000 votes.

Cameron is one of nine Republican attorneys general signing onto an amicus brief, or “friend of the court” brief, arguing that absentee ballots received after polls closed on November 3 should not count in the election.

In a statement, Cameron wrote that all Americans, regardless of political affiliation, should be concerned.

“While this did not occur in Kentucky, what happens in other states during a presidential election matters to Kentuckians because we are electing our President and Vice President,” Cameron wrote.

“Legal matters like the one involving Pennsylvania set a judicial precedent that not only affects this election, but future elections as well.”

Cameron’s office did not respond to questions about whether he thought Kentucky mail-in ballots received after Election Day should be thrown out.

As part of a bipartisan agreement between Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear and Republican Secretary of State Michael Adams, absentee ballots could be received by county clerks until November 6th as long as they were postmarked by Election Day.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled last month that ballots cast in the election should be counted as long as they were postmarked by Election Day and received by November 6th.

The U.S. Supreme Court already declined to hear a fast-tracked challenge to that ruling, but Republicans now hope the high court will reconsider after the confirmation of Justice Amy Coney Barrett, which solidified a conservative majority on the court.

Cameron’s former boss, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, also lent support to President Trump’s election challenge on Monday.

McConnell has refused to acknowledge Biden as the winner of last week’s election, or address unfounded claims of voter fraud made by Trump.

From the Senate Floor on Monday, McConnell dismissed calls by media outlets that projected the race in favor of Biden.

“The president has every right to look into allegations and to request recounts under the law. And notably, the Constitution gives no role in this process to wealthy media corporations,” McConnell said.

McConnell is awaiting the results of two runoff elections in Georgia that will determine if he and Republicans still have control of the U.S. Senate.

The elections, which will likely become national and expensive races, take place on Jan. 5.

Managing Editor for Collaboratives at
Ryland Barton is the Managing Editor for Collaboratives for Kentucky Public Radio, a group of public radio stations including WKMS, WFPL in Louisville, WEKU in Richmond and WKYU in Bowling Green. A native of Lexington, Ryland most recently served as the Capitol Reporter for Kentucky Public Radio. He has covered politics and state government for NPR member stations KWBU in Waco and KUT in Austin.