NEWARK, N.J. – The Trump campaign is refining its argument in a lawsuit challenging the Murphy Administration’s November remote election executive order.
First reported by Politico, the campaign’s attorneys filed an amended complaint on Friday arguing that Murphy’s order violates the Constitution and federal law because it “(1) allows votes to be canvassed starting 10 days before Election Day and (2) allows mail-in votes to be cast after Election Day,” the amended complaint states.”
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The amended complaint was a legal necessity, shifting focus from the executive order to the new law codifying the spirit of the executive order.
“When the Trump campaign initially filed the lawsuit, one of its major arguments was that New Jersey’s Constitution only allows the state Legislature — not the governor — to determine how election are administered. That argument went out the window when the Democrat-controlled Legislature passed and the governor signed a bill, NJ A4475 (20R), that wrote the Murphy’s executive order into law and expanded on it,” explained Politico’s Matt Friedman.
“Federal law prohibits canvassing ballots before Election Day. Because A4475 allows election officials to begin canvassing 10 days before the election, federal law preempts it,” the amended complaint explains.
