“When the federal statutes speak of ‘the election’… they plainly refer to the combined actions of voters and officials meant to make a final selection of an officeholder… By establishing a particular day as ‘the day’ on which these actions must take place, the statutes simply regulate the time of the election, a matter on which the Constitution explicitly gives Congress the final say.” Foster v. Love, 522 U.S. 67, 71-72 (1997)
We will take a closer at this binding precedent below, but in preview, please understand that it emanates from a 9-0 decision of the United States Supreme Court, wherein the entire Court joined, not just the outcome, but also the opinion on this very point.
The voters vote. The officials count. These combined actions form “the election,” and the election must be decided on the day. States that failed to make a final selection of officeholder by midnight after Election Day have violated the statute, subjecting the nation at large to the very evils Congressionally mandated deadlines were drafted to prevent.
Federal Election Day statutes were designed to curtail fraud, and to infuse a prima facie sense of integrity in our electoral process. But these States – in failing to obey Congressional deadlines – have flagrantly attempted to preempt federal law. This is certainly prohibited, and this is why the late election results are void.
https://www.thepostemail.com/2020/11/18/elections-undecided-by-midnight-are-void-9-0-decision/