There is a fascinating case in Lehigh County over whether 261 mail-in ballots that had not been dated should be counted in the 2021 general election.

The Lehigh County Board of Elections said yes, they should, but its decision was challenged by Republicans on behalf of one of the county’s judicial candidates who is in a close race for the third judgeship that is at stake from November’s election.

The county Republican Committee challenged the board’s decision in court, but Judge Edward Reibman’s opinion upholds the Election Board’s decision. The Republicans say they will appeal.

Republican David Ritter leads Democrat Zachary Cohen by 74 votes, and since, traditionally, mail-in votes favor Democrats, there is the possibility that Cohen could overtake Ritter if the 261 mail-in ballots at issue are allowed.

The case has gotten statewide attention, with Republican leadership in the House of Representatives threatening to impeach the members of the Lehigh County Election Board if they do not rescind their decision. The board consists of Chair Dan McCarthy and members Doris Glaessmann and Jane Ervin.

In the letter the Republicans sent to the board members, it said a section of state law addressing mail-in ballots includes this requirement: The voter “shall then fill out, date and sign the declaration printed on (the) envelope.”

The Republican letter said that no elected or appointed official has the authority to “plainly ignore, or worse, openly violate” laws on the administration of elections.

The ballots in question arrived on time, but they either didn’t have dates or the dates were placed in the wrong places on the envelope.

Reibman’s ruling said the law should be interpreted as if it “favors the fundamental right to vote, and enfranchises, rather than disenfranchises, the electorate.”

His opinion went on to say that all of the ballots in question were signed and submitted by qualified electors and were received on time and that there was no evidence of fraud or misconduct.

So the question comes down to this: Should legal voters be disqualified if they forget to date their envelopes? I admit to being ambivalent about this issue, and I can make a case for both sides.

On the one hand, signing and dating the outside of the ballot envelopes are part of the legal instructions given to voters who decide to cast their ballots this way, so if they don’t dot their i’s and cross their t’s, their votes shouldn’t be counted. I agree with the critics who say, “Come on, what’s so difficult about following simple directions to sign and date the envelope?”

On the other hand, we are attempting to encourage as universally as possible all eligible voters to participate in our democratic process, so should we disenfranchise those who make a relatively minor error?

I have asked myself: What is the purpose of requiring a date in the first place? If I sign my ballot attesting that it is I who is submitting it, and my signature matches up with what’s on file, what does the date have to do with it?

As long as my ballot gets to election officials by the prescribed date and time, isn’t that really all that matters?

If I date the envelope “July 10, 2010” or “Dec. 15, 2525”; will that disqualify my vote? As far as I can determine, nothing in the legal instructions says that an obviously incorrect date will invalidate my ballot.

Since Reibman’s decision is under appeal, Election Board officials say they will not certify the election results until the court case is resolved, which could be sometime in 2022.

Republicans Tom Caffrey and Tom Capehart were handily elected to the other two seats in the six-person race and will be sworn in during ceremonies the first week in January.

By Bruce Frassinelli | tneditor@tnonline.com

The foregoing opinions do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board or Times News LLC.