Original article (in Bosnian) was published on 30/06/2023; Author: Amar Karađuz
The false claim that the United States Supreme Court annulled the results of the 2020 presidential election, in which the Democratic candidate Joe Biden won, is again being shared on social networks.
On June 26, 2023, a tweet was published on Twitter claiming that the United States Supreme Court had “overturned” the results of the 2020 presidential election:
I don’t know how to tell you, without gloating and triumphant joy: THE SUPREME COURT OF THE USA JUST OVERRULED THE RESULTS OF THE 2020 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS.
This tweet was viewed more than 52,000 times on that social network, with over 520 interactions achieved. The claim about overturning the election results was also shared on Facebook (1, 2).
What are the facts?
The American presidential elections were held in November 2020. Democratic Party candidate Joe Biden defeated then-Republican President Donald Trump in the election. The former American president and his supporters, some of whom are proponents of the QAnon conspiracy theory, began spreading false claims after the results were announced that the election was rigged and later officially annulled. You can read more about this in the analysis avilable on the links here and here.
Claims that the United States Supreme Court has annulled the results of the 2020 presidential election first appeared in July 2022.
Even then, such claims were not true, as reported by Reuters. The Supreme Court was then on summer break, so no decisions could be made. At the time of the publication of the allegations in June 2023, the Supreme Court was not yet on summer break. However, no decision to cancel the election results has been made even now.
The US Supreme Court does not have the power to overturn election results, Richard H. Pildes, professor of constitutional law at New York University (NYU) School of Law, explained to Reuters:
“The Supreme Court has not – and will never – annul the results of the 2020 presidential elections. The court has no authority to do so. The only way to remove the president from office is impeachment”.
The likely reason for such statements last year was the decision of the US Supreme Court to hold a hearing in the “Moore v. Harper” dispute from North Carolina in the fall term. The state’s Supreme Court overturned a decision by the North Carolina legislature that drew new electoral district maps. The Supreme Court of North Carolina made such a decision, arguing that the maps were redrawn in favour of the Republican Party and that this violated the Constitution of North Carolina. In the said dispute before the US Supreme Court, the Republican legislators from North Carolina claim that the Supreme Court of that federal state had no right to review the decision of the legislators.
Republicans in this case advocate the theory of “independent state legislature”. Former US President Donald Trump and his allies tried to use that theory to justify attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
On the website of the Brennan Center for Justice, it is explained that the theory or doctrine of “independent state legislature” is a legal theory that relies on an interpretation of the US Constitution according to which US state legislatures should be given broad powers to “redraw” electoral districts or for passing laws that suppress voting rights.
According to this theory, legislators at the federal-state level would have full autonomy in deciding the rules of elections for higher levels of government, even if they violate the constitutions of the federal states, and the courts in those states would not be able to prevent them from doing so. Throughout history, the theory has been made relevant several times – the penultimate time in 2000 – but the US Supreme Court has never accepted it as valid for the interpretation of election rules.
The Supreme Court in its decision from June 27, 2023, in the case of 2Moore v. Harper” rejected the said theory. Media articles, announcements about the Court’s decision in this case, as well as the decision itself, brought back the theme of the American elections and “annulment of the 2020 results” back to the public.
According to CBS News, the Court ruled that the Elections Clause of the US Constitution does not give exclusive powers to state legislatures to set rules regarding federal elections.
The US Supreme Court has confirmed that state supreme courts have the authority to review legislative decisions regarding election rules (such as redistricting). This decision of the Court, according to CNN, will actually have significant consequences for the presidential elections in 2024, as it will make it impossible to further undermine the electoral process.
The Supreme Court’s decision will have a significant impact on the 2024 presidential election, as it closes some legal avenues for Trump to once again undermine the electoral process.
The earliest publication of the claim suggesting that the US Supreme Court annulled the results of the 2020 presidential election in June 2023 is considered fake news, and later publications are considered to be a distribution of fake news.
