Supreme Court Blocks Mail-In Voting Restrictions

The Supreme Court has ruled against President Trump’s proposal to implement new mail-in voting restrictions for the upcoming midterm elections. This decision allows the U.S. Postal Service to continue ballot deliveries as usual. Voting by mail is already underway in some states, including Alabama, North Carolina, and Wisconsin. Western states like Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington will soon follow, conducting elections mainly through mail ballots.

The USPS plan, halted by the court, would have required states to provide lists of voter names and addresses and to include specific barcodes on ballot envelopes. The plan followed an executive order from Trump but faced legal challenges. A federal judge in Boston had earlier blocked the USPS from imposing these requirements, stating they likely overstepped legal authority.

The Supreme Court upheld this injunction, suggesting Trump’s administration would likely fail in its challenge. Justice Brett Kavanaugh acknowledged a possibility that the USPS plan could be within its statutory authority, yet applying this rule in the 2026 elections would breach the Administrative Procedure Act due to inadequate implementation time for election officials.

Many Republican state election officials, including those from Utah, warned the Supreme Court that enforcing the USPS plan would cause errors and confusion. Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas dissented, supporting a pause on the Boston judge’s decision. Trump argued that the USPS rule was to prevent illegal voting, a claim unsupported by evidence of mail-voting fraud.

Trump has criticized mail-in voting methods, as about one-third of voters used them in recent federal elections. In 2024, MIT Election Data and Science Lab findings showed higher mail-in voting rates among Democrats than Republicans. Despite his stance, Trump voted by mail in Florida.