Appeals Court Blocks Trump Mail-Voting Order in 23 States, Raising Supreme Court Fight
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Jul 25
Appeals Court Blocks Trump Mail-Voting Order in 23 States, Raising Supreme Court Fight
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jul 25
Summary
A 2-1 ruling by the Boston-based 1st Circuit refused to let Trump enforce his March executive order on mail voting in 23 states and Washington, keeping a June 25 injunction in place before the fall elections.
Judges said the states had to respond immediately because the order imposed fast-approaching deadlines for coordinating with federal officials and changing rules ahead of September and November voting, rejecting the Justice Department's claim the case was premature.
The lower court had found key parts of the order unconstitutional, saying Trump lacked authority to make DHS compile voter-eligibility lists, USPS lacked statutory power to set binding mail-ballot rules, and the order could intimidate local election officials.
The administration warned it may ask the Supreme Court to intervene, extending a broader Trump push to tighten voting rules after earlier courts also blocked his proof-of-citizenship registration and mail-ballot restrictions.
Will the Supreme Court intervene to redefine the boundary between state election laws and federal postal authority?
How will the clash over federal databases and postal rules reshape the way your ballot is delivered this November?
The 2026 Mail-In Voting Showdown: How Trump’s Executive Order Sparked a Constitutional Crisis Before the Midterms
Overview
In 2026, President Trump’s executive order to overhaul mail-in voting triggered a wave of legal and logistical chaos. The order directed federal agencies to create a centralized voter list and forced the USPS to block ballots not on preapproved lists, leading to a controversial USPS rule that imposed costly, complex requirements on local election offices and risked disenfranchising eligible voters. Courts quickly split: while a D.C. appeals court lifted a nationwide freeze, a Massachusetts judge blocked the order in 24 jurisdictions, citing constitutional limits on presidential power. The Supreme Court’s later ruling in Watson v. RNC further undermined the order, reinforcing that states—not the president—control mail-in ballot rules.