Why It Matters
The Supreme Court’s decision to allow a Trump administration order restricting mail voting to move forward could upend election procedures in states across the country just weeks before the 2026 midterm elections. The ruling does not settle whether the order is constitutional, but it clears the way for new federal postal regulations that could prevent millions of mail ballots from being delivered.
What Happened
On Monday, the Supreme Court granted preliminary approval to an executive order by President Trump that imposes new requirements on mail voting. The court did not rule on the constitutionality of the order itself, but rather allowed it to proceed while legal challenges continue.
The order requires states to use a specific envelope format for mail ballots and implement an electronic system to identify mail voters to the U.S. Postal Service. States that do not comply will have their mail ballots withheld from delivery. New postal regulations tied to these requirements are scheduled to take effect Tuesday if legal barriers are removed.
The administration filed a motion Monday to lift a second injunction that has blocked USPS from implementing the changes. A federal judge in Boston had frozen the order for the November election in June, but that freeze technically applied only to that specific election cycle.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson filed a dissent, warning that the order “needlessly injects chaos and uncertainty into the upcoming midterm elections,” according to reporting by CT Mirror.
By the Numbers
29% — percentage of voters who cast ballots by mail in 2024, according to the Election Assistance Commission
2,500 — number of election officers represented by the Elections Center association
Sept. 4 — date initial ballots are scheduled to go out to North Carolina’s overseas and military voters
11 days — timeframe until Yolo County, California begins sending out ballots, with envelopes already printed
Three dozen — mail ballots misdelivered by the post office during Nevada’s June primary
The Implementation Challenge
Election administrators across the country face immediate compliance hurdles. Yolo County, California, has already printed its ballot envelopes and will begin distributing them in 11 days, but the new envelope formatting requirements may render those materials non-compliant. Nevada, which sends mail ballots to every registered voter, has no way to quickly overhaul its systems. Tammy Patrick, an election official, told CT Mirror that “there isn’t a single state that does their elections in a way that this postal rule lays out.”
A second federal injunction blocking USPS from implementing the changes remains in effect, but the administration’s motion to remove it could clear the path for the new postal regulations to take effect as scheduled.
Zoom Out
The Trump administration has pursued voting restrictions through multiple channels. Last year, judges blocked Trump from creating voting restrictions via executive order. Separately, a Trump-backed bill to revamp voting procedures stalled in the Senate, where the Constitution grants voting rule control to states and Congress, not the president.
Trump has publicly blamed mail voting for his 2020 loss, despite having voted by mail himself on multiple occasions. The Supreme Court’s willingness to let the order proceed suggests the justices see sufficient legal grounds to allow the dispute to proceed through the courts rather than block it outright at this stage.
Nearly one-third of the country relies on mail voting. The new requirements would fundamentally alter how states and the postal service interact in election administration, a process that has operated under state-specific rules for decades.
What’s Next
The legal challenges to the order will continue through the courts. The second injunction barring USPS from implementing changes could be lifted if the administration prevails in its motion, which would trigger the new postal regulations to take effect. Election officials in states with mail voting programs are bracing for rapid operational changes as the midterm elections approach, with some jurisdictions already facing impossible compliance timelines given materials already in production or distribution.
Read more: Trump Appoints Staff Secretary Will Scharf as White House Counsel | Homeland Security Secretary Threatens Election Officials With Prosecution Over Voter Roll Compliance