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The Supreme Court rejects Trump's mail voting restrictions for this year's midterms
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Accessibility links Skip to main content Keyboard shortcuts for audio player Open Navigation Menu --> Newsletters NPR Shop Get NPR+ Close Navigation Menu Home News Expand/collapse submenu for News National World Politics Business Health Science Climate Race Culture Expand/collapse submenu for Culture Books Movies Television Pop Culture Food Art & Design Performing Arts Life Kit Gaming Music Expand/collapse submenu for Music Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions Podcasts & Shows Expand/collapse submenu for Podcasts & Shows Daily Morning Edition Weekend Edition Saturday Weekend Edition Sunday All Things Considered Up First Here & Now NPR Politics Podcast Featured Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me! Fresh Air Wild Card with Rachel Martin It's Been a Minute Embedded Get NPR+ More Podcasts & Shows Search Newsletters NPR Shop Get NPR+ Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions About NPR Diversity Support Careers Press Ethics The Supreme Court won’t allow midterm mail-in voting limits The Supreme Court has rejected the Trump administration's request to allow mail-in voting restrictions under a U.S. Postal Service plan for the midterm general election. Patrick T.
The ruling released Monday by the high court means the U.S. Postal Service is expected to continue delivering ballots as usual.
Voting by mail has already begun in states including Alabama, North Carolina and Wisconsin, with more soon to follow — including Western states such as Hawaii, Oregon and Washington, where elections are held primarily or fully with mail ballots.
The judge found the requirements are likely illegal because the Postal Service has no authority to control mail-in voting.
Now, a majority of the Supreme Court decided to keep that injunction in place.
citizens, a problem that many studies and audits show is extremely uncommon. For this legal fight over the USPS plan, the administration's lawyers have provided the courts with no evidence of mail-voting fraud.
In 2024, the share of voters who reported casting ballots by mail was higher among Democrats (37%) than Republicans (24%), according to a national survey by the MIT Election Data and Science Lab.
In a social media post last year, Trump said he is "going to lead a movement to get rid of MAIL-IN BALLOTS" and claimed that "ELECTIONS CAN NEVER BE HONEST WITH MAIL IN BALLOTS/VOTING."
This year, Trump himself voted by mail in Florida.
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− Elections The Supreme Court rejects Trump's mail voting restrictions for this year's midterms September 14, 20267:38 PM ET Hansi Lo Wang
Election workers process mail-in ballots in Industry, Calif., in June.
+ Elections The Supreme Court rejects Trump's mail voting restrictions for this year's midterms Updated September 14, 20269:18 PM ET Originally published September 14, 20267:38 PM ET Heard on All Things Considered Hansi Lo Wang
Election workers process mail-in ballots in Industry, Calif., in June.
− Fallon/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
The Supreme Court has sided against President Trump, rejecting his efforts to enact new mail-in voting restrictions for the midterm election.
+ Fallon/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
The Supreme Court has ruled against President Trump, rejecting his efforts to enact new mail-in voting restrictions for the midterm election.
− Under the still-blocked USPS plan, which followed an executive order by Trump, states would have had to turn over lists of voters' names and addresses and have certain specific barcodes on ballot envelopes in order to have them delivered by the mailing agency.
+ Elections Federal agents may have broken state laws in voter fraud hunt, whistleblower claims Under the still-blocked USPS plan, which followed an executive order by Trump, states would have had to turn over lists of voters' names and addresses and have certain specific barcodes on ballot envelopes in order to have them delivered by the mailing agency.
− Earlier this month, a federal judge in Boston had issued a preliminary injunction against USPS, blocking the mailing agency from imposing those new ballot requirements on states.
+ Earlier this month, a federal judge in Boston issued a preliminary injunction against USPS, blocking it from imposing those new ballot requirements on states.
+ A second federal judge issued another preliminary injunction late Sunday.
+ The court said the Trump administration was unlikely to succeed on the merits of its challenge.
− Trump said he issued the call for USPS to change its rule for ballot mail as a way to stop illegal voting by non-U.S.
+ Politics Trump officials propose sweeping changes to the census that would reshape voting maps Conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote a short concurring opinion, saying "there is at least a fair prospect that the final rule falls within the Postal Service's statutory authority." But, he added, "applying the rule in the 2026 elections would be arbitrary and capricious in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act because state and local election officials do not have sufficient time to reasonably implement the rule before the elections."
Indeed several Republican state election officials, including from the mostly vote-by-mail state of Utah, signed on to a Supreme Court brief, warning that any attempt to carry out the USPS plan now "will almost certainly lead to mistakes, delays, and confusion for both voters and election officials."
Conservative Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas dissented from the order, and would have granted the administration's request to pause the Boston-based judge's ruling.
While the USPS plan remains paused for the midterms, the legal fight will likely continue over how the agency may try to implement it for future federal elections.
For now, challengers of the proposal are celebrating their victory.
"Today, the Supreme Court refused to allow the federal government to throw our elections into chaos just weeks before Election Day.
+ The Postal Service exists to deliver Americans' mail — not to rewrite election rules, demand voters' personal information, or decide which ballots make it through the system," Celina Stewart, CEO of the League of Women Voters, said in a statement.
New York State Attorney General Letitia James said in a separate statement that she was "truly relieved" by the high court's ruling.
"Voters should never have to wonder whether a ballot they legally cast will be counted because the federal government suddenly changed the rules," said James, whose state was among the 24 mainly Democratic-led states that sued alongside Washington, D.C. "We will keep fighting to make sure every eligible ballot is counted come November. Now, I encourage all eligible Americans to get out and vote — and vote early."
Trump said he issued the call for USPS to change its rule for mail ballots as a way to stop illegal voting by non-U.S.
− Trump has been a vocal critic of the way around one-third of voters cast ballots in the last two federal elections.
+ Trump has been a vocal critic of the way about one-third of voters cast ballots in the last two federal elections.
− This is a developing story and will be updated.
− Edited by Benjamin Swasey
Elections USPS 'carefully reviewing' whistleblower claim on plan for Trump's mail voting order Elections Mail-in voters weigh flying to vote in person and other backup plans amid uncertainty NPR does not offer or accept money for coverage or interviews.
+ Edited by Benjamin Swasey
Elections Mail-in voters weigh flying to vote in person and other backup plans amid uncertainty Elections USPS 'carefully reviewing' whistleblower claim on plan for Trump's mail voting order NPR does not offer or accept money for coverage or interviews.