Key facts
- A federal appeals court declined to allow the Trump administration to implement an executive order tightening mail-in voting rules in 23 states.
- A lower court judge had previously concluded that key parts of the order were unconstitutional.
- A separate federal judge in Washington D.C. blocked the US Postal Service from carrying out the order nationwide, citing a violation of a settlement.
- The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals put on hold a lower court ruling, stating the lawsuit was premature and the administration would be irreparably harmed if the rule could not be finalized.
- The proposed rule would have required states to submit lists of mail-in voters and meet other requirements, with the USPS refusing to deliver ballots from non-compliant states.
A federal appeals court on Saturday declined to allow the Trump administration to implement an executive order aimed at tightening rules for mail-in voting in 23 states ahead of the November elections. The Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the administration's request to lift an injunction that several Democratic-led states secured in June from a lower-court judge who concluded key parts of the order were unconstitutional.
A separate federal judge in Washington D.C. had previously blocked the U.S. Postal Service nationwide from carrying out the order, finding that the proposal violated a settlement in a 2020 lawsuit against the agency. U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan ruled that the Postal Service's proposed regulations would violate a 2021 settlement requiring the agency to prioritize the timely delivery of Election Mail.
Trump's order would have required states to submit lists of their mail-in voters and meet other requirements for their mail voting programs. The Postal Service had stated that it would refuse to deliver mail-in ballots in states that do not provide their voter lists. The NAACP, which brought the lawsuit, celebrated the ruling, with President Derrick Johnson stating it was a blow to attempts to "rig the election."
However, a federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., on Friday handed the Trump administration a temporary win by putting on hold a lower court ruling that had blocked the USPS from restricting mail-in voting. This three-judge panel ruled that the lawsuit was premature and not covered by the 2021 settlement. The appeals court also stated the administration would be irreparably harmed if the rule could not be finalized before the midterms. While the administration cannot yet move forward nationwide, this ruling signals they may convince other courts to allow implementation while lawsuits proceed.