politics
Supreme Court allows Trump to implement key parts of order restricting mail voting ahead of midterms
Updated on: August 24, 2026 / 8:35 PM EDT / CBS News
TL;DR
- The Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision, allowed the Trump administration to advance key components of an executive order concerning mail voting regulations.
- The ruling enables the Department of Homeland Security to create lists of eligible voters and the U.S. Postal Service to develop new procedures for mail ballots.
- The Court stated that the states filed their lawsuit prematurely, and the order itself does not harm the states, thus the lower court lacked jurisdiction to block its implementation.
- The White House hailed the decision as a significant victory for election security, emphasizing measures to protect mail ballots and ensure only U.S. citizens elect American leaders.
- Liberal justices dissented, with Justice Sotomayor noting the decision postpones adjudication and does not address the lawfulness of the President's attempts to interfere with state election administration.
- The executive order directs DHS to compile 'state citizenship lists' and requires the Postal Service to handle mail ballots only for individuals on its voter-eligibility lists.
- The Postal Service published a final rule outlining required design elements for federal mail ballot envelopes and data submission from state election officials.
- In a separate case, a federal judge had previously blocked the Trump administration from implementing these provisions, but the Supreme Court's decision may apply to that case as well.
- The Supreme Court's order does not prevent states from filing future lawsuits against finalized policies implemented by the administration.