What the Supreme Court Just Did With Trump's Mail-In Voting Rules
The Supreme Court on August 24, 2026, put on hold a lower-court ruling that had blocked parts of President Trump's executive order restricting mail-in voting for the November 2026 midterm election in about two dozen states and Washington, D.C. (NPR)
The Trump administration and 12 Republican-led states asked the Court to step in. They wanted to stop a June 2026 ruling by U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston. Judge Talwani had blocked central parts of the executive order in 23 mainly Democratic-led states plus Washington, D.C., which had sued the administration. The Supreme Court's order did not decide whether the executive order is legal. It paused the lower court's block while the case continues.
The case is listed as No. 26A124, Trump v. California. The request was first filed with Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson on July 27, 2026, and then sent to the full Court. (Supreme Court docket)
The dispute started with Executive Order 14399, signed March 31, 2026. The order told the Department of Homeland Security to build lists of adult U.S. citizens by state. It also told the U.S. Postal Service to get lists of eligible mail voters from states. Under the order, the Postal Service would deliver mail-in ballots only to people on those lists. Election officials would also have to put certain barcodes on mail ballot envelopes. States had until August 5, 2026, to tell USPS they planned to use mail ballots, and until September 4, 2026, to submit their voter lists. (Supreme Court application)
Judge Talwani's June 2026 ruling said Trump had gone beyond his presidential power. The Constitution gives control over federal election rules to state legislatures and Congress, not the president alone. She also said the Postal Service is an independent agency outside a president's direct control and has no legal authority to regulate mail-in voting. (NPR; Talwani memorandum and order)
On July 25, 2026, a federal appeals court upheld the block on the executive order. The Trump administration went back to the Supreme Court on August 12, 2026, asking the justices to let the order take full effect. (Reuters)
The August 24 decision does not clear all barriers to the executive order. A separate nationwide order issued by Judge Talwani on August 11, 2026, still blocks the U.S. Postal Service from following Trump's mail-voting directives. That order stays in effect no matter what the Supreme Court did on the 23-state case. (NPR)
The Postal Service published a final rule on August 21, 2026, that would tighten requirements for mail-in voting. But the rule can only take effect if a court gives approval. (Reuters)
Trump has said he issued the order to stop people who are not U.S. citizens from voting in federal elections. Research has found that noncitizen voting in federal elections is extremely rare. Trump himself voted by mail in Florida as recently as 2026. (NPR)
For election officials in the 23 affected states and Washington, D.C., the Court's decision creates an immediate problem. They now face a September 4 deadline to submit voter lists, but the Supreme Court has not ruled on whether the executive order is legal. At the same time, Judge Talwani's separate order blocking the Postal Service remains in force. The Postal Service's new rule cannot take effect unless a court clears that August 11 injunction.
The timeline is tight. Mail ballots for the November 2026 midterms will start going out to voters in many states within weeks. The Supreme Court's decision lifts one legal barrier but leaves the executive order only partially in effect, with the Postal Service block still standing and no ruling on the constitutional questions Judge Talwani raised.
The broader context here is whether the justices will take up the full case before Election Day. That decision will determine whether the order's rules take full effect or stay in legal limbo through the November 2026 election.
