The Trump administration has asked the Supreme Court to restore a USPS mail-ballot rule it says will stop non-citizens from receiving ballots, a move tied directly to the fight over control of Congress this November.
The request asks the high court to lift an injunction and allow the Postal Service’s new procedures to operate before the midterms. Republicans frame this as a common-sense effort to protect election integrity and keep ballots out of the hands of people who are not eligible to vote.
In March, the White House issued an executive order intended to bar non-citizens from registering or voting in federal elections. That order led to litigation from several states, with courts and parties fighting over how far the federal government can go in policing ballots and voter rolls.
The administration’s plan would require states to provide the Postal Service with lists of mail ballots and voter details so the USPS can verify mailings. Under the proposal, the Postal Service would send absentee ballots only to voters whose information matches the submitted database, reducing opportunities for ballots to be mailed to the wrong people.
The final USPS rule at issue would refuse to send ballots unless states submit their mail ballot data and receive Postal Service approval in advance, according to the filing. A district judge has temporarily blocked the rule, and one justice set a tight Sept. 8 deadline for the government to respond to the injunction.
That court fight matters because timing is crucial: ballots are prepared and mailed on a strict schedule ahead of Election Day, and any last-minute changes can disrupt the process. The administration argues the rule simply forces a basic checklist before millions of ballots move through the mail system.
The legal filing explains that the Postal Service’s final instructions require states to upload the name, address, and barcode information for ballot mail into an online portal. The portal would let the USPS confirm that absentee mailings match state-submitted lists before they go out, aiming to prevent incorrect mailings and potential fraud.
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The court document also calls these steps “reasonable preparation requirements” for election mail and defends them as limited and administrative rather than a seizure of state control. “The Rule ensures that States remain responsible for determining voter eligibility and eligibility to vote by mail, and it does not dictate ballot content, mailing or receipt deadlines, or ballot-counting procedures,” the 48-page document says.
The Department of Justice emphasizes that the Postal Service regulates mail, not elections, and that this rule preserves state authority over who can vote. The government’s position is that the change helps states enforce voter eligibility while preventing non-citizens from slipping into federal elections through mail ballots.
Opponents say the rule could create new federal checkpoints around state-run elections or slow ballot delivery, and they’ve sought to enjoin implementation because of the calendar and the potential for confusion. Supporters counter that the measure is a straightforward, administrative safeguard that respects state control while closing an obvious vulnerability.
Federal judges and the Supreme Court will now sort out whether the Postal Service can implement a verification step that some view as a practical election-security update and others view as an overreach. With control of the House and Senate at stake, the coming rulings will shape how millions of absentee ballots are processed and delivered ahead of November.
