Federal Court Allows Trump’s Executive Order on Mail Voting to Proceed
A U.S. federal appellate court has decided not to halt President Donald Trump’s executive order aimed at limiting mail-in voting. This ruling came just a day after the Trump administration requested the U.S. Supreme Court to review the proposal in a related case.
The decision from the three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia supports a previous ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Carl J. Nichols. Judge Nichols had determined that an injunction against the order was premature as formal regulations had yet to be issued by the administration. However, those directives were released shortly thereafter.
The panel, consisting of two judges appointed by former President Barack Obama and one by Trump, found no grounds for dissent. The unsigned decision hinted that any attempt to implement these changes before the upcoming midterm elections could be blocked by the courts. It noted, “The action the Order contemplates would involve the President, whom the Constitution vests with no express authority over the conduct of elections, undertaking a substantial and unfunded overhaul of election procedures.”
Meanwhile, a federal judge in Massachusetts has already blocked the executive order from being effective for the current year’s elections, ruling that it forced states to alter their election procedures abruptly. This decision was upheld by a Boston-based appeals court and subsequently appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court by the Trump administration.
The U.S. Postal Service has not responded to inquiries regarding its actions concerning the executive order. However, the American Postal Workers Union, which opposes the order, has stated that its members are preparing an online portal for voter information submission. Jonathan Smith, the union’s president, mentioned, “The IT people in the background are moving forward with creating the portals to make sure that we can accomplish the task if given to us.”
Since his second term began, Trump has faced multiple court blocks in his attempts to modify voting procedures unilaterally. His push for changes follows persistent claims of voter fraud to rationalize his 2020 election loss to Joe Biden.
Trump’s March executive order directed the federal government to compile a list of eligible voters and instructed the Postal Service to deliver ballots only to those individuals. Legal challenges argue that the Constitution grants states control over elections, and while Congress can legislate changes for federal elections, it has not done so in this instance.
Earlier, Trump signed another executive order imposing a nationwide voter ID requirement and mandating proof of U.S. citizenship for voter registration. He is also urging Congress to pass a broad voting bill with similar requirements, but it remains stalled in the Senate due to opposition from Democrats and some members of his party.
