Democrats Renew Bid to Block Trump Mail Voting Order After USPS Finalizes Rule

3 articles · Updated · Democracy Docket · Aug 25

Democratic Party committees and leaders filed a supplemental complaint and renewed injunction request Tuesday, arguing USPS’s finalized ballot-mail rule now makes their challenge to Trump’s March order ripe for review.
The filing says USPS can now require new ballot-envelope designs, voter-identifying data and barcodes from state officials, and can refuse noncompliant ballot mail—steps Democrats say exceed the agency’s authority.
44% of Democratic voters cast ballots by mail or absentee in 2024, versus 26% of Republican voters, and plaintiffs argue the rule could disproportionately hurt Democrats by delaying or rejecting ballots before the midterms.
Judge Carl Nichols denied an earlier injunction in May as premature, while the Supreme Court on Monday lifted a separate block on key parts of Trump’s order in 23 Democratic-led states and Washington, D.C.
A separate nationwide injunction against the USPS rule still stands in Massachusetts, but Democrats asked the D.C. court to act before the Nov. 3 election because that order could be narrowed or lifted.