Key Takeaways
U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani banned the Postal Service on Tuesday from carrying out President Trump's mail-in voting order in every state, expanding a June block that covered 23 states and Washington, D.C.
The March executive order tells USPS to compile lists of eligible voters from the states and deliver absentee ballots only to people on those lists.
The Supreme Court is still weighing Talwani's earlier ruling as the November 3 midterms approach.
A federal judge in Boston has blocked the U.S. Postal Service from carrying out President Trump's mail-in voting restrictions anywhere in the country. The order released Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani expands her June ruling, which had stopped the directives only in the 23 mostly Democratic-led states and Washington, D.C. that sued, according to NPR.
Trump signed the executive order in March. It directs the Postal Service to compile lists of eligible voters from the states and to deliver absentee ballots only to people on those lists. In her memorandum and order, Talwani found the voting rights groups behind the request, led by the League of Women Voters of Massachusetts, are likely to prove the order oversteps a president's authority under the Constitution, and that the directives are already causing confusion among voters.
The White House has defended the order as a way to stop voting by people who are not U.S. citizens, something studies have repeatedly found to be extremely rare. This is the second time courts have blocked the order's key provisions, Votebeat reports, and the ruling lands about 12 weeks before the November 3 midterms. The Supreme Court is still weighing Talwani's earlier decision, so the nationwide block may not be the last word.
The Justice Department is not waiting. In a supplemental brief filed Wednesday it asked the Supreme Court to overturn both of Talwani's orders at once, arguing the new nationwide injunction proves the urgency of the stay already pending there. Solicitor General D. John Sauer wrote that "it is critical that the Court act promptly on the pending stay," warning the district court would otherwise run out the clock on implementing the order before November, according to Democracy Docket. Twelve states have joined the department's stay request and 23 support the injunction. About 48 million ballots were mailed in 2024 and 35 million in 2022.
The courts are not moving in one direction. On Wednesday the Fifth Circuit restored the Texas mail ballot ID rules that a district judge struck down in 2025, finding the challengers lacked standing. Judge Andrew Oldham wrote that "none justifies interference with the State Legislature's efforts to prevent voter fraud," according to the Texas Tribune. The unanimous 11 page ruling says ID number errors once caused 11 percent of Texas mail ballot rejections, a figure that fell to 2.7 percent after the law took effect, while a 2022 study found 1 in 7 voters in that year's primary had a ballot or application rejected.
The pattern here is hard to ignore. Courts keep testing the limits of executive action this year, the same week a judge weighed the executive order rewriting the childhood vaccine schedule and the Justice Department expanded its tuition lawsuits against three more states. Worth watching as the appeal moves.
People Also Ask
What did the judge rule about Trump's mail-in voting order?
Judge Indira Talwani banned the Postal Service from carrying out the order's directives in all 50 states, finding the challengers are likely to prove it exceeds presidential authority under the Constitution.
What does Trump's mail-in voting executive order do?
The March 2026 order directs USPS to compile lists of eligible voters from the states and deliver absentee ballots only to people on those lists, which the administration says targets noncitizen voting.
Does the ruling affect the November 2026 midterms?
Yes. The nationwide block means the Postal Service cannot restrict absentee ballot delivery under the order for the November 3 midterms unless a higher court intervenes.
Is the Supreme Court involved in the mail-in voting case?
Yes. The Supreme Court is weighing the administration's stay request on Talwani's earlier June ruling, and the Justice Department filed a supplemental brief on August 12 asking the justices to overturn the new nationwide order as well and to act promptly. The court had not ruled as of publication.