In a significant legal development, a federal appellate panel has decided not to halt President Donald Trump’s executive order aimed at limiting mail-in voting, despite the administration’s recent appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court regarding the proposal. The decision emerged from a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, which upheld a previous ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Carl J. Nichols. Judge Nichols had determined that any injunction against the order was premature until formal regulations were issued.
The panel, composed of two judges appointed by former President Barack Obama and one by Trump, agreed that Nichols’ ruling was correct and issued their decision without dissent. The judges noted, however, that if the administration attempted to enforce the changes before the upcoming November midterm elections, courts might intervene. The ruling stated, “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 — including the implementation of a nationwide reform to Postal Service mail-handling processes —on the threshold of the November election. Put differently, the Order ‘may not prove feasible to implement in any manner whatsoever.’”
In another legal challenge, a federal judge in Massachusetts ruled against the executive order in a case filed by Democratic state officials. This decision was upheld by an appeals court in Boston and subsequently appealed to the Supreme Court by the Trump administration. The Massachusetts ruling highlighted concerns over states being forced to alter electoral procedures too close to election deadlines, with states having the constitutional authority to manage their elections.
As the Postal Service remains silent on any related actions, the American Postal Workers Union has expressed opposition to the order. “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,” stated Jonathan Smith, President of the union, in a phone interview. The union is reportedly preparing an online portal for voter information submission to qualify for mail ballots.
Trump’s attempts to modify voting procedures have been consistently challenged by the judiciary. These efforts follow persistent claims of voter fraud by Trump, especially after his loss to President Joe Biden in the 2020 election. Trump’s March executive order instructed the federal government to compile a list of eligible voters, with ballots to be delivered only to those listed. However, lawsuits have argued that the Constitution delegates election management to states and that Congress has not legislated any changes for federal elections.
In a related move, Trump signed another executive order that proposed a nationwide voter ID requirement and mandated citizenship proof for voter registration. He has also been advocating for the “Save America Act,” aimed at enforcing these requirements, although it has stalled in the Senate due to opposition from Democrats and some Republican lawmakers.
