Judge blocks Trump’s Postal Service regulation on mail-in ballots

Key Points:

• A federal judge in Boston blocked a Postal Service regulation stemming from President Trump's executive order that sought to control mail-in ballots ahead of the midterm elections, citing likely unlawfulness and lack of congressional authorization.
• The regulation would have added federal oversight to mail-in voting, including tracking ballots and potentially rejecting those from voters not on a federal eligibility list, but the judge ruled this could cause widespread disenfranchisement and is practically impossible for states to comply with before the election.
• The ruling came in cases brought by the League of Women Voters and a coalition of states, with the judge emphasizing the absence of evidence for widespread mail-in ballot fraud, a claim frequently made by Trump without substantiation.
• The Trump administration may seek a rapid appeal to the Supreme Court, but the judge’s decision temporarily blocks the regulation, while a related provision requiring the Department of Homeland Security to send eligible voter lists to states remains in effect.
• This decision follows a series of legal challenges and conflicting rulings, including the Supreme Court lifting a separate injunction but not addressing the legality of the executive order or Postal Service regulation itself.