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The Trump administration has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to temporarily reinstate a federal rule that would give the U.S. Postal Service authority over certain aspects of mail-in voting in the 2026 midterm elections. The emergency application, filed on Sunday, came just two days after a federal judge blocked the regulation from taking effect.
Judge Blocks Mail Ballot Rule as Unconstitutional
U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani issued a preliminary injunction on Friday, halting enforcement of the Trump-directed USPS rule. Talwani ruled the regulation is likely unlawful and unconstitutional, arguing that the federal government does not have the authority to dictate how states handle mail-in ballots.
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In her order, Talwani also pointed to the timing of the rule. She wrote that its “immediate implementation of the Final Rule issued less than seventy days before the November 2026 election threatens disenfranchisement of millions of United States citizens who seek to vote by mail.”
What the USPS Rule Would Actually Do
The contested regulation stems from an executive order President Donald Trump signed in March. Under the rule, the USPS would gain the ability to track mail-in ballots and potentially reject ballots sent to or from voters not listed in a federal database.
The Trump administration pushed back against characterizations of the rule as a federal takeover of elections. In Sunday’s Supreme Court filing, the administration argued that the USPS rule “imposes only modest envelope-design and addressee-information requirements for federal-election ballots sent via U.S. Mail.” The filing further stated that the rule “requires States to upload the name, address, and barcode information of intended recipients of ballot mail in an online portal — information that election officials would necessarily already possess.”
The administration also insisted the rule does not interfere with state authority. “The Rule ensures that States remain responsible for determining voter eligibility and eligibility to vote by mail, and it does not dictate ballot content, mailing or receipt deadlines, or ballot-counting procedures,” the filing stated.
Third Escalation to the Supreme Court
Sunday’s application marks the third time the Trump administration has taken this dispute to the nation’s highest court. The Justice Department withdrew its two previous pending requests after submitting the latest application tied to Talwani’s most recent order.
The case has gained urgency because North Carolina last week became the first state to begin sending mail-in ballots to voters, doing so fewer than 60 days before the midterm elections. That development has intensified pressure on courts to resolve the legal dispute quickly.
The broader controversy over the USPS mail ballot rule follows remarks Trump made earlier this year suggesting that Republicans should “nationalize” elections. Those comments drew sharp criticism from local election officials and even from lawmakers within Trump’s own party. Elections in the United States are traditionally administered by individual states, and the administration’s push for federal oversight has raised significant constitutional concerns among legal experts and election administrators alike.
