Judge blocks USPS mail-ballot rule for 14 days before midterms
Why it matters: The order halts a federal plan that states said could disrupt mail voting just weeks before the 2026 elections.
A federal judge temporarily blocked a new U.S. Postal Service rule that would tighten requirements for mail-in ballots, pausing the policy for at least 14 days as states challenge it in court. U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani ruled Thursday that the states were likely to suffer irreparable harm because the rule could force changes that are "practically impossible" with the 2026 midterms little more than two months away. The rule, finalized last week after President Donald Trump pushed for stricter oversight, would require states to attach voter information to a unique barcode on each mailed ballot and enter it into a federal ballot mail portal. USPS had said it would not deliver ballots from states that failed to comply.