USPS posts mail-ballot rule, but judge’s injunction keeps it on hold
What’s next: The rule could affect the 2026 midterms only if a federal court lifts an order blocking Trump’s March election directive.
The U.S. Postal Service published a rule that would require states to send the agency lists of voters receiving mail-in ballots and use serialized Intelligent Mail barcodes on outbound and return federal ballots. The measure tracks President Donald Trump’s March 31 executive order tightening mail-voting procedures, including deadlines for states to notify USPS before elections. But the rule remains blocked. U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani first halted the order in June and renewed that injunction in July in League of Women Voters of Massachusetts v. Trump, finding the USPS-related section unconstitutional. USPS is set to publish the rule officially on Aug. 26, but it cannot take effect unless the injunction is lifted.