USPS publishes final rule restricting mail-in ballots, currently blocked by courts

Aug 22, 2026

The United States Postal Service issued a 95-page final rule on August 23, 2026, requiring states to provide voter lists and adding verification requirements for mail-in ballots, implementing President Trump's March 31, 2026 executive order. The rule cannot take effect due to two court injunctions issued by Massachusetts U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani on June 25 and August 11, 2026, blocking implementation before the November 2026 midterm elections. A coalition of 23 states and the District of Columbia successfully challenged the executive order as unconstitutionally usurping state authority over elections, with Judge Talwani finding two sections unlawful. Voting-rights organizations filed an emergency motion arguing USPS violated the August injunction by issuing an immediately effective rule, while the Trump Administration has asked the Supreme Court to stay both injunctions. Critics argue the rule transforms postal workers from neutral mail carriers into federal gatekeepers of state election processes.

USPS mail-in ballot rule

▪The United States Postal Service final rule would require USPS employees to verify that outbound federal ballot mailings comply with new envelope, barcode, and data-reporting requirements before accepting them from election officials.
▪The United States Postal Service issued a 95-page final rule on August 23, 2026.
▪Postmaster General David Steiner defended the rule when it was proposed in June 2026 at a Senate hearing.
▪The United States Postal Service plans to implement the final rule immediately if the government obtains relief from two existing injunctions.
▪The United States Postal Service asserted in the final rule that the requirements do not amount to election administration, nor do they usurp state resources.
▪The United States Postal Service acknowledged that the United States Postal Service would not implement the final rule for the 2026 election unless the government obtains relief from both injunctions.

Trump election verification order

▪President Donald Trump issued an executive order on March 31, 2026 regarding citizenship verification and integrity in federal elections.
▪The United States Postal Service final rule was designed to comply with President Donald Trump's executive order from March 31, 2026.
▪President Donald Trump's March 31, 2026 executive order directs the Department of Homeland Security, in coordination with the Social Security Administration, to compile and send lists of adult citizens in each state.
▪President Donald Trump's March 31, 2026 executive order directs the United States Postal Service to establish state-specific lists of people to whom election officials intend to send mail-in or absentee ballots, along with unique ballot-envelope identifiers.

Federal court injunctions

▪The June 25, 2026 injunction barred federal agencies from implementing two sections of President Donald Trump's executive order against plaintiff states and the District of Columbia for elections held on or before November 3, 2026.
▪Massachusetts U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani granted summary judgment to the plaintiffs in June 2026, finding two sections of President Donald Trump's executive order unlawful and constitutionally invalid.
▪The Trump Administration asked the Supreme Court in late July 2026 to stay the June 25, 2026 injunction while its appeal proceeds.
▪A coalition of 23 states, along with the District of Columbia, filed a lawsuit on April 3, 2026 seeking to block President Donald Trump's executive order.
▪The June 25, 2026 injunction blocked the United States Postal Service from refusing to transmit ballots based on whether voters appeared on the new state-specific lists.
▪Massachusetts U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani issued an injunction on June 25, 2026 blocking the United States Postal Service from implementing the new rule before midterm elections in November 2026.
▪The August 11, 2026 injunction prohibits the United States Postal Service from completing the specified rulemaking for elections ahead of or on November 3, 2026.

Voting-rights groups challenges

▪A coalition of voting-rights organizations filed an emergency motion asking the federal district court to enforce its August 11, 2026 injunction against the United States Postal Service.
▪The voting-rights coalition argued that the United States Postal Service could have given the rule an effective date that falls after the 2026 midterms without violating the injunction.
▪The voting-rights coalition argued that the United States Postal Service issuing an immediately effective final rule, intended for possible use in November 2026, violated the August 11, 2026 injunction.
▪The voting-rights coalition plaintiffs include the League of Women Voters, Association of Americans Resident Overseas, and the U.S. Vote Foundation.
▪The voting-rights coalition argued that the United States Postal Service issued the rule in violation of the August 11, 2026 injunction, without seeking a stay or filing an appeal.

Constitutional authority over elections

▪Michael McNulty argued that the United States Postal Service final rule would shift postal workers from neutral transporters of a state-led process to a federal gatekeeper of states' outbound mail ballots.
▪The duty to regulate elections is enshrined to states and Congress in the Constitution.
▪Michael McNulty is the senior policy director for government-reform nonprofit Issue One.

Perspective of Coalition of 23 states and District of Columbia

▪The coalition of 23 states and the District of Columbia contends that President Donald Trump's executive order unconstitutionally usurps state authority over election administration.
▪The coalition of 23 states and the District of Columbia successfully obtained court rulings declaring two sections of President Donald Trump's March 2026 executive order constitutionally invalid.

Perspective of Voting-rights organizations including League of Women Voters

▪Voting-rights organizations contend that the United States Postal Service's August 2026 final rule represents a direct violation of court orders protecting the integrity of the November 2026 elections.
▪Voting-rights organizations argue that the United States Postal Service could have complied with court orders by setting an effective date after the 2026 midterm elections.