New US Mail-in Ballot Rules Begin as Legal Challenges Grow
The United States Postal Service (USPS) has started new rules for handling mail-in ballots. This change happens as US states prepare to send millions of ballots to voters. The upcoming November 3 elections are drawing near. It comes even as legal challenges against these new rules continue in court.
The new procedures mean USPS will make lists of eligible voters. They will use information from US states. Ballots will only go to people whose names are on these lists.
The US Supreme Court recently cleared the way for these changes. On Monday, the court sided with President Donald Trump’s administration. This allowed the new mail voting measures to move forward.
However, legal battles against the rules are still active. Twenty-four states filed a new case in Massachusetts on Wednesday. These states say the measures are against the US Constitution.
They also argue these new rules will harm states. They claim the rules add difficult requirements close to the November elections.
President Donald Trump has often spoken against voting by mail. He has claimed it leads to fraud. However, strong evidence from experts shows mail-in voting is safe and secure.
President Trump claims states have not checked voters well enough. He wants to ensure that those registered to vote meet requirements, like being US citizens.
Last March, President Trump signed an executive order. It asked his administration to create voter lists. The Postal Service then made rules based on this order.
But the rules were put on hold earlier. This was because Democratic officials and voting rights groups filed lawsuits.
The Supreme Court’s ruling on Monday was on one of these key lawsuits. The court has a 6-3 conservative majority. It decided in favor of the Trump administration on procedural grounds. This means the court looked at how the lawsuit was filed, not the legality of the order itself.
Voting by mail is very popular in the US. About 30 percent of ballots in the 2024 presidential election were mail-in votes. Experts say this method is secure.
A 2025 study found only about four cases of fraud for every 10 million mail ballots. This shows mail-in voting is reliable.
