US Supreme Court Clears Way for Trump’s Mail Voting Rules
The United States Supreme Court has allowed an executive order from former President Donald Trump to move forward. This order places restrictions on mail voting. The decision was made on Monday and comes just before the November midterm elections.
It is not yet clear how much of Mr. Trump’s order can be put into practice before voting begins. The court’s ruling may also lead to more legal challenges. These challenges could further slow down the order’s implementation.
The Supreme Court has six conservative justices and three liberal justices. The three liberal justices did not agree with this decision. The US Postal Service shared how it would carry out the order last week. However, there is little time left for major changes, as some states will soon send ballots to voters.
Mr. Trump has often criticized voting by mail. He has said it leads to fraud, even though there is strong evidence against this claim. He also uses mail voting himself. The US Justice Department had asked the Supreme Court to allow work on these changes before the midterms.
President Trump signed his executive order in March. It directs his administration to create lists of people eligible to vote. It also tells the US Postal Service to deliver mail ballots only to those on these lists.
Officials from 23 states and the District of Columbia sued to stop the order. They argued that only states and Congress have the power to manage elections. They said Mr. Trump’s changes could cause confusion and political unfairness. Lawyers for the states warned that such big changes so close to an election would have extreme consequences. Many election officials also asked the court to keep the order blocked. They said election preparations were already underway.
A judge in Massachusetts had blocked the plan for the midterm elections in those states. An appeals court agreed with her decision. She then blocked the order nationwide. The Trump administration appealed to the Supreme Court. They argued that the states had sued too early. They also pointed to a different court ruling in Washington that had allowed Mr. Trump’s order to proceed.
Federal lawyers said the Massachusetts order stopped the government from putting in place policies to improve election fairness. A group of Republican-leaning states supported the federal government. They said states would have a say in the final voter lists.
The Supreme Court has ruled against Mr. Trump on mail ballots before. In June, it said states could count ballots that arrived after Election Day. That decision followed full court discussions, unlike this recent emergency appeal.
Mr. Trump has made false claims about widespread fraud in US elections. He also pushed for a law called the SAVE America Act, which would add voting restrictions. He has asked for laws requiring proof of citizenship to vote. Voting by non-citizens is rare and is a serious crime.
Mail voting has become very popular among voters from all political parties. Federal data shows that about 30 percent of all votes were cast by mail during the last presidential election. Studies have also shown that mail voting is secure. One study found only about four cases of fraud for every 10 million mail ballots cast.
