The US Supreme Court has rejected the Trump administration’s request to enforce new restrictions on mail-in voting.
The conservative-majority court refused to lift an order by US District Judge Indira Talwani.
Her order had blocked the Trump administration’s policy on mail-in voting.
The decision deals a setback to President Donald Trump’s effort to limit mail-in voting before the November midterm elections.
Court Blocks Trump Administration Policy
The US Postal Service introduced the new rules after Trump issued an executive order in March.
The order sought tighter rules for mail-in voting.
Under the policy, states had to provide voter lists to the Postal Service.
They also had to use ballot envelopes approved in advance by the Postal Service.
The rules allowed postal officials to reject ballots that failed to meet the new standards.
Officials could also reject ballots linked to people who did not appear on the voter lists supplied by states.
Judge Talwani blocked the rules with an injunction.
She said the policy could violate the US Constitution.
She also said officials could not implement the rules effectively with the midterm elections approaching.
Trump Administration Asked Supreme Court to Intervene
The Trump administration then asked the Supreme Court to allow the policy to take effect.
The administration described the measure as an important federal policy.
It said the rules would help prevent the misuse of mail voting for election fraud.
In late August, the Supreme Court temporarily allowed Trump to move forward with the executive order.
However, the justices did not rule on the policy’s legal merits at that time.
In its latest unsigned order, the court said the Trump administration was unlikely to win the case.
Two Justices Dissent
Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas dissented from the decision.
Alito argued that some of the plaintiffs lacked legal standing to bring the case.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh, a Trump appointee, joined the majority decision against the administration.
However, Kavanaugh indicated that he could support the policy in a future case.
Mail Voting Under Political Debate
Mail ballot distribution has already started in Alabama, North Carolina and Wisconsin ahead of the midterm elections.
Trump has repeatedly questioned the security of mail-in voting.
He has also repeated claims of widespread election fraud that courts and officials have rejected.
Trump himself used mail voting in the 2024 election.
