U.S. Supreme Court blocks Postal Service restriction on mail ballots

Election workers extract mail-in ballots at the registrar of voters' office during the California primary election in San Diego, California, on June 2. | REUTERS

Sep 15, 2026

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to let the U.S. Postal Service enforce a rule targeting mail-in ballots, dealing a setback to President Donald Trump’s effort to restrict voting by mail ahead of November’s midterm elections that will determine control of Congress.

The justices denied the Justice Department’s request to lift a ruling by Boston-based U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani that blocked the Postal Service from enforcing the measure while legal challenges by states and voting-rights groups proceed. The agency adopted the measure after Trump issued a March executive order aimed at tightening rules governing mail voting.

Justice Samuel Alito, joined by fellow conservative Justice Clarence Thomas, dissented from Monday’s decision, writing that the Trump administration “is likely to succeed on the merits of its appeal.”

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