Appeals Court Upholds Block on Trump Order Creating Federal Voter List for Mail Ballots
Key Takeaways
- •The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower-court injunction against Trump’s mail-voting executive order in 23 states.
- •The executive order called for a federal “state citizenship list” and directed the Postal Service to deliver mail ballots only to people on it.
- •Democratic officials from 23 states and the District of Columbia sued in Boston, arguing election rulemaking authority rests with states and Congress.
- •Judge Indira Talwani previously halted implementation of the order for the Nov. 3 elections in the states that brought the lawsuit.
- •The Justice Department said it is reviewing its options and remains confident the executive order will ultimately be upheld.
A federal appeals court has upheld a lower-court ruling that blocked President Donald Trump’s executive order in nearly half of U.S. states. The order would have created a federal list of eligible voters and restricted delivery of mail ballots to people included on that list.
In a ruling issued Saturday, judges on the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the Trump administration’s attempt to proceed with the mail-in voting restrictions in 23 U.S. states that sued before November’s midterm elections. The decision keeps the injunction in place while the legal challenge continues, leaving existing state mail-ballot procedures in effect in the states covered by the case.
Trump signed the executive order in March. It directed the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the commissioner of the Social Security Administration to create a “state citizenship list” of eligible voters. The order also instructed the U.S. Postal Service to deliver mail ballots only to people appearing on that list.
Trump described the proposed measures as safeguards intended to prevent non-U.S. citizens from voting. State election officials, however, argued that the changes were vulnerable to abuse and could create widespread confusion in election administration, particularly because voter registration and mail-ballot rules are normally administered through state systems.
Democratic officials from 23 states and the District of Columbia challenged the executive order in a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Boston. They argued that the order was unconstitutional because authority over election rules belongs to the states and Congress, not the president.
U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani, who was nominated by Democratic President Barack Obama, agreed with the challengers and halted implementation of Trump’s order for the Nov. 3 elections. The injunction applies only in the states that brought the lawsuit.
The Justice Department said in an emailed statement Sunday that it is “reviewing all options” for its next legal steps and remains confident that Trump’s executive order will ultimately be upheld.