The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected the Trump administration's request to suspend the use of the USPS rule to regulate mail-in voting in the midterm elections this November.
On September 15, 2026, at 7:27 AM, CNBC reported that the U.S. Supreme Court issued an order on Monday (September 14) rejecting the Trump administration's request to overturn a lower court order suspending the enforcement of a new U.S. Postal Service (USPS) rule regarding mail-in ballots. This means the rule cannot be used in the November midterm elections, a crucial battle to determine which party will hold a majority in the House of Representatives and the Senate.
The U.S. Supreme Court, in an order not signed by any justice, stated that the government is unlikely to succeed in contesting a federal court order in Boston that prevents the USPS from applying the rule to the nationwide elections in November.
The ruling comes less than two months before the midterm elections, which will decide control of both houses of the U.S. Congress. Currently, Trump's Republican party holds a narrow majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Judge Brett Kavanaugh , appointed by Trump, agreed with the rejection of the government's request, stating that while it's possible the final rule might fall under the authority of the USPS, applying it to the 2569 election could be unreasonable and violate the Administrative Procedure Act, as state and local election officials wouldn't have enough time to adapt their systems to the new rule before the election.
However, two conservative judges, Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas, disagreed with the ruling. Alito argued that some of the plaintiffs who filed lawsuits against the USPS rule may not have sufficient legal standing to sue, while the government has a significant interest in enforcing the rule, which could improve the clarity of tracking mail-in ballots and help detect election fraud.
The USPS rule, issued under an executive order signed by Trump in March, sets new standards for ballot envelopes and requires states to compile lists of eligible voters for mail-in ballots. Opponents worry that these requirements could complicate mail-in voting and create confusion ahead of the midterm elections.
This Supreme Court ruling only suspends the USPS rule from being used in the November 2569 election; it does not permanently declare the rule illegal. Therefore, there is still a possibility that the court will allow its use in future elections.
Selina Stewart, CEO of the League of Women Voters and one of the plaintiffs in the case, stated, as she reiterated, that the USPS's role is to deliver mail, not to set election rules or determine which ballots should go through the system.
Meanwhile, New York Attorney General Letitia James, part of the group filing a lawsuit to halt the rule, stated that voters should not have to worry about whether their legally cast ballots will be counted simply because the federal government changed the rule close to Election Day. She affirmed that she will continue to fight to ensure all eligible voters' ballots are counted in November.
Reference: cnbc.com
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