The Trump administration on Sunday asked the justices to intervene in the ongoing Supreme Court mail-in ballots dispute, seeking to pause a Massachusetts federal judge’s order that blocks parts of a U.S. Postal Service rule governing ballot mailings.
U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer urged the court to halt U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani’s Friday order, arguing it undermines efforts to reduce the risk that the federal mail could be used for voter fraud. He said such fraud dilutes lawful votes, distorts election outcomes, and erodes public confidence.
Supreme Court mail-in ballots appeal follows earlier courtroom moves
Sunday’s filing marked the administration’s third Supreme Court request in under six weeks, and the second since Thursday, to advance limits on mail-in voting. In March, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to take several steps related to mail-in voting: ordering the Department of Homeland Security to create state-by-state lists of adult U.S. citizens and transmit them to states at least 60 days before federal elections; instructing the U.S. attorney general to prioritize investigations and potential prosecutions of officials who issue federal ballots to ineligible voters; and requiring states to provide USPS with lists of voters slated to receive mail ballots, while barring USPS from mailing ballots to individuals not on “enrolled” voter lists created by the Postal Service.
California, leading a coalition of 23 states along with the District of Columbia, sued in Boston federal court, contending the order conflicts with constitutional provisions that vest states with authority over voter eligibility and the “Times, Places, and Manner” of congressional elections. Judge Talwani barred the federal government from implementing the challenged restrictions in D.C. and the 23 plaintiff states on or before Nov. 3, 2026.
After the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit declined to pause Talwani’s order, the administration and a group of 12 states led by Alabama asked the Supreme Court on July 27 to step in. Nearly a month later, the high court allowed the administration to begin implementing the executive order, concluding in an unsigned 10-page opinion that the challenge was premature because the order had not yet been carried out, leaving the states without the kind of injury needed to proceed.
New USPS rule and shifting court orders
Following the Supreme Court’s action, Talwani lifted an injunction in a separate League of Women Voters case. But on Aug. 27 she issued a temporary restraining order that, for 14 days, blocked enforcement of several provisions of a new USPS rule, including ballot envelope design standards and requirements to submit voter data through a Postal Service portal.
The administration returned to the Supreme Court on Thursday seeking to freeze that temporary order. On Friday, Talwani replaced it with a preliminary injunction that indefinitely prohibits the government from enforcing those parts of the USPS rule while the states’ lawsuit proceeds.
On Sunday, Sauer notified the Supreme Court clerk that the administration was withdrawing its Sept. 3 application in light of the new preliminary injunction, then filed a fresh request to put Talwani’s Sept. 4 order on hold. He wrote that the injunction mirrors the earlier temporary order in scope and reasoning, calling the court’s approach a prejudgment of the rule and criticizing its rationale.
Arguments over USPS authority and election timing
Sauer disputed claims that the Postal Service is attempting to federalize mail-in voting rules. He said the USPS final rule imposes only modest requirements for envelope design and addressee information for federal-election ballots sent via U.S. Mail. He argued the rule is constitutional, noting that while states regulate elections, they cannot use the federal mail system and then insist their election mail is exempt from USPS rulemaking authority granted by Congress.
If the injunction remains in place, Sauer said, the government will face irreparable harm given the election timeline. North Carolina has already begun mailing ballots, Alabama is set to start on Sept. 9, and at least five more states plan to follow the next week, all without complying with the new USPS rule. He called the states’ claims of harm from compliance overstated.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, who handles emergency matters from Massachusetts, directed the challengers to respond by 4 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, Sept. 9.
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