The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday granted the Department of Justice’s emergency request to lift a preliminary injunction blocking President Donald Trump’s mail-in voting restrictions in 23 states and Washington, D.C. The 6-3 conservative majority ruling allows the administration to enforce a March 2026 executive order that restricts mail-in ballot access ahead of the November midterm elections.
The directive requires the Department of Homeland Security to compile and transmit state-by-state lists of eligible voters, directs the Department of Justice to prioritize prosecutions of election officials issuing ballots to ineligible voters, and mandates that the U.S. Postal Service deliver ballots only to voters on each state’s approved mail-in list. Federal Judge Indira Talwani in Boston had issued a preliminary injunction in June, ruling that the president lacks authority to alter state-administered federal elections and that federal agencies could not accurately compile voter eligibility lists.
The Supreme Court’s decision does not affect a separate August 11 injunction by Judge Talwani that blocks stricter mail-in voting rules imposed by the U.S. Postal Service nationwide. That ruling stems from a lawsuit brought by voter rights advocacy groups and remains in place. The high court’s order also does not address the merits of the underlying legal challenges, which are still pending in lower courts.
The Trump administration’s efforts align with legislative proposals such as the SAVE America Act, a stalled restrictive election package backed by the president in Congress. The midterm elections in November will determine control of Congress, heightening the stakes of voting access rules. The Supreme Court’s intervention follows a series of legal setbacks for the administration, including Talwani’s repeated rulings that federal overreach into state election processes exceeds executive authority.
