Twenty-five Democratic attorneys general filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Postal Service on Wednesday, seeking to block a new rule governing the delivery of mail ballots in this year’s midterm elections. The action opened a fresh phase in litigation over President Donald Trump’s executive order on mail voting.
The suit came two days after the Supreme Court ruled against the states in a separate case. The high court majority found that earlier Democratic challenge premature but did not rule that Trump’s order was legal. That decision predated the administration’s new mail ballot rule.
The rule, published Friday night, would require election officials to hand voter information to the Postal Service and use federally reviewed ballot envelopes carrying unique barcodes. Election officials say it cannot be implemented in the days before the first wave of mail ballots is sent out next week.
“USPS has no authority to decide who can and cannot vote by mail,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement. She added that the federal government was attempting to interfere in state preparations already well underway for the 2026 vote.
Trump’s underlying executive order remains barred from taking effect under a separate injunction. The administration argues that injunction should be rescinded following the Supreme Court’s move on the mail voting order. A third case, filed in May in the District of Columbia, ended with a judge concluding it was too early to prevent implementation.
All previous challenges were filed before the administration issued its mail ballot rule. The states argue the rule creates new obligations that could not exist when earlier courts weighed the executive order alone.
The dispute centers on the mechanics of vote-by-mail as states prepare to distribute ballots. The plaintiffs contend the Postal Service lacks legal authority to set conditions on how ballots are handled or who may cast them by mail. The administration maintains the order and rule fall within federal authority over postal operations.
The lawsuit was filed against the Postal Service rather than the president directly, targeting the agency tasked with carrying out the disputed requirements. First mail ballots for the midterms are due to be sent to voters next week.