Power Grab/Fire anyone who can stop him
A whistleblower says the Postal Service kept building its ballot portal while courts barred it
Sen. Richard Blumenthal relayed the anonymous disclosure on August 31, 2026 and demanded answers by September 4; the claim is an allegation, not a finding.
What happened
An anonymous Whistleblower Aid disclosure alleges the Postal Service resumed work on its Federal Ballot Mail Portal around July 29, while a June 25 injunction was in force. Sen. Richard Blumenthal relayed it in an August 31, 2026 letter to Postmaster General David Steiner, released September 1. The injunction, from the District of Massachusetts, barred Section 3 of Executive Order 14399.
The disclosure says the work continued after an August 27 temporary restraining order against the new ballot-mail rule. Tracing the injunctions, the Supreme Court’s August 24 stay and the August 26 lifting of a nationwide order, the letter concluded the Postal Service “should have ceased all work” from June 25 to August 26. Blumenthal demanded answers by September 4 and records by September 8. The record does not report a response.
Who benefited
The portal project kept moving, if the whistleblower is right. Work on the Federal Ballot Mail Portal continued for about a month under an injunction, per the disclosure. The record does not show the Postal Service confirming the account.
Who wanted something
The Postal Service was carrying out Executive Order 14399, Section 3, which the District of Massachusetts had barred on June 25. The Federal Ballot Mail Portal is part of that order. The whistleblower says work resumed around July 29. Blumenthal wanted answers by September 4 and records by September 8.
Who lost out
The court orders lost their effect, if the allegation holds. The June 25 injunction and the August 27 restraining order were meant to stop the work. A disclosure to Whistleblower Aid is the only thing in the record that shows it did not stop, and it comes from someone who has not been named.
Why it matters
If the disclosure is accurate, the Postal Service worked on the portal for about a month while a court order forbade it. The letter says it “should have ceased all work” from June 25 to August 26. The claim is an allegation, relayed by a senator, with no response from the Postal Service in the record.
Sources Sen. Richard Blumenthal (primary)APACLU of Massachusetts (court exhibit) (primary)