The Postal Service moves to require states to register every mail voter with a federal portal, and courts block the final rule before the midterms

What happened

On June 2, 2026, the Postal Service published a proposed rule, citing Executive Order 14399, for states mailing ballots in federal elections. States would put a uniquely serialized barcode on every outbound and return ballot envelope and submit each recipient’s name, address and barcodes to a Federal Ballot Mail Portal at least 30 days before the election. The Postal Service could refuse ballot mailings from states that had not certified compliance.

The final rule was issued August 21 and published August 26, 2026. Twenty-three states and D.C. challenged it. Judge Indira Talwani issued a temporary restraining order on August 27 and then a preliminary injunction. The First Circuit refused a stay on September 10, and Judge Carl Nichols issued a second injunction on September 13.

On September 14, 2026, the Supreme Court, 7-2, declined to lift the block (26A305). The majority said the government was unlikely to succeed on the merits. Justice Kavanaugh added that election officials lacked time to implement the rule. Justices Alito and Thomas dissented. The rule is inoperative for November 3.

Who benefited

The White House and the Justice Department would have gained a federal list of every mail voter in every state, keyed to trackable barcodes. They would also have gained the power to stop a state’s ballots at the loading dock. The rule said the lists would let law enforcement compare ballots mailed with ballots received.

Who wanted something

Trump’s March 31, 2026 executive order directed the Postal Service to act, and Postmaster General David Steiner issued the rule. Solicitor General D. John Sauer defended it at the Supreme Court as imposing only modest envelope-design and addressee requirements. Alabama and other Republican-led states supported it.

Who lost out

Tens of millions of voters cast ballots by mail. The states warned that they could be unable to vote if the Postal Service rejected noncompliant mailings weeks before the election. Republican secretaries of state from Georgia, Kentucky, Kansas, New Hampshire and the Dakotas told the court that implementing the rule in time would produce mistakes, delays and confusion.

Why it matters

The Postal Service had never conditioned delivery of ballots on a federal registry of who receives them. The rule tried to impose a national mail-voting regime by regulation months before a midterm. Courts stopped it for this cycle, and the executive order behind it remains in effect.

Sources Federal Register (primary)Federal Register (primary)Supreme Court of the United States (primary)SCOTUSblog