Trump administration appeals ruling blocking new mail-in voting restrictions

The Justice Department is asking a federal appeals court to revive USPS rules requiring new verification measures for election mail.

The Trump administration is asking a federal appeals court to revive new mail-in voting restrictions just days after U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani temporarily blocked the U.S. Postal Service rules ahead of the November midterms. Trump’s appeal now puts the dispute before the Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, according to Reuters.

Under the rule, states would have to provide USPS with lists of mail-ballot recipients, while outgoing and returned ballot envelopes would need unique barcodes. USPS could refuse to deliver ballots that fail to meet the standards or are tied to voters who do not appear on the submitted lists.

Justice Department lawyers called Talwani’s decision “gravely mistaken” and argued that the Postal Service is acting within its legal and constitutional authority to modernize the handling of election mail. The administration also rejected the challengers’ claim that USPS is trying to take control of federal election administration.

Talwani concluded that the requirements risked disenfranchising voters and were likely unlawful because the Constitution gives states authority to administer elections. Her restraining order will remain in place for 14 days while she considers whether to issue a longer preliminary injunction. A hearing is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 3.

If the 1st Circuit refuses to lift the order, the administration could ask the Supreme Court to intervene again. The court’s 6-3 conservative majority last week lifted an earlier injunction Talwani had issued against parts of President Donald Trump’s March executive order.

The appeal comes as election deadlines draw closer. North Carolina is scheduled to become the first state to mail ballots for the November election on Friday, Sept. 4.

All 50 states allow some form of mail voting. Twenty-nine allow voters to request a mail ballot without providing a reason, while eight conduct elections primarily by mail.