{"id":828254,"date":"2026-05-28T17:46:27","date_gmt":"2026-05-28T17:46:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/828254\/"},"modified":"2026-05-28T17:46:27","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T17:46:27","slug":"judge-refuses-to-block-trump-executive-order-that-limits-mail-voting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/828254\/","title":{"rendered":"Judge refuses to block Trump executive order that limits mail voting"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>A federal judge has declined to halt President Donald Trump\u2019s <a class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/donald-trump-mail-voting-elections-47cc334b1fb7742244a9c4f176b355cd\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">executive order<\/a> creating a federal voter list and limiting mail voting, clearing the way for potential sweeping changes in how American elections are run shortly before this year\u2019s midterm elections.<\/p>\n<p>U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols, a Trump appointee in Washington, late Wednesday rejected the request by Democrats and civil rights groups that had argued Trump\u2019s order would likely be <a class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/trump-election-executive-order-democrats-voter-list-ac61e7d4bb77f9901eb6f1a2c1f4b087\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">found unconstitutional<\/a> because the states and Congress, not the president, have the power to set election rules. Nichols agreed with the Republican Trump administration\u2019s contention that it was too early to block the order because it has yet to be implemented.<\/p>\n<p>Nichols\u2019 ruling leaves the door open for further challenges when the Trump administration moves to implement the president\u2019s directive. A separate lawsuit seeking to block the executive order is underway in Boston. No matter how rapidly the administration acts, no voting changes are expected during primary elections, which continue into next month.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Court recognizes that the Postal Service may ultimately issue a final rule that directly affects Plaintiffs or their members, or that the Government may develop State Citizenship Lists that omit specific individuals due to particularized flaws,\u201d Nichols wrote. \u201cPlaintiffs may, of course, renew their motions if and when those future actions occur. Until then, however, Plaintiffs cannot show that preliminary injunctive relief is warranted.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Trump administration has yet to formally issue lists of eligible voters, and those who filed the initial request for a temporary halt said they\u2019d be back if the administration moves in that direction.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are ready to resume the fight if and when the administration takes those next steps,\u201d said Juan Proa\u00f1o, chief executive officer of the League of United Latin American Citizens, one of the organizations that sought the stay from Nichols. <\/p>\n<p>    <a class=\"AnchorLink\" id=\"image-cf0000\"\/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"Image\" alt=\"A tray of mail-in ballots is seen at King County Elections headquarters on Election Day, Nov. 5, 2024, in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo\/Lindsey Wasson, File)\"  fetchpriority=\"high\" width=\"599\" height=\"399\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1779990387_282_.jpeg\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<p>A tray of mail-in ballots is seen at King County Elections headquarters on Election Day, Nov. 5, 2024, in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo\/Lindsey Wasson, File)<\/p>\n<p>A tray of mail-in ballots is seen at King County Elections headquarters on Election Day, Nov. 5, 2024, in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo\/Lindsey Wasson, File)<\/p>\n<p>                Add AP News on Google <\/p>\n<p>        Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google.<\/p>\n<p>            Share<\/p>\n<p>                            Read More<\/p>\n<p>Democratic party organizations that sought the order issued a joint statement with similar promises. \u201cWe are confident we will prevail in the end when this illegal and completely unworkable executive order is fully adjudicated,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n<p>The White House did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n<p>Trump issued the order in March after a bill he supported to overhaul voting <a class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/voting-bill-citizenship-senate-thune-trump-3709f2bd02d2c841e16d501529ec9198\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">stalled in Congress<\/a>. The order would have had the federal government create a list of eligible voters and then directed the U.S. Postal Service to deliver mail ballots only to those on the list. Election officials argued it was ripe for abuse and could cause chaos, and the postal union has <a class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/postal-service-mail-voting-trump-midterms-d0883d8064fd512565e8b07e373a5a66\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">objected to the idea of mail carriers policing ballots<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Since his 2020 presidential election loss to Democrat Joe Biden, Trump has groundlessly claimed mail voting is rife with fraud and has <a class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/trump-special-prosecutor-2020-biden-election-194b3d49f49b0345f77873fc34b4dcc5\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">launched a federal investigation<\/a> into that year\u2019s vote, even though <a class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/joe-biden-wisconsin-presidential-elections-state-elections-madison-9a2f172dd8074668ded26bd5b0b41fbb\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">repeated audits and investigations<\/a>, including <a class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/donald-trump-joe-biden-election-2020-elections-government-and-politics-4b6643aa699480dc63cbce8555aac946\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">ones run by Republicans<\/a>, found it was <a class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/elections-government-and-politics-nevada-ed4d5296d9fd7fd9afd83a3fe845c205\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">free of widespread fraud<\/a>. Trump also has said he wants to \u201ctake over\u201d election administration in Democratic areas.<\/p>\n<p>Democrats and civil rights groups argued it was urgent that Nichols issue a restraining order in the midst of primary season and with states already gearing up for the fall midterm elections.<\/p>\n<p>This was Trump\u2019s second executive order seeking to overhaul elections and voting. <a class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/voting-elections-trump-executive-order-4e9edb53f47e61e241a43ceef8164022\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">His initial election executive order<\/a>, issued just months after he took office in his second term, has been <a class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/trump-elections-executive-order-4f863aaa8e0c59640ebc727827ffc887\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">blocked by multiple<\/a><a class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/trump-elections-executive-order-democrats-citizenship-034a4d552a978a8f647d95bd3cf38ac0\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">federal judges<\/a>. That order sought to require documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote, among other changes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A federal judge has declined to halt President Donald Trump\u2019s executive order creating a federal voter list and&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":828255,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[7373,3881,2731,137426,413,356,12785,84,69,90,19887,57,118,82,340022,2739,74652,50,80,89,61,67,370,132,68,333,93],"class_list":["post-828254","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-united-states","category-us","tag-2026-elections","tag-ap-top-news","tag-boston","tag-carl-nichols","tag-civil-rights","tag-courts","tag-dc-wire","tag-district-of-columbia","tag-donald-trump","tag-elections","tag-executive-orders","tag-general-news","tag-human-rights","tag-joe-biden","tag-juan-proao","tag-massachusetts","tag-midterm-elections","tag-news","tag-politics","tag-u-s-democratic-party","tag-u-s-news","tag-united-states","tag-united-states-government","tag-unitedstates","tag-us","tag-voting","tag-washington-news"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116653457649013853","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/828254","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=828254"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/828254\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/828255"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=828254"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=828254"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=828254"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}