US Supreme Court gives Trump temporary win on mail-in voting restrictions
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "US Supreme Court gives Trump temporary win on mail-in voting restrictions")
Supreme Court clears parts of Trump's mail-in voting order, but legal battle continues Photograph: (AFP)
Donald Trump has won a temporary legal boost in his fight to restrict mail-in voting, just months before the US midterms. But the Supreme Court has not yet ruled on whether the president's election order is ultimately constitutional.
The US Supreme Court on Monday (Aug 24)gave President Donald Trump a temporary victory in his effort to restrict mail-in voting ahead of the November midterm elections, allowing key parts of his executive order to move forward while the broader legal battle continues.
The court's 6-3 decision lifted a lower court's injunction that had blocked parts of Trump's March 31 executive order, which seeks to impose new federal requirements on mail-in ballots. The justices did not rule that the order is ultimately constitutional.
What does Trump's order seek to change?
The executive order directs the federal government to create lists of eligible voters and requires the US Postal Service to deliver mail-in or absentee ballots only to voters whose names appear on the relevant lists.
It also calls for new federal requirements covering ballot envelopes and directs the investigation and prosecution of election officials who provide federal ballots to people deemed ineligible.
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The order has faced challenges from Democratic-led states, which argue that election administration is primarily controlled by states and Congress, rather than the president.
Supreme Court leaves final ruling open
The Supreme Court's unsigned opinion said the lower court lacked jurisdiction to block the administration from attempting to implement the order. But the justices stopped short of deciding whether the measures themselves are lawful.
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"The Court's disposition of this application does not mean that any measure taken by the Government to implement the Order will necessarily be lawful," the court said. "On that score, time will tell," they added. The three liberal justices dissented to the verdict.
Legal battle is far from over
The ruling does not clear the way for every part of Trump's order. A separate injunction affecting the Postal Service's implementation of key provisions remains in place, meaning further court proceedings could still alter how much of the order takes effect before the midterms.
Democratic leaders condemned the Supreme Court's decision. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called it a "disgrace", while California Governor Gavin Newsom said his state would pursue another legal challenge.
Trump has long attacked mail-in voting, repeatedly claiming without evidence that it is vulnerable to fraud. Yet he has also used mail voting himself, including during a Republican primary in Florida this month. Notably, with the November elections approaching, the legal fight over his voting order could have major implications for states that rely heavily on mail ballots.
