Judge Extends Block on USPS Ballot-Mail Rule Ahead of 2026 Midterms

A federal judge in Massachusetts on Friday extended a block on the Trump administration’s new U.S. Postal Service ballot-mail rule, preventing its mandatory changes from taking effect for the Nov. 3 midterm elections.

In a Sept. 4 order, U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts wrote: “For the reasons stated below, the court GRANTS a preliminary injunction prohibiting the United States Postal Service (‘USPS’) from implementing mandatory sections of its final rule, Ballot Mail for Federal Elections . . . for the November 3, 2026 midterm elections.” The ruling means election officials can continue using current mail-voting procedures through this fall’s federal elections.

The USPS rule, published in the Federal Register on Aug. 26, would have required state and local election officials to adopt standardized ballot envelopes, add USPS election-mail markings and automation-compatible Intelligent Mail barcodes, submit envelope designs for USPS approval and upload voter information into a new USPS Federal Ballot Mail Portal before the agency would send ballots. The rule grew out of President Donald Trump’s March 31 executive order directing USPS to develop new ballot-mail standards.

Talwani said the challengers were “likely to succeed on the merits” of key claims, including that USPS lacked authority to issue the rule and that it was unconstitutional as applied to the states. She also found that trying to force compliance before the election would be “virtually impossible,” especially with many jurisdictions already beginning to send ballots in early September. The court said an injunction was needed to reduce the risk of voter disenfranchisement and to preserve clear, settled election rules so close to an election.

The preliminary injunction extends a 14-day temporary restraining order Talwani issued on Aug. 27 after lawsuits were filed by a coalition led by California Attorney General Rob Bonta, Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell, Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford and Washington Attorney General Nick Brown, along with 24 attorneys general and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro. League of Women Voters groups brought related litigation. The court heard oral arguments Thursday before issuing Friday’s order.

A practical problem for USPS was that one of the rule’s central features was not yet operational. In a Sept. 3 declaration, USPS executive Steven W. Monteith told the court the Federal Ballot Mail Portal was expected to be available for voluntary use “sometime next week.” Talwani cited that timeline as part of the broader finding that election officials could not realistically make the required changes before Nov. 3.

The district court also denied a stay pending appeal, leaving the injunction in place while the litigation continues. Higher-court appeals are expected or already underway, but for now the immediate effect is that USPS cannot enforce the rule’s mandatory ballot-mail requirements for elections occurring on or before Nov. 3, 2026.

Bonta, in a statement issued after the ruling, said: “We’ve now secured longer-term relief that will keep the USPS changes blocked while our case moves forward. We will continue to take all steps to stop the Trump Administration from trampling on voting rights and restricting mail voting.”