Supreme Court upholds Trump's order to overhaul mail-in ballots
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Newsletters Axios Local Show Axios Pro Axios Live The Axios Show Login Axios All topics Axios Search Updated 24 mins ago - Politics & Policy Supreme Court upholds Trump's order to overhaul mail-in ballots Josephine Walker , Avery Lotz email (opens in new window) sms (opens in new window) facebook (opens in new window) twitter (opens in new window) linkedin (opens in new window) bluesky (opens in new window) Add Axios on Google Add Axios as your preferred source to
Add Axios on Google Voting rights activists protest outside the Supreme Court on October 15, 2025. Photo: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images.
President Trump can implement an executive order restricting mail-in ballots just months before the midterm elections, the Supreme Court said Monday .
Why it matters: It's a win for the president, who has opposed mail-in voting for years, but the legal battle is far from over, and the exact impact on November's elections is still unclear.
Driving the news: The Supreme Court said in the unsigned order that states lack standing to challenge the executive order because it was an "internal directive" that didn't harm the states that sued. But the majority wrote that the administration was "likely to suffer irreparable harm" from the freeze.
The other side: The court's three liberal justices — Ketanji Brown Jackson, Sonya Sotomayor and Elena Kagan — dissented.
Catch up quick: Trump's executive order , issued in March of this year, directed the Department of Homeland Security to compile a list of citizens eligible to vote and called for the U.S. Postal Service to accept ballots only from voters on those lists.
Yes, but: This month, Talwani also issued a separate, broader ruling blocking the president's attempted nationwide voting overhaul.
Between the lines: Under the Constitution , states — not the president — administer elections.
What we're watching: Trump has repeatedly pressured Congress to pass the SAVE America Act , which would impose stricter voting rules.
Editor's note: This story has been updated throughout with additional information.
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