Trump’s least favorite voting method is most popular with older, suburban and Democratic voters

Mail-in voting for the 2026 U.S. midterm elections began in North Carolina on Sept. 4, putting a method long used by American voters back at the center of a legal and political fight. The election is scheduled for Nov. 3, but ballots sent by mail have arrived first.

The voting method has operated for years, yet President Donald Trump has repeatedly opposed it. In March, he signed an executive order imposing broad new restrictions on mail-in voting. The Supreme Court ruled several days ago that parts of the administration’s order could take effect, but a federal judge on Sept. 3 blocked the U.S. Postal Service from carrying out the measure for now.

The judge cited the danger of large-scale confusion if the rules changed too quickly. David Becker, a former Justice Department lawyer and executive director of the nonpartisan Center for Election Innovation and Research, told CNN that changes of this kind would be difficult even with two to four years of notice. With fewer than 70 days before Election Day, he said, implementation would be impossible.

Trump’s order reflects his longstanding claim that mail-in voting is illegal, poorly regulated, and vulnerable to fraud. He has also made unsupported accusations that ballots could be stolen from mailboxes, voter signatures forged, and ballots themselves reproduced illegally.

Mail-in voting has expanded markedly over the past two decades. In 2000, only 21 states allowed it. Today, 37 states and the District of Columbia allow mail-in voting, while 13 additional states permit it under certain restrictions. A Pew Research Center survey conducted after the 2024 election found that mail voters were generally older and more likely to live in cities or suburbs than voters overall. In states such as Mississippi, voters aged 65 or older qualify for mail voting. The same survey found a political divide: 61% of voters who said they voted by mail in 2024 supported Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, a higher share than among early voters or those who voted in person on Election Day.

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Changes of this kind would be difficult even with two to four years of notice.