US judge blocks Trump mail-in voting order through midterms

A federal judge in Boston has extended an order blocking Donald Trump’s plan to make mail-in voting more difficult until the US midterm elections on Nov. 3.

Judge Indira Talwani extended a 14-day injunction issued in August. The order prevents the US Postal Service from implementing new, stricter rules for mail-in ballots. Trump signed the decree at the end of March, after which opposition Democrats filed a lawsuit.

The US government had asked the Supreme Court to allow the decree to take effect. The court, which has a conservative majority, temporarily cleared the way for Trump’s plans at the end of August without ruling on the substance of the case. Three days later, Talwani again suspended the decree.

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disenfranchisement

Talwani said there was not enough time before the November election to put the new rules in place. She warned that millions of Americans who want to vote by mail could otherwise face “disenfranchisement.” North Carolina began sending mail-in ballots on Friday, with other states expected to follow in the coming days.

The dispute comes as Trump’s Republicans face a potential defeat, particularly in the House of Representatives. Democrats have said that winning would allow them to block many of Trump’s initiatives and pursue another impeachment proceeding. A US Postal Service whistleblower also warned this week that millions of voters might not receive their ballots because the new systems had been created in a “sloppy and rushed” manner.

Trump repeated his claim when signing the decree that mail-in voting, which is widely used in the United States, contributes to electoral fraud. The article said he provided no evidence for that claim.

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sloppy and rushed