Mail-in voting is at the center of a legal and political fight ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, and new regulations put forward by the Trump administration are emerging as the next flashpoint.
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The U.S. Postal Service published a rule on Aug. 21 that would establish additional requirements for how states prepare and submit federal mail-in ballots for delivery.
The comes after President Donald Trump – long an opponent of mail-in voting – issued a March executive order directing the agency to establish uniform standards for federal mail-in and absentee ballots. The Postal Service says the changes are intended to improve the visibility and tracking of ballots and assist with enforcement of federal law, but critics argue that they are an overreach intended to insert the federal government into elections processes run by the states.
The rules aren’t currently being enforced. Federal courts have issued injunctions blocking the Postal Service from implementing the changes for the November election. The Postal Service says it won’t take steps to implement the rule for this year’s election unless the government obtains relief from those court orders.
Here’s what to know about the latest developments.
What Does the New Postal Service Rule Say?
The rule applies to federal mail-in and absentee ballots. It doesn’t change state laws governing who can vote by mail, how voters qualify for an absentee ballot or whether a completed ballot is ultimately counted. Those decisions remain with state and local elections officials.
One major change would be requiring standardized elements on federal ballot envelopes, including the official election mail logo, automation-compatible designs and unique intelligent mail barcodes on both outgoing and return envelopes. The Postal Service says the barcodes would allow individual pieces of ballot mail to be tracked as they move through the postal system.
How Would the New System Work?
Under the rule, elections officials would use a new “federal ballot mail portal” to submit information about voters receiving federal mail ballots before the ballots enter the mail stream. The information would include a voter’s name and address, the issuing state and the unique barcodes assigned to the outgoing and return envelopes.
Importantly, voters themselves wouldn’t enroll with the Postal Service or be responsible for entering or correcting information in the portal. That responsibility would fall to state and local elections officials and their authorized vendors. The Postal Service also says the portal wouldn’t collect information such as Social Security numbers, birth dates or the contents of a voter’s ballot.
The Postal Service says it wouldn’t determine whether someone is eligible to vote, compare the portal information against state voter rolls or know how an individual voted. The agency also says it won’t open ballot mail or know the contents of ballots.
But critics are concerned that too much voting information and authority could end up in the hands of the federal government and that the changes could confuse or intimidate voters.
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Why Is the Postal Service Making the Changes?
The Postal Service says the new requirements are designed to make federal ballot mail easier to track and reconcile, while providing information that could assist law enforcement in investigating potential election-related violations. Supporters of the rule told the Postal Service that better tracking could help identify discrepancies between ballots sent and received and improve confidence in the mail-in voting process.
Despite frequently voting by mail himself, Trump has repeatedly spread falsehoods about the practice, calling it “corrupt” and “dangerous” and claiming that the process is rife with fraud.
The Postal Service received more than 200,000 comments on the proposed rule, including submissions from election officials, state attorneys general, voting rights organizations, postal unions and members of Congress. Supporters argued that the additional tracking and accountability would strengthen election administration, while opponents raised concerns about the rule’s legality, implementation burdens, potential data errors and the possibility that ballots could be rejected due to administrative problems.
The Postal Service maintains that the rule regulates how federal ballot mail is prepared and documented rather than determining who can vote. It also says states will retain control over voter eligibility and ballot counting.
What Does This Mean for Voters in 2026?
For now, nothing changes for voters using mail-in ballots in the November election because the rule remains blocked by court orders that suggest the changes are too broad to be implemented so close to an election.
A federal judge in Massachusetts has barred the Postal Service from implementing the provisions for the 2026 election, including refusing to transmit mail-in or absentee ballots based on the new requirements. A separate court order also blocks implementation of the relevant provisions.
If those injunctions are lifted in time for the election, the Postal Service says it intends to move quickly to implement the rule. If they remain in place, the new requirements won’t govern federal mail ballots for the 2026 election.
For voters, the practical takeaway is to continue following the mail-in voting instructions and deadlines issued by their state or local election officials, which remain responsible for determining eligibility, issuing ballots and deciding whether completed ballots can be counted.
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