US judge blocks rule implementing Trump plan to curb mail-in ballots

A Trump administration appeal is expected as both parties battle for control of Congress in the midterms

A US federal judge on Thursday blocked the US Postal Service from implementing core parts of a new rule it adopted at President Donald Trump’s direction that would tighten mail-in voting requirements ahead of the November congressional elections.

US District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston issued a temporary restraining order ‌at the behest of Democratic-led states and voting rights groups after the US Supreme Court on Monday issued a ruling that led to the lifting of earlier injunctions blocking Trump’s plans to restrict mail-in voting.

The restraining order Talwani issued will remain in place while she considers whether ‌to issue a longer-term preliminary injunction blocking the rule. The judge, an appointee of Democratic President Barack Obama, plans to consider whether to do so during a September 3 hearing.

Under the rule, ‌states must supply the USPS with lists of mail ballot recipients, and all outbound and return ballot envelopes ⁠must bear unique bar codes. ⁠The USPS, under the rule, may refuse to deliver ballots that do not comply with the new standards or are associated with voters who do not ‌appear on the lists.

It issued the rule to implement an executive order the Republican president signed in March after years of Trump calling for tighter rules on ‌voting by ‌mail and pushing the false claim that his 2020 presidential election defeat to Democrat Joe Biden was the result of ‌widespread voter fraud.