A group of Republican secretaries of state have asked the Supreme Court to prevent the Trump administration’s new mail-in ballot rule from taking effect during the 2026 midterm elections.
The officials in Kentucky, North Dakota, South Dakota, Georgia, New Hampshire and Kansas warned in an amicus curiae letter to the Supreme Court on Wednesday that late implementation of the rule could disrupt the midterms.
“The principle rests on incontestable facts about voters and about the people who run elections: that late changes breed confusion, that confusion keeps eligible voters from voting, and that a chaotic election erodes confidence in the result,” they wrote.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order in March that he said was designed to “enhance election integrity” through a series of changes like unique ballot envelope identifiers.
The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) issued a new rule in response to that order, the legality of which has been challenged by lower courts. The rule calls for states to share voter data with the USPS, which would deliver only those ballots that meet certain standards, including whether they could be reviewed using automation.
On Sunday, the Trump administration made a last-ditch plea to the Supreme Court to allow the USPS rule, which has been blocked in part by the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts, to be implemented.
The officials told the court they have no position on the legality or policy goals behind the change — only concerns about their ability to administer the election smoothly if they are forced to implement the new rule on such short notice.
“In short, election officials’ plates are already full with the normal but crucial tasks of preparing for the election,” they said. “Attempting to implement this rule now significantly increases the risks of problems to the election.”
The letter was also signed by Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson, 26 local election officials in Georgia and Utah and other election authorities.
Key races in Georgia and New Hampshire will help determine which party controls the Senate.
Americans across the country are already voting; North Carolina sent out absentee ballots on Sept. 4.
The officials pointed out in the letter that federal law requires states to send ballots to military members and voters overseas by Sept. 19.
“In many respects, the election is already underway,” they said.
Nearly 1 in 3 voters used mail-in ballots in 2024. In some states, like Arizona, the majority of voters use ballot-by-mailto vote early.
Elections are typically administered on the state level, but Trump has made numerous attempts to leverage executive authority over how elections are run nationwide.
The Supreme Court is currently considering whether to allow the new rules to be implemented. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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