{ "story_id": "d30433bb820f4434006851319b976e57", "desk": "drm3", "revision": 1, "published_at": "2026-09-04T00:20:31.000Z", "content_hash": "969d30f3fa9d79c9b19320976c9f580b3c6e5615b75c6fb17e3f88461aa6166d", "hash_basis": "sha256 over `headline\\ndek\\nprose`, plus `\\n` + the canonical citations JSON when any source is placed, plus `\\n#blog` for blogs", "basis": { "headline": "Trump administration appeals to Supreme Court to reject order blocking mail ballot rule", "dek": "Trump administration appeals to Supreme Court to reject order blocking mail ballot rule.", "prose": "On 2026-09-04, the Trump administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reject U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani's order blocking a new mail ballot rule, which would require states to submit eligible voter lists to an online portal and use uniform envelopes for the U.S. Postal Service to deliver ballots. [^1]\n\nU.S. District Judge Indira Talwani questioned USPS lawyer Michael Velchik on Thursday regarding the operational status of a new mail ballot tracking system required by President Donald Trump's executive order. [^2]\n\nUS District Court Judge Indira Talwani in Boston is considering whether to extend a temporary restraining order prohibiting the US Postal Service from implementing a new regulation of mail ballots for the midterm election. [^3]\n\nIn June 2026, Judge Talwani prohibited the administration from implementing President Donald Trump's executive order on mail ballots for the November election, but the Supreme Court late in August 2026 ruled that order premature because the Postal Service had not yet published regulations; the Postal Service then published the rule, prompting Democrats and voting rights groups to re-file lawsuits. [^4]\n\nMichael Velchik told Judge Talwani on 2026-09-04 that the federal government is offering states the choice to opt into the mail ballot system, but the U.S. Postal Service has yet to identify a single state that has done so. [^5]\n\nMichael Velchik, a Department of Justice attorney, argued during the hearing on 2026-09-04 that the main legal question is whether Judge Talwani has the statutory authority to stop the rule, saying, 'The $64,000 question is, is this authorized by the statute?' [^6]\n\nJudge Talwani is considering extending her temporary order barring the Postal Service from requiring the system through September 10, 2026. [^7]\n\nJudge Talwani stated she did not have a declaration from the U.S. Postal Service explaining how the system would work and described the government's approach as running an 'experiment' before the upcoming election. [^8]\n\nThe proposed system requires states to upload lists of mail voters to an online portal, and ballots would not be sent if the data on the portal did not match the envelopes. [^9]\n\nA whistleblower report warns that the postal system's requirements could lead to millions of mail ballots never being sent due to barcode errors that would discard entire batches. [^10]\n\nJudge Talwani stated on 2026-04-10 that she had received no information from the USPS regarding how it would implement the plan to regulate mail ballots in the weeks before election day. 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