Grand Theft America / Receipt power-2026-08-24-supreme-court-lifts-an-injunction-blocking-6b574ff
Supreme Court lifts an injunction blocking key parts of Trump's mail-voting order
The Supreme Court granted the Trump administration's emergency application 6-3, lifting the district court injunction obtained by 23 Democratic-led states that had stopped federal agencies from carrying out parts of the President's executive order on mail voting.
What happened
In a 6-3 unsigned decision on Monday, the Court granted emergency relief sought by the administration in a case involving 23 Democratic-led states, saying the states filed their lawsuit too soon. The Court wrote that the order "itself does not harm the States, so the District Court lacked jurisdiction to bar the Government from trying to implement it," and that its disposition "does not mean that any measure taken by the Government to implement the Order will necessarily be lawful." The decision clears the way for the Department of Homeland Security to move forward with a proposal to create lists of residents in each state who are eligible to vote. The emergency appeal arose after U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani sided with the states and ruled the Constitution does not grant the president the authority to order changes to how they administer federal elections. A separate order Talwani issued earlier this month, in a case brought by voting-rights groups, still prevents the administration from implementing the provisions directing the Postal Service to develop new mail-ballot procedures; CBS News reports the Justice Department will likely argue the Supreme Court's decision applies to that case too. The three liberal justices dissented; Justice Sotomayor, joined by Justice Kagan, wrote that the decision merely postpones adjudication and does not address whether the President's attempts to interfere with States' administration of the November 2026 elections are lawful.
Why it matters
The ruling does not decide whether the President may set rules for how states run federal elections. The Court said only that the order by itself does not injure the states, so the district court had no jurisdiction to bar the government from trying to implement it. That removes one legal barrier while the question stays open, and a separate injunction still blocks the Postal Service provisions. With some states set to begin sending mail ballots within weeks, leaving the merits for later means the policies can operate first and be judged afterwards.
Receipt details
- Phase 4
- Contest the result
- Force a certification fight onto the Supreme Court's emergency docket
