Attorney General Bonta Secures Supreme Court Victory Blocking Trump Administration’s Attempt to Restrict Mail Voting
Eligible voters urged to make their voices heard this November
OAKLAND — Co-leading a coalition of 24 attorneys general and the Governor of Pennsylvania, California Attorney General Rob Bonta today welcomed the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to leave in place a lower court order blocking the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) from implementing sweeping changes to mail voting for the fast-approaching November midterm elections. The changes, which were mandated by President Trump’s second elections-related Executive Order, would have required state and local election officials to redesign and reprint ballot envelopes, enroll millions of voters in a new and untested USPS system, and meet burdensome requirements that would allow USPS to refuse to deliver mail ballots that do not comply. Last week, after first issuing a temporary restraining order, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts granted the coalition’s request for a preliminary injunction, keeping the USPS changes blocked and preserving the existing mail voting process. The Trump Administration appealed, but the First Circuit rejected its request to pause the preliminary injunction. The Trump Administration also sought relief from the U.S. Supreme Court, which has now declined to intervene.
“After losing in the district and appellate courts, the Trump Administration has now lost at the U.S. Supreme Court. Today’s decision is a victory for our democracy and a powerful affirmation of the rule of law,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta. “The stakes in this litigation could not have been higher. Voting is the fundamental right from which all other rights flow, and all 50 states allow ballots to be cast by mail in some form. In California and several other states, mail voting is the primary way elections are conducted. Had this rule been allowed to take effect, the consequences would have been catastrophic. We will remain vigilant in safeguarding our elections, and we urge every eligible voter to make their voice heard.”
“Today is a good day for democracy, the rule of law, and the American people looking to exercise their Constitutional right to vote. California stood up for democracy and we won," said Governor Gavin Newsom. "Trump’s attacks on democracy these last 20 months have been nothing short of un-American. Finally, fifty days out, and the American people have certainty when it comes to our country’s electoral process: Voting is safe, vote-by-mail is accessible to any and all who need it. And I encourage every Californian to make their voice heard this November.”
"The ruling on mail-in ballots has been made. The uncertainty is behind us. Now, let the people vote! Voters will be able to cast their ballots without uncertainty, without hesitation, and without fear that their voices will be questioned or their ballots rejected," said Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber, Ph.D. "The ability to participate in an election is more than a procedure; it is a symbol of the very freedoms that make our democracy the bedrock of America and an example for the rest of the world. Now, we can finally move forward and get back to what we do best: conducting our elections without a dark cloud hanging over us — fairly, openly, for the people, by the people. No questions asked."
A recent whistleblower report warned of “potentially catastrophic problems” and characterized the Trump Administration’s efforts as “sloppy and rushed.” Further, in a recent court filing, USPS admitted that the technology to implement the rule is not even available. Additionally, election officials across the nation, including chief election officials from states that are not part of the coalition, such as Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Utah, argued that the USPS rule cannot be responsibly implemented for the November midterm elections.
The coalition’s legal challenge to the USPS changes began on August 26, with the filing of a lawsuit co-led by Attorney General Bonta, Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell, Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford, and Washington Attorney General Nick Brown. They were joined by the attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaiʻi, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin, as well as the Governor of Pennsylvania.
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