Boston, Massachusetts - A judge recently blocked efforts by President Donald Trump's administration to stop the United States Postal Service from collecting mail-in ballots in some states.
In a ruling issued on Thursday, District Judge Indira Talwani argued that USPS does not have the constitutional authority to administer elections – which is done by individual states – and that Congress has not endowed them with the power to influence mail-in voting rules.
The decision blocks an executive order the president signed in March ordering the USPS to implement a rule restricting the delivery of mail-in ballots to states that refused his administration's demand for their voter rolls.
While they did not respond to a request for comment, it is assumed the administration will appeal the ruling.
Trump, who has made a habit of calling elections he loses "rigged," has long claimed – without providing evidence – that mail-in voting is rampant with fraud.
He has vowed to tackle the problem ahead of the midterms in November, in which Republicans are fighting to maintain their razor-thin majority in the House and Senate.
During a hearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Wednesday, Postmaster General David Steiner defended the proposed rule, dismissing Democrats who argued Trump was attempting to seize control of the elections.
"I would think that states would want the information to ensure that the ballots that they think they're sending out are the ballots that are actually getting sent out," Steiner argued.