--- title: ‘Another Trump Attempt to Rig Elections’: Lawmakers Respond to Supreme Court Upholding of Trump Mail-in Voting Restrictions description: The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Trump’s order restricting mail-in voting for now—but didn’t rule on its legality. canonical: https://time.com/article/2026/08/25/-supreme-court-mail-in-voting-trump-order-explainer/ author: Chad de Guzman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2026-08-25T12:48:05.241Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-25T12:48:05.411Z article:section: Politics og:title: ‘Another Trump Attempt to Rig Elections’: Lawmakers Respond to Supreme Court Upholding of Trump Mail-in Voting Restrictions og:description: The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Trump’s order restricting mail-in voting for now—but didn’t rule on its legality. og:url: https://time.com/article/2026/08/25/-supreme-court-mail-in-voting-trump-order-explainer/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfb3c621a5f3b8efa/6a8d86ae4c6ca939879b96fe/scotus-voting-response-aug25.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: scotus-voting-response-aug25.jpg og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: ‘Another Trump Attempt to Rig Elections’: Lawmakers Respond to Supreme Court Upholding of Trump Mail-in Voting Restrictions twitter:description: The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Trump’s order restricting mail-in voting for now—but didn’t rule on its legality. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfb3c621a5f3b8efa/6a8d86ae4c6ca939879b96fe/scotus-voting-response-aug25.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # ‘Another Trump Attempt to Rig Elections’: Lawmakers Respond to Supreme Court Win for Trump Mail-in Voting Restrictions by [Chad de Guzman](https://time.com/author/chad-de-guzman/) and [Callum Sutherland](https://time.com/author/callum-sutherland/) Aug 25, 2026 12:48 PM UTC  Signage of mail-in voting drop off at the Miami-Dade County Supervisor of Elections Office during a primary election in Doral, Florida, on Aug. 18, 2026. Signage of mail-in voting drop off at the Miami-Dade County Supervisor of Elections Office during a primary election in Doral, Florida, on Aug. 18, 2026.Eva Marie Uzcategui - Bloomberg via Getty Images by [Chad de Guzman](https://time.com/author/chad-de-guzman/) and [Callum Sutherland](https://time.com/author/callum-sutherland/) Aug 25, 2026 12:48 PM UTC The Supreme Court has handed President Donald Trump a victory in his efforts to restrict mail-in voting ahead of November’s crucial [midterm elections](https://time.com/article/2026/08/14/congress-turnover-house-senate-republican-democrat-primaries-midterm-elections/). In an unsigned[ 6-3 ruling](https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25pdf/26a124%5Fhgci.pdf), with the court’s liberal justices dissenting, the Supreme Court lifted[ a lower court’s June block](https://time.com/article/2026/07/28/trump-scotus-mail-in-ballots-order-elections/) on the[ President’s Executive Order](https://time.com/article/2026/04/01/trump-executive-order-mail-in-voting-states-rebuke-legal-challenge/) targeting mail-in voting after 23 Democratic states and Washington D.C. sued the Administration for the order’s alleged unconstitutionality and presidential overreach. Democrat lawmakers have responded furiously to Monday’s decision. “Another day, another Trump attempt to rig elections and destroy democracy,” [said](https://x.com/GavinNewsom/status/2092000487851831732) California Governor [Gavin Newsom](https://time.com/collection/100-most-influential-people/2026/gavin-newsom/) on social media. “We can stop this. Vote this November.” Trump, in his push to remake American elections, has repeatedly blamed mail-in voting for widespread electoral fraud. He claimed that mail-in ballots helped him lose in the [2020 election ](https://time.com/5936036/secret-2020-election-campaign/)despite audits already refuting those claims, and his own voting by mail in recent elections. The ruling does not settle whether the Executive Order will proceed ahead of the November midterms, where the Republican Party needs to defend its narrow majority in Congress. Part of the order covering the [U.S. Postal Service](https://time.com/article/2026/08/23/what-to-know-about-the-usps-s-rule-for-mail-in-ballots/) remains blocked under a separate injunction in August, which still needs to be resolved. The Supreme Court also did not outright rule on the legality of Trump’s order—only on the timing of the challenges to it—and left it open to future lawsuits, which critics have signaled they will file. Here’s how other Democrats, as well as some Republicans, have responded to the decision, and what it means for November’s pivotal midterms. # **Democrats vow legal challenges against “terrible” Supreme Court decision** Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania said Monday that the legal battle against Trump’s Executive Order would continue, after a previous challenge put a temporary halt on the directive. “Not so fast. Today’s SCOTUS decision does not deal with the substance of Trump’s unconstitutional Executive Order and does not mean his illegal attempt to restrict mail-in voting will go forward,” argued [Shapiro.](https://x.com/GovernorShapiro/status/2092004853069308338) “We’ll see the Trump Administration in court.” Gov. Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey also vowed a response to the decision. “This is a terrible decision from Trump’s Supreme Court,” she [said](https://x.com/GovSherrillNJ/status/2092022843710083416). “States run elections, not Donald Trump. I will do everything I can to protect New Jerseyans’ right to vote – by mail and in person.” Newsom built upon his condemnation on Monday. “California will be suing again to block these Orwellian rules from being implemented,” he [said](https://x.com/CAgovernor/status/2092014398508286008). “This decision is a painful setback,” Attorney General Letitia James of New York, one of the plaintiff states from June’s challenge against the Order, said in[ a statement](https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2026/attorney-general-james-releases-statement-supreme-court-mail-voting-decision). “But it will not be the final word.” More widely, other Democrat lawmakers criticized the Supreme Court’s decision and the impact it could have on the upcoming midterms. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer [said](https://x.com/SenSchumer/status/2092012669457072628): “It’s a disgrace that the highest court in the nation is allowing Trump to put a dagger into the heart of our democracy,” following the decision. Schumer argued the Order was “blatantly unconstitutional,” and that “his MAGA Supreme Court is refusing to stop it from going forward.” Hitting out at the President more broadly, the lawmaker continued: “\[Trump\] wants to make it harder for Americans to vote so they don’t hold him accountable for the skyrocketing costs, illegal war, and rampant corruption that are a hallmark of his administration.” Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada [issued](https://x.com/SenCortezMasto/status/2092008671958221204) another direct response at the President himself. “Trump voted by mail eleven days ago. Apparently it’s good enough for him, but he wants to take away your right to vote in the same way,” she said. “Trump’s voter suppression order is about making it harder for Americans to hold him accountable - it is shameful that the Supreme Court is enabling it,” the lawmaker continued. Sen. Maria Cantwell also [expressed ](https://x.com/SenatorCantwell/status/2092049673397871017)concerns over the privacy of voters. “Today’s Supreme Court decision gets the Trump Administration one step closer to implementing its voter suppression order and forcing states to hand over personal voter data to the federal government,” she said. # **Republicans celebrate Supreme Court decision** “With today’s SCOTUS ruling, President Trump has made a giant leap forward in securing our 2026 elections,” [said](https://x.com/BasedMikeLee/status/2092002830492336553) Utah Sen. Mike Lee, a long-standing supporter of Trump’s efforts to restrict mail-in voting. “Congress must still pass the SAVE America Act to secure future elections. We should’ve passed it months ago,” he continued in reference to the [Act](https://time.com/7280834/save-act-voting-access-history/) which is still awaiting approval in the Senate. Lee also responded to Gov. Shapiro’s commitment to continue legal challenges against the President’s Executive Order. “Why are you so determined to let non-citizens vote?” he [said](https://x.com/BasedMikeLee/status/2092052018156507428). “Bravo! Glad to see the Supreme Court get this one right. Election integrity is nonnegotiable,” [said ](https://x.com/RepKeithSelf/status/2092018654439231859)Rep. Keith Self of Texas, also pushing the Senate to approve the SAVE Act. “This is a major win for the security of American elections,” said White House spokesperson Lauren Bis in a statement to TIME. “These are commonsense measures that protect the security of mail-in ballots and ensure only Americans are electing American leaders. # **What does the ruling mean for federal elections, and how did we get here?** On June 25, U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston[ ordered an injunction](https://www.mass.gov/doc/elections-20-summary-judgement/download) on provisions of Trump’s March Executive Order. Those provisions direct the Department of Homeland Security and Social Security Administration to create “state citizenship lists” that cover eligible voters, and the Postal Service to create rules that would end sending absentee ballots to individuals not on a state’s mail-in or absentee participation list. Talwani’s block covered the 23 plaintiff states and Washington, D.C. On July 25, the First Circuit[ rejected](https://www.ca1.uscourts.gov/sites/ca1/files/opnfiles/26-1774O-01A.pdf) the Trump Administration’s request to block Talwani’s order pending appeal. The Trump Administration sought the Supreme Court’s intervention in July, arguing that the lower court “lacked jurisdiction” to resolve the dispute, as implementing rules based on the President’s Order haven’t been finalized. In the Monday ruling, the Supreme Court’s conservative majority agreed with the Trump Administration and paused Talwani’s injunction. The top court said that Trump’s order regarding state citizenship lists was “an internal directive from the President to a subordinate” and that it “imposes no obligations on the States,” which in turn “suffer no concrete harm.” It added that, in the case of Trump directing the Postal Service to propose rules on mail-in ballots, the legal challenge was premature and lacked standing. When states filed the suit, the Postal Service had not issued a final rule. The Supreme Court’s majority said the district court had to engage in a “string of speculations” to arrive at its June injunction: “Federal courts review final rules, not proposed rules—and certainly not antecedent internal directives to propose a rule.” # **What the ruling did not cover** While the Supreme Court’s majority paused Talwani’s June injunction for being premature, it does not cover a[ separate injunction](https://www.lwv.org/sites/default/files/2026-08/gov.uscourts.mad%5F.298449.183.0.pdf)—also from Talwani—on Aug. 11\. Ruling on another suit, Talwani barred the Postal Service from implementing the same Executive Order for the November midterms nationwide. The Supreme Court ruling also simply granted the Trump Administration’s emergency request to pause Talwani’s June injunction. The case on Trump’s Executive Order is still pending before the First Circuit. It also explicitly left room for challenges on the legality of the rules stemming from Trump’s order, especially with the Postal Service’s final rule. Norm Eisen, a voting-rights advocate leading one of several legal challenges to Trump’s order, downplayed the Supreme Court’s decision. “Please don’t overreact to Roberts Court decision on the contemplated \[Postal Service\] ballot moves,” Eisen[ posted on microblogging platform Bluesky Monday](https://bsky.app/profile/normeisen.bsky.social/post/3mtuci74zns27). “They simply held that the injunction came too early in the process, before there was a final rule.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/08/25/-supreme-court-mail-in-voting-trump-order-explainer/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/08/25/-supreme-court-mail-in-voting-trump-order-explainer/"},"headline":"‘Another Trump Attempt to Rig Elections’: Lawmakers Respond to Supreme Court Win for Trump Mail-in Voting Restrictions","datePublished":"2026-08-25T12:48:05.241Z","dateModified":"2026-08-25T12:48:05.411Z","description":"The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Trump’s order restricting mail-in voting for now—but didn’t rule on its legality.","url":"https://time.com/article/2026/08/25/-supreme-court-mail-in-voting-trump-order-explainer/","keywords":["Trump Administration","News Desk"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfb3c621a5f3b8efa/6a8d86ae4c6ca939879b96fe/scotus-voting-response-aug25.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Chad de Guzman","jobTitle":"Reporter","url":"https://time.com/author/chad-de-guzman/"},{"@type":"Person","name":"Callum Sutherland","jobTitle":"Reporter","url":"https://time.com/author/callum-sutherland/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfb3c621a5f3b8efa/6a8d86ae4c6ca939879b96fe/scotus-voting-response-aug25.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"scotus-voting-response-aug25.jpg","caption":"","creditText":"Eva Marie Uzcategui - Bloomberg via Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/trump-administration/","name":"Trump Administration"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/08/25/-supreme-court-mail-in-voting-trump-order-explainer/","name":"‘Another Trump Attempt to Rig Elections’: Lawmakers Respond to Supreme Court Win for Trump Mail-in Voting Restrictions"}}]}] ```