Trump asks Supreme Court to allow restrictions on mail-in voting after order blocked by lower court

Donald Trump has asked the United States Supreme Court to overturn a lower court ruling that blocked his executive order restricting voting by mail.

The emergency request was filed just days before mail-in ballots are scheduled to be sent out and two months before the midterm elections, planned for November.

Trump signed the executive order in March with the aim of restricting mail-in voting, but the measure was legally challenged by several Democratic-led states.

Under the order, which the Supreme Court authorized for the first time around 10 days ago, the administration must compile special lists of eligible voters. The United States Postal Service (USPS) must also be instructed to deliver mail-in ballots only to people included on those lists.

Meanwhile, preparations for the midterm elections are creating other significant logistical difficulties for President Trump. In addition to the disputes over mail-in voting, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled that the new congressional map cannot be used in these elections. By sending the issue to a referendum on the November ballot, the ruling represents a major blow to Republicans.

The president reacted angrily on Truth, writing that the decision “is not only terrible, ridiculous and unconstitutional, but it also leaves insufficient time to return to the previous map, given that the elections are now near.”

Republicans had calculated that redrawing Missouri’s congressional boundaries would help them secure one additional seat and protect their narrow majority in the House of Representatives. However, as a result of the ruling, the state will use the previous district boundaries in the fall elections.

“The electoral process, as usual, is being rigged in America! Missouri should be able to use the map that took effect only a few months ago, during the primaries. This is a dark day for ‘justice’ in Missouri!” Trump added.

The ruling followed a legal battle between the state’s Republican leaders and the group People Not Politicians Missouri, which argued that the measure violated the Constitution. The new map had been prepared to disqualify Representative Emanuel Cleaver, one of Missouri’s two Democrats in Congress. Cleaver later said on X that “democracy” had ultimately prevailed.

The court issued its ruling shortly before the September 8 deadline set by the state for finalizing the election ballot. Following the development, Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway announced that she intends to appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Under pressure from Trump, Missouri was one of the few Republican-led states to redraw its congressional districts as part of efforts to strengthen the Republican majority in the House of Representatives.