Trump's political and legal battles: Judge blocks mail voting, Lake Ontario renamed

A federal judge has once again temporarily halted President Donald Trump's executive order aimed at restricting mail-in voting for the upcoming midterm elections. U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani issued a 14-day temporary restraining order on Thursday, August 27, 2026, preventing the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) from enforcing critical parts of its new rules. This decision comes just a week before states are scheduled to begin sending out mail ballots.

The ruling is the latest development in a swift legal battle that saw the Supreme Court, just days prior, overturn an earlier injunction by Judge Talwani. The Supreme Court had found the initial legal challenges premature because the USPS had not yet finalized the rules for implementing President Trump's executive order, which he issued in March 2026. Following the Supreme Court's procedural decision, the administration released its formal rule, allowing new legal actions to proceed.

Judge Talwani's current decision highlighted that states and voting rights organizations are likely to prove that the USPS lacks the authority to impose new federal requirements on mail voting and that these rules are unconstitutional. The blocked provisions include mandatory standards for ballot envelopes, return envelopes, USPS portal registration, voter enrollment requirements, and ballot-mail rejection rules. States argued they face irreparable harm due to the short timeframe, as many have already printed ballots and lack the capacity to revise their systems to comply with the new directives.