A US judge has declined to immediately block President Donald Trump's executive order tightening rules on mail-in voting, but left open the possibility for Democrats to challenge the measure again as the administration moves to implement it. Judge Carl Nichols in the District of Columbia ruled on Thursday against a request by Democrats and civil rights groups seeking to halt the executive order.

The challengers argued the measure would likely be unconstitutional because the authority to set election rules rests with states and Congress, not the president. Nichols, a Trump appointee, agreed with the Trump administration's argument that the case was premature because the order has not yet been enforced. He added that the administration is still developing the rules and procedures needed to enforce the measure, making any potential harms too speculative for immediate court intervention.

While the judge acknowledged that future actions by federal agencies could still face legal challenges, he concluded that the case was not yet ready for judicial review. “The Court recognizes that the Postal Service may ultimately issue a final rule that directly affects Plaintiffs or their members, or that the Government may develop State Citizenship Lists that omit specific individuals due to particularized flaws,” Nichols wrote. “Plaintiffs may, of course, renew their motions if and when those future actions occur.”

Trump's executive order calls on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to compile and transmit lists of confirmed US citizens eligible to vote in each state. It also requires the United States Postal Service (USPS) to send mail-in ballots only to voters included on state-specific absentee and mail-in voting lists. Voting rights groups have warned that the measures could rely on outdated or inaccurate federal citizenship databases and place excessive responsibility on the USPS.

Mail-in voting has expanded across the US since the COVID-19 pandemic, and in the 2024 election, roughly one-third of all ballots were cast by mail. Trump has sought to frame mail-in voting as a system that perpetuates electoral fraud, though there is little evidence to back up this assertion. Democrats and civil rights groups argue that the order violates the US Constitution, which gives states the authority to determine the “times, places and manner” of elections.

Separately, a coalition of Democratic-led states has filed a similar complaint in a federal court in Boston, Massachusetts. US District Judge Indira Talwani, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, is scheduled to hear arguments in that case on June 2. Another executive order issued by Trump last year requiring voters to prove US citizenship and barring states from counting mail-in ballots received after Election Day has already been blocked by three federal judges, and the administration is appealing those rulings.

Source: www.aljazeera.com