Trump Executive Order on Mail-In Voting Attempts to Subvert States and Congress

In response to President Trump signing an executive order today directing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to work with the Social Security Administration to make a list of eligible voters in each state, instructing the U.S. Postal Service to send mail ballots only to voters on approved lists, and requiring that secure ballot envelopes with unique barcodes be used for tracking, Issue One Vice President of Advocacy Alix Fraser offered the following statement:

“President Trump is again trying to put his thumb on the scale when it comes to our elections. His executive order on mail-in voting is his latest attempt to federalize elections in violation of the Constitution, which is absolutely clear in granting states the power to run our elections.

“We are confident that the federal courts will quickly step in to stop this partisan power grab, and not allow the president to subvert the states and Congress. But when they do, the president will once again attack the courts in his ongoing effort to delegitimize our elections in the eyes of the American people.

“But the simple fact of the matter is mail-in voting works just the way it is currently administered by the states. In 2024, nearly one-third of all voters voted by mail, which shows how broadly it is used and trusted. Just last week President Trump himself voted by mail in a special election in Florida.”

“The Constitution clearly gives states and Congress, not the President, the power to control elections. While this new executive order will not stand under legal scrutiny, it shows the need for Congress to reassert its full powers and check a President who is acting to limit Americans’ ability to vote.”