A person places a mail-in ballot in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, on October 15, 2024.
Hannah Baier | Getty Images
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Tuesday cracking down on mail-in voting, which voting rights groups say will disenfranchise millions of Americans.
The order, which requires the Department of Homeland Security to create a list of certified Americans in each state who are eligible to vote, is almost certain to be challenged in court, which could prevent it from taking effect in time for the November midterm elections.
“We want honest voting in our country,” Trump said in the Oval Office after signing the executive order. “Because if you want to know the truth, you can’t really have a nation without honest voting.”
DHS will work with the Social Security Administration to create the list, according to a White House fact sheet.
The list will be sent to each state, and the order directs the attorney general to prioritize investigating and prosecuting “election officials, individuals, and other entities that violate the law by issuing or distributing federal ballots to ineligible voters.” It also directs the Attorney General to withhold federal funds from states that are not in compliance, the fact sheet states.
The fact sheet states that the Postal Service will be required to “deliver ballots only to individuals on state-specific mail-in and absentee participation lists.” Election officials in each state typically ship mail-in ballots to voters, not the Postal Service.
The order also requires the Postal Service to place every ballot it sends “in a secure ballot envelope marked as Official Election Mail with a unique Intelligent Mail barcode to facilitate tracking,” according to the fact sheet.
Trump himself recently voted by mail in Florida. The Constitution gives each state the power to administer elections, but Congress can pass election laws. The executive branch has no formal role in changing electoral laws or conducting elections.
Voting rights advocates say President Trump’s planned voting restrictions will disenfranchise millions of Americans. The executive order is almost certain to be challenged in court, which could prevent it from being implemented in time for the midterm elections.
Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell (D) said her office is “reviewing this order and will take appropriate legal action to ensure all Massachusetts voters can vote and have their votes counted.”
“The Trump administration cannot interfere with voting rights and cannot override states’ voting rights,” Campbell said.
“The order has no effect,” the NAACP said in a statement.
“His order is not only unconstitutional, it is unconscionable,” said NAACP President Derrick Johnson. “His attempts to silence us, with our voices and our votes, only make our voices louder.”
The Daily Caller first reported that President Trump would sign the order.
President Trump has long called for restrictions on mail-in voting after losing the 2020 presidential election to former President Joe Biden. He has repeatedly claimed, without providing evidence, that the election was stolen through mail-in voting fraud.
The order comes after months of pressure on Congress to pass the SAVE America Act, which would require voters to submit a photo ID and proof of U.S. citizenship to vote. The U.S. House of Representatives approved the bill in February, but the Senate considered it without a vote this month.
President Trump has told Republicans they will lose the November midterm elections unless they pass legislation and crack down on mail-in voting.
