Overview
- On May 28 U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols denied a motion for a preliminary injunction, saying the plaintiffs failed to show imminent harm because no agency has yet implemented the executive order.
- The March 31 order directs DHS and the Social Security Administration to build state-by-state 'State Citizenship Lists' of voting-age U.S. citizens and tells the U.S. Postal Service to deliver mail ballots only to voters on approved state lists.
- The Postal Service published a proposed rule on May 29 seeking state lists of voters who received mail ballots with associated barcodes and opened a 30-day public comment period.
- Democrats, national party committees and voting-rights groups say federal data sources used to compile the lists can be outdated or error-prone and could wrongly exclude eligible voters, and Judge Nichols said they may renew emergency relief if agencies take concrete actions that cause harm.
- The case is still active: a separate Boston suit has a hearing scheduled in early June and further agency rulemaking or final lists would likely trigger renewed litigation that could affect mail voting ahead of the 2026 midterms.