Press Release: Responsive Gov Calls on Postal Service to Withdraw Proposed Rule Impacting Mail Ballots

For Immediate Release:
June 26, 2026

Contact:
dan@responsivegov.org

CHICAGO — The Institute for Responsive Government is urging the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to withdraw a proposed rule, which would grant the independent federal agency sweeping power over rejecting mail ballots, as part of its effort to comply with President Donald Trump’s March 2026 executive order. A federal judge recently blocked large portions of the EO from taking effect, but the rulemaking process for USPS remains open.

In March, President Trump issued an order directing the Department of Homeland Security to create a list of eligible voters pulling from federal databases; it also called for forcing postal employees to become ballot envelope experts, duplicating the work of state election administrators and providing less time for delivering critical mail, like Social Security checks. Late last month, USPS issued a proposed rule and a call for public comment regarding implementation of the order.

“The current proposed USPS rule, along with the executive order itself which a federal judge recently paused, would introduce extraordinary confusion into our elections just months before the midterms,” said Sam Oliker-Friedland, Chief Executive Officer of the Institute for Responsive Government. “This largely illegal and sloppy EO, along with the postal service’s proposal to implement it, represents an overreach of federal authority into state and local election administration. Now that courts are beginning to weigh in on the legality of the order, the most reasonable step is for USPS to withdraw this order.”

Responsive Gov’s public comment raises several operational and legal concerns with the proposed rule:

• Establishing a federal mail ballot portal will likely lead to delayed ballot delivery.
• Burdening local election officials – and disproportionately harming rural election offices — with the creation of rigid ballot envelope standards.
• Creating significant risk to voters due to a lack of privacy protections and a failure to account for address confidentiality programs.
• Interfering with state and local election administration.
• Imposing unfunded mandates on already-strained election officials months before a highly scrutinized election.

The president’s March executive order and ensuing USPS rulemaking are just the latest efforts from the federal government to exercise greater authority over election administration. Courts have largely blocked the president’s first executive order, issued in March 2025, which sought to both impose documentary proof of citizenship when registering to vote in federal elections, and to give DOGE authority over voter registration lists. The Department of Justice, meanwhile, is 0-9 in court in their ongoing efforts to gain access to state voter rolls and sensitive voter information.

To speak with a Responsive Gov expert about the USPS rulemaking process, the president’s executive orders, or other election administration topics, please contact dan@responsivegov.org.