New Jersey has joined a new multistate lawsuit seeking to block federal rules that would impose additional requirements on mail-in voting ahead of the November 2026 midterm elections.
Attorney General Jennifer Davenport announced Wednesday that New Jersey is part of a coalition challenging a new U.S. Postal Service rule developed in response to President Donald Trump’s executive order on election administration. The lawsuit argues that the federal government is overstepping its authority and interfering with states’ constitutional role in running elections.
What the New USPS Rule Would Require
Under the new rule, states would be required to provide the Postal Service with information about voters receiving mail-in ballots and to use unique barcodes on ballot envelopes.
The Postal Service says the requirements are intended to strengthen ballot tracking and election security. But New Jersey and the other states argue the changes could create significant costs, confusion and logistical problems only months before voters head to the polls.
The states also argue that the Postal Service does not have the authority to determine how states administer mail voting or which ballots can move through the mail system.
New Jersey Says States Control Their Elections
Davenport said the federal government cannot impose new election requirements that conflict with state law or interfere with New Jersey’s established voting procedures.
The lawsuit maintains that the Constitution gives states broad authority over election administration and that the federal government cannot use the Postal Service to effectively rewrite state voting rules.
New Jersey has relied heavily on vote-by-mail in recent elections, making the dispute particularly relevant for voters across the state.
Supreme Court Decision Did Not End the Fight
The new lawsuit comes just days after the U.S. Supreme Court removed an earlier legal barrier to parts of Trump’s executive order.
In a 6-3 decision on August 24, the Court lifted an injunction that had blocked portions of the administration’s effort. However, the ruling did not settle the broader question of whether the new voting restrictions are lawful. Instead, the majority concluded that the earlier challenge had been brought before the disputed rules were finalized.
That distinction is important because the Postal Service has now issued its final rule, giving states a new basis for challenging it in court.
Federal Judge Previously Criticized USPS
The legal dispute has already produced unusually sharp criticism from the federal bench.
U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani previously said the Postal Service had moved forward with the rule despite an existing court order restricting implementation. She declined to issue another immediate block at that stage, but separate litigation continues over whether the agency can enforce the requirements.
Midterm Elections Are Only Months Away
The timing of the dispute adds urgency to the case.
The 2026 midterm elections will take place in November, and election officials are already preparing ballots, voter databases and mailing procedures.
During the 2024 election, the U.S. Postal Service handled nearly 100 million ballots, according to Reuters, and about 30 percent of voters cast ballots by mail.
New Jersey and the other states are asking the federal court to block the new requirements before they can affect the upcoming election.
The Trump administration has defended the broader initiative as an election-security measure, while the states argue that the changes could instead make voting more difficult and disrupt systems that are already in place.
The latest lawsuit means the fight over mail-in voting is far from over — and New Jersey is now directly involved in one of the most consequential election-law battles ahead of the 2026 midterms.
Source: Associated Press (AP) on X
By NJ RADAR Team