The United States Postal Service (USPS) is no longer pursing Donald Trump’s plan to dramatically slash eligibility for mail-in voting, essentially dooming the President’s controversial effort to prevent Republicans losing the midterm elections.
Confirmation of the decision came after the US Supreme Court rejected Trump’s executive order mandating USPS only dispatch ballots to voters cleared by a hastily developed verification process.
Trump has long railed against mail-in voting, claiming without evidence the practice enables widespread fraud, and blames postal votes for his loss in the 2020 presidential election.
His push to restrict access to mail-in ballots was aimed at hampering Democrats – a greater proportion of whom vote by mail – and giving his party an edge in elections where candidates are being hampered by rising living costs and a deeply unpopular war, begun by Trump himself.
There is now a growing sense of panic among some in the party as the prospect of losing control of both chambers of Congress grows more likely.
What was Trump’s plan and why did it fail?
In March, Trump signed an executive order which directed the federal agencies to create lists of citizens for every US state.
Those lists were then to have been handed over to the USPS, which was, in turn, instructed only to provide mail-in ballots to citizens named on the rolls.
The order also required the USPS to develop a uniform envelope style for all postal votes, complete with a barcode which was intended to speed up processing.
The USPS could have declined to deliver any mail-in ballots to states which refused to comply.
Trump and supporters of the move argued the new rules were “common sense” and would have ensured greater “election integrity” by preventing fraud, despite studies showing cases are exceptionally rare.
Critics argued the order would have illegally disenfranchised thousands of voters and was designed to hand Republicans, whose supporters generally tend to favour in-person voting, an advantage.
They also noted the order appeared to circumvent the US Constitution, which hands the power to regulate elections exclusively to states and not the President or Congress.
A host of states sued to prevent the USPS from implementing the new rules, arguing, among other reasons, the changes came too close to the midterm elections to be effectively introduced and risked causing chaos.
Several lower courts agreed, placing injunctions on the plan and prompting the Trump administration to appeal to the Supreme Court.
Then, on Tuesday, the US’ highest judicial authority ensured Trump’s effort was all but dead in the water, ruling it was likely the push to implement the order would fail in court.
In an interview with the Associated Press on Thursday evening, the head of the USPS confirmed efforts to introduce the new rules had ended in the wake of the decision.
“We’re not doing anything,” postmaster general David Steiner said.
Critics argued the order would have illegally disenfranchised thousands of voters and was designed to hand Republicans an advantage (Photo: Roberto Schmidt / AFP via Getty Images)Why are Republicans panicked by Trump’s failure?
Trump’s decision to pursue changes to postal voting rules was reflective of his high-risk approach to contesting the midterms.
Republicans are facing major headwinds due to rising living costs and the President’s deeply unpopular war with Iran, while the party in power has also always historically lost ground in non-presidential contests.
Polling has shown affordability is the dominant issue for voters and Democrats are hammering home ties between rising pump prices and the Iran war, as well as the effects of Trump’s tariffs on businesses and consumers.
Instead of moving to address those concerns, Trump has instead been focused on pushing some states to re-draw electoral maps in ways which disadvantage Democrats and embarking on a new trade war with Canada that could further push up the price of some US products.
He has also launched a staunch defence of AI and the construction of data centres, which have increasingly become a source of community pushback in key districts worried about the implications for power and water supplies.
Trump’s apparent disconnect from voters’ concerns is contributing to a deepening sense of unease among Republicans, and his failure to cement an advantage through changing mail-in voting has further exposed the party by diverting time and attention away from its core messaging.
Compounding fears are dire polls showing the President’s brand is increasingly toxic.
Marquette University Law School found just 37 per cent of US adults approved of Trump’s performance and Fox News reported 60 per cent of voters believed his decision to begin the Iran war was wrong.
Despite this, the President has pleaded with supporters to “pretend I’m on the ballot” and was the driving force behind a Republican midterm convention in Texas to drum up enthusiasm.
Most projections give Democrats a reasonable chance of claiming the six seats they need to regain control of the House, but winning the Senate is also increasingly within reach.
In a sign of the challenge faced by Republicans, the party’s Senate candidate for Texas, Ken Paxton, is trailing his Democratic rival, James Talarico, in a state which has not elected a Democrat for over three decades.
Trump carried Texas by a double digit margin in 2024 and the state was chosen to host his midterm convention in part to boost Paxton’s standing among voters.
The prospect of a Democrat win in what has been a Republican stronghold has served to strengthen fears Trump’s actions could ultimately cost the party control of Congress.
Hence then, the article about trump s plan to save the midterms has failed republicans are starting to panic was published today ( ) and is available on inews ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Trump’s plan to save the midterms has failed – Republicans are starting to panic )
Also on site :
- Zara Larsson Talks Macklemore Speaking Out, Her Workout Routine & Viral Concert Moments .. Billboard News Interview
- INVESTOR ALERT: Pomerantz Law Firm Investigates Claims On Behalf of Investors of NuScale Power Corporation - SMR
- Lady Gaga and Michael Polansky’s Baby Name and Gender Finally Revealed—With a Sweet Musical Connection