US President Donald Trump has lashed out at the Supreme Court for rejecting his push to curb mail-in voting, raising fears that the US president might use federal powers to meddle in November’s midterm elections.
uncertain
president → lash → elections
“These are not the people I interviewed to serve on the United States Supreme Court,” the president lashed out after the court verdict on Monday.
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president → interview → Monday
The justices “are merely a shell of their original selves, a court that is costing the United States Trillions of Dollars with shockingly bad rulings”.
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that → cost → rulings
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The ruling means states can continue administering mail-in voting under their existing procedures.
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states → 3selle → procedures
Mail-in and absentee ballots have been used in the United States for decades and now account for roughly a third of votes cast nationwide.
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ballots → use → votes
Despite the ruling, political analysts and some officials fear that Trump may not let the electoral process proceed as planned, and might pull some other strings to tilt the election in his favour.
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process → fear → favour
So what voting rules exactly has Trump tried to change – and what other powers could his administration seek to use in the run-up to the midterms?
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administration → try → midterms
Can Trump use federal powers to tilt the elections in his favour?
asserted
Trump → use → favour
A Reuters investigation based on interviews with dozens of state and local election officials showed that they are adopting new strategies to prepare for political interference, misinformation, cyberattacks and intimidation tactics.
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they → base → interference
According to the report, more than a dozen local and state election officials said they are hiring outside lawyers or seeking legal training for themselves and their staff to prepare for potential demands by the administration for access to sensitive voting records or election equipment.
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they → accord → records
Nearly twice that many said they are expanding public outreach and social media campaigns to counter misinformation, including the false claims made by Trump and Republican allies that voting machines are unreliable and mail-in voting is inherently corrupt.
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voting → say → Trump
What have the opposition and campaigners said on Trump’s electoral agenda?
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opposition → say → agenda
Campaigners have fiercely resisted Trump’s executive actions attempting to dictate federal voting procedures.
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Campaigners → resist → procedures
Groups including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Brennan Center for Justice have sued the administration, arguing that the Constitution gives authority over federal elections primarily to states and Congress, rather than the president.
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Constitution → include → president
The pushback has also come from Capitol Hill.
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pushback → come → Hill
A bipartisan group of 261 current and former members of Congress filed a brief with the Supreme Court challenging Trump’s executive order and the subsequent Postal Service rule.
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group → file → order
They argued that the measures violated the separation of powers by taking authority over federal elections that the Constitution grants to states and Congress.
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Constitution → argue → states
“The Constitution is clear that the states and Congress make the rules for federal elections, not the President,” Democratic Representative Jamie Raskin, one of the lawmakers leading the effort, said.
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Raskin → make → effort
As per the US Constitution, elections are conducted by local authorities working under the states.
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elections → conduct → states
Raskin described Trump’s attempt to use the US Postal Service to regulate mailed ballots as “a naked power grab”, accusing the president of seeking “to inject confusion and chaos into our elections in a last-ditch effort to keep his party in power”.
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Raskin → describe → power
Senator Alex Padilla, the top Democrat on the Senate Rules Committee, similarly argued that neither the president nor the Postal Service had the authority to determine how states administer elections.
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states → argue → elections
He said restricting voting by mail could particularly affect military personnel, people living in rural areas, and Americans living abroad.
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restricting → say → areas
The White House rejected accusations that it is seeking to interfere in the midterms, saying its measures are aimed at preventing illegal voting and ensuring confidence in the electoral system.
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measures → reject → system
Why does Trump oppose mail-in voting?
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Trump → oppose → voting
This is not the first time Trump has cast doubt on the security of mail-in voting, citing debunked claims of widespread election fraud associated with it.
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Trump → cast → it
Trump falsely blamed his presidential election loss on mail-in voting fraud in 2020.
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Trump → blame → 2020
Back then, he called the voting system “the greatest scam in the history of politics”.
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he → call → politics
He and his supporters opposed changes made during the COVID pandemic to expand mail-in voting.
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He → oppose → voting
Trump and his supporters also claim that the mail-ballot plan enables a large number of non-citizens to register and vote illegally, corrupting elections.
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plan → claim → elections
For this, he has pushed for the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE Act) that would require citizens to provide “documentary proof” that they are American citizens when they register to vote.
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they → push → proof
The legislation is stalled in the Senate over concerns that millions of voters will be disenfranchised.
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millions → stall → voters
Studies show that voter fraud is extremely rare.
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fraud → show → ?
The Heritage Foundation, the conservative-leaning think tank behind Project 2025 – which inspired many Trump administration policies – documented 100 cases of noncitizens voting from 1982 to 2025.
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which → lean → 2025
That is about 0.000008 percent of more than 1.3 billion votes cast in presidential elections during that time.
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That → cast → time
What has he done to change election rules?
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he → do → rules
Trump has been explicit about his desire to assert more federal control over the election, saying in early February that “Republicans ought to nationalise the voting”.
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Republicans → assert → voting
The White House has dismissed concerns that federal actions could disrupt the midterms, arguing that the administration is enforcing election laws and safeguarding confidence in voting.
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administration → dismiss → voting
In March 2026, Trump signed an executive order directing the US Postal Service to take control of mail-in voting by designing new envelopes with special barcodes that would allow the federal government to ensure ballots are only from eligible voters.
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ballots → sign → voters
For the midterms, that move would force all states to adopt a uniform envelope style in a short time.
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move → force → time
The order also required states to provide the Postal Service with a list of eligible voters before elections.
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order → require → elections
…and 5 more, not listed.
The Aporia
