NOTE: The Maryland Office of the Attorney General shared the following press release:
BALTIMORE – Attorney General Anthony G. Brown joined a multistate coalition of 24 attorneys general in filing a formal comment letter opposing the U.S. Postal Service’s (USPS) attempt to aid the president’s efforts to seize control of elections and restrict mail-in voting through a proposed rule, and asking the Postal Service to withdraw the proposed rule. Although yesterday the United States District Court for the District of Columbia enjoined USPS from making this proposed rule, the USPS has not withdrawn it.
On March 31, President Trump signed an executive order attempting to establish a comprehensive citizenship list and a national list of voters eligible to vote by mail in federal elections, and directed USPS, an independent federal agency, to transmit mail ballots only to those on the eligibility list. In the order, the President threatened states and elections officials with criminal prosecution and the loss of federal funding if they do not comply with order’s eligibility requirements.
A federal judge struck down that executive order last week in a lawsuit joined by Attorney General Brown with the order applying to 24 states. And yesterday a second federal judge enjoined USPS from final adoption of the proposed rule. Nevertheless, the USPS has so far not rescinded its proposed rule to implement Trump’s illegal executive order. Under the proposed rule, USPS would create a centralized list of voter information and would refuse to deliver ballots to any eligible voter who is not on that list, essentially giving the federal government control over elections conducted by mail.
In the comment letter, the attorneys general argue that this proposed rule violates the federal court’s order, which enjoins USPS from finalizing the proposed rule, and also amounts to an unconstitutional power grab by the federal government. The Constitution does not allow the President to unilaterally impose changes to federal election procedures, particularly without an act of Congress permitting him to do so. The attorneys general also argue the proposed rule conflicts with USPS’s governing statutes and other federal voting laws.
The proposed rule would enact these unconstitutional changes before the 2026 election. Implementing these changes would require states to upend their existing election administration procedures for upcoming elections and conduct statewide voter education mere months before the beginning of mail voting for the 2026 general election. Such drastic and rapid changes would undoubtedly create confusion and chaos, threatening to disenfranchise eligible voters.
State and federal law entitle all eligible voters to cast ballots and have their votes counted in state and federal elections. Voters of all parties, in all states, and of every background utilize mail-in voting – including the President himself. This week’s Supreme Court decision in Watson v. Republican National Committee reaffirmed states’ authority to administer their elections, like permitting voters to cast ballots by mail.
Joining Attorney General Brown in the comment letter are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawai‘i, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Nevada, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin.
