Donald Trump’s mail-in voting executive order could disenfranchise tens of thousands of Americans — and that’s why the administration is determined to push it through before the midterm elections.
The news on the executive order has been moving fast. While I wish legacy media was more focused on this, they are not. At the end of a critical week, I want to give you my latest take.
On Wednesday, my team and I asked a federal appellate court to urgently block Trump’s “flagrantly unlawful” order as the administration has been taking steps to implement its anti-voter proposals.
A day later, the administration proved our point.
According to a newly disclosed Department of Human Services memo, the first phase of Trump’s national voter list is expected to be implemented by June 30. Recall that Trump’s goal is to prevent anyone not on that list from being allowed to cast mail-in ballots.
If Trump succeeds, voters will have little recourse or even information about why they might not be on the list. I suspect most who are disenfranchised will be entirely unaware that the list even exists and will simply be confused when they don’t receive mail-in ballots.
Concerningly, state election officials will have access to the list and the data underlying it before voters are able to check if the government’s records are even accurate. That means voters may not be able to take corrective action in time to receive a mail-in ballot.
You won't get this kind of inside perspective anywhere else. Top voting rights attorney Marc Elias brings decades of election and voting legal experience to every analysis.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Postal Service — which is supposed to serve the entire nation — is also taking steps to abide by Trump’s orders, creating a new records system to track mail ballots. Even as lawsuits surrounding the order continue, USPS is laying the groundwork to see Trump’s marching orders through.
All these activities heighten concerns about the midterm elections. However, there was some good news on Thursday.
A federal judge in Massachusetts said Democratic state attorneys general and pro-voting organizations can continue their bid to block Trump's executive order before the midterms. The judge said that if the order is implemented, it will directly harm states’ ability to carry out elections this November.
The law is on our side, and we have pro-democracy attorneys taking up the fight to protect our elections. Stay alert, stay informed and stay ready to vote this November.
What worried me this week
The Trump administration is determined to raid and intimidate states into turning over voter information and sowing doubt in our election systems. It started in Georgia, then Arizona, then Michigan and Wisconsin. Now, Trump’s DOJ is targeting California and Ohio.
In Ohio, the FBI raided the Ohio Organizing Collaborative, which helps register voters and organizes political events for Democratic and progressive causes. Agents searched the homes of several of the organization's leaders and staff members.
The raid was a clear effort to intimidate voters and pro-democracy groups. But let me be clear: we will not be deterred from protecting free and fair elections in Ohio.
And we won’t be deterred in California, either, where the administration is launching an investigation into the primary vote and threatening to bring charges. These latest attacks are just more reasons to keep fighting.
What I’m watching in the courts
Yesterday in Tennessee, federal judges heard arguments on the state’s aggressive gerrymander. If the gerrymandered map is upheld, it would mean the elimination of the state’s sole Black-majority district. It doesn’t mean a Democrat can’t still win, but Memphis would be cracked in three. This is aimed at undermining the power of Black voters.
I am watching as Tennessee’s gerrymandered map makes its way through the courts, and you should, too.
What gave me hope this week
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp learned the hard way that life comes at you fast. Just hours before a redistricting special session, Republican lawmakers backtracked on their own governor's plan.
In a letter to Kemp, House Republican leadership informed the governor that they won’t be joining the gerrymandering war, writing, “Since this process has the potential to impact every voter, it deserves the same responsible, fact-driven approach that guides every policy we consider as lawmakers…”
I’m thrilled that Georgia voters won’t have their voices silenced for 2026 — but let’s not pretend the GOP has given up. A swing state, Georgia Republicans risked severe voter backlash had they redistricted. Sen. Raphael Warnock called the plan “a betrayal of the highest in the American ideals,” and protesters packed the state capitol on Wednesday with signs that read “say no to Jim Crow.”
This was no change of heart by the GOP. This was a change of strategy after they saw what they were up against. Georgia Democrats have a real chance to take back the state house, and Republicans know that a blue wave is coming for them.
In other good news, LET’S GO KNICKS!
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