OLYMPIA, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – Washington has joined a lawsuit challenging new federal mail-voting requirements as a federal judge allowed President Donald Trump’s election order to move forward.
The ruling lifts the final court order that had blocked the U.S. Postal Service rule changes ahead of the November midterm election.
State Attorney General Nick Brown and a coalition of 22 other states (plus Washington, D.C. and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro) argue the USPS is overstepping its authority by requiring states to submit lists of mail-ballot voters and use USPS-approved ballot envelopes.
USPS is following guidance from President Trump, who signed an executive order in March that pushes for further measures to be put in place to protect against election fraud. Brown and other attorneys general filed a suit shortly after to block the March executive order that spurred the rules.
The states say the changes could disrupt ballot delivery and increase the risk that some votes are not counted.
“The Constitution is clear: states control elections-not the president,” Brown said in a statement. “The U.S. Postal Service doesn’t have the authority to deny Washingtonians the ability to vote. We will protect the rule of law.”
Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs says the rule would impose major costs on counties preparing for the November election and could force the replacement of more than five million ballot envelopes already printed in Washington.
“Instead of focusing our attention on preparing for the upcoming midterms, we are being forced to spend valuable time and resources defending our constitutional right to administer its own elections,” Hobbs added in a statement. “I appreciate Attorney General Brown’s partnership in standing with us to protect our authority and defend Washington’s free and fair elections.”
State officials also argue the new requirements would create more work for election offices in a state where voting is conducted almost entirely by mail.
The coalition is asking a federal court in Massachusetts to block the rule while the legal challenge moves forward.
