Trump signs executive order limiting mail-in voting

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Tuesday repealing a ban on voting by mail; This decision, which voting rights advocates say, would disenfranchise millions of Americans.

The command that requires this Department of Homeland Security Compiling a list of verified U.S. citizens eligible to vote in each state is almost certain to be challenged in court, which could prevent the list from going into effect in time for the midterm elections in November.

“We want honest voting in our country, because if you don’t have honest voting, if you want to know the truth, you can’t really have a nation,” Trump said in his speech in the Oval Office after signing the executive order. he said.

According to a White House memo, DHS will undertake the effort to compile the list with the following information: Social Security Administration.

The list will be sent to each state, and the order directs the Attorney General to prioritize investigations and prosecutions of “election officials, individuals, and other entities that violate the law by distributing or distributing Federal ballots to ineligible voters.” The memo also states that the Attorney General has been directed to withhold federal funds from states that do not comply with the rules.

The memo states that the Postal Service will be required to “deliver ballots only to individuals registered on the State-specific Mail-in and Absentee Participation List.” Election officials in each state typically mail ballots to voters, not the Postal Service.

The order also requires the Postal Service to require that all ballots it delivers “are placed in secure ballot envelopes marked Official Election Mail with unique Smart Mail barcodes that facilitate tracking,” according to the fact sheet.

Voting rights advocates say Trump’s planned restrictions on voting will disenfranchise millions of Americans. The ordinance is almost certain to be challenged in court, which could prevent it from being implemented in time for the midterms.

Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell, a Democrat, said her office was “reviewing this decision and will take appropriate legal action to ensure that every eligible voter in Massachusetts is able to vote and their votes are counted.”

“The Trump Administration cannot interfere with the right to vote and cannot override a state’s election authority,” Campbell said.

The NAACP said in a statement that “the order will not stand.”

“His order is not only unconstitutional, it is also unserious,” NAACP president Derrick Johnson said. “Their efforts to silence us will only amplify our voices and our votes.”

Daily SearchFirst, he stated that Trump would sign the order.

Trump had long sought to restrict mail-in voting after his loss to former President Joe Biden in the 2020 election. He has repeatedly claimed, without providing any evidence, that the election was stolen from him due to mail-in voting fraud.

The decision comes after months of pressure on Congress to pass the SAVE America Act, a measure that would require voters to provide photo identification and proof of U.S. citizenship to vote. The U.S. House voted to approve the measure in February, and the Senate debated it this month without voting.

Trump told Republicans they would lose the midterm elections in November if they did not pass the bill and eliminate the requirement to vote by mail.