The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for July 30, 2026
A second appeals court handed down a ruling on President Trump’s March 31st executive order on elections, this time allowing the U.S. Postal Service’s preparations for checking eligibility of mail-in voters to proceed – the opposite of a different court’s July 25th ruling. What gives?
Yesterday, we reported on a Trump administration appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. A 1st Circuit appeals court upheld a block of the President’s directive to USPS to create a “state citizenship list” to verify voters receiving or returning mail-in ballots. Attorneys general from 23 states argued successfully it violated the Elections Clause, and STATES had already been harmed because election officials expended resources to prevent the election chaos the executive order is likely to create.
Then July 28th, the U.S. Appeals Court for DC upheld a ruling favoring the President, this time a challenge from a pro-voter coalition and Democratic Party groups. The coalition failed to convince either the federal district or appeals courts. Both ruled that VOTERS had not yet been harmed, because the unimplemented policy had not YET broken any laws.
There’s no word whether the two cases will be combined, but it’s increasingly likely the U.S. Supreme Court will need to settle the dispute.
We’ve linked the July 28th and previous decisions at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl
Today’s Links
Articles & Resources:
The White House – ENSURING CITIZENSHIP VERIFICATION AND INTEGRITY IN FEDERAL ELECTIONS
U.S. District Court of Appeals for DC (via Courthouse News Service) – Decision in DSCC et. al. v. Trump
U.S. District Court for Massachusetts (via Court Listener) – Ruling in California v. Trump
United States Court of Appeals For the First Circuit – Order in California v. Trump
U.S. Supreme Court – APPLICATION FOR A STAY OF THE INJUNCTION ISSUED BY THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF MASSACHUSETTS AND REQUEST FOR ADMINISTRATIVE STAY
Brennan Center for Justice – Analyzing the President’s Executive Order on Mail Voting
Related ADM Reports:
American Democracy Minute – Largely Blocked by Lower Courts, Administration Asks SCOTUS to Allow Executive Order Directing USPS to Verify Citizenship of Mail-In Voters
Groups Taking Action:
League of United Latin American Citizens, Campaign Legal Center
Register or Check Your Voter Registration:
U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State
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