US Supreme Court rejects Trump's mail-in ballot restrictions ahead of midterms

The US Supreme Court has rejected President Donald Trump's mail ballot restrictions, capping a flurry of last-minute legal action ahead of critical midterm elections.

The decision allows states to continue sending out mail ballots under the same processes they've used for years.

Only two of the six conservative justices on the nine-member panel dissented.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh, in a concurring opinion with the majority, said Trump's plan may ultimately be legal in the long run, but "state and local election officials do not have sufficient time to reasonably implement the rule before the elections."

Trump signed an executive order in March seeking to restrict mail-in voting, saying that it is vulnerable to fraud. The order quickly prompted multiple legal challenges.

Democratic-led states sued the administration on grounds that under the US Constitution, states — and not the federal government — retain broad control over the administration of elections.

Trump's executive order would require the compilation of lists of eligible voters and for the US Postal Service (USPS) to deliver ballots only to voters who are on the lists.

'Sloppy and rushed'

Officials from several states had warned that a lack of legal clarity around the plan was sowing chaos months before the November 3 vote.

Several states, including North Carolina, have already begun sending mail-in ballots to voters.

A USPS whistleblower also warned that millions of Americans may not receive ballots because the postal service's systems were put together in a "sloppy and rushed manner."

Trump has long criticised mail-in ballots but has frequently used them himself, including last month when he voted by mail in Florida's Republican primary.

Polls show that the Republican Party faces a serious threat of losing its narrow control of Congress in November.

If Democrats win, they have signalled they would block Trump's agenda and could even move to impeach him for the third time.

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Source: TRT