By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON, April 21 (Reuters) – A group of 37 Democratic U.S. senators on Tuesday urged the U.S. Postal Service not to comply with a March 31 executive order issued by President Donald Trump tightening rules on mail-in voting.
The senators, including Gary Peters, Alex Padilla, Chuck Schumer, Dick Durbin and Maria Cantwell, said in a letter first reported by Reuters the order illegally seeks to transform USPS “into an election administration agency with the power to determine who can vote by mail and to establish ballot specifications.”
USPS did not immediately comment.
Trump’s executive order requires USPS to only deliver ballots to voters on each state’s approved mail-in ballot list. States must also preserve election-related records for five years.
“This directive will have a chilling effect on the eligibility of American voters to exercise their constitutional right to vote by imposing unnecessary barriers and would corrupt the independent mission of the Postal Service to determine who can vote by mail,” the senators said, adding USPS would have final say about whether to transmit a voter’s absentee ballots to election officials.
Earlier this month, a coalition of Democratic state attorneys general filed suit challenging Trump’s order, joining suits also being pursued by arms of the Democratic Party and voting rights advocates.
Trump, a Republican, has for years pushed the false claim that his 2020 election defeat was the result of widespread voter fraud and has called for tighter rules on voting by mail ahead of the November midterm elections.
Trump in March 2025 forced out Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. The current postmaster general, David Steiner, has warned USPS could run out of money by early next year.
Trump has nominated four candidates to serve on the U.S. Postal Board of Governors that are awaiting confirmation hearings.
The state attorneys general argue Trump’s order unlawfully interferes with mail-in voting by directing USPS to block the delivery of ballots based on criteria outside the states’ control.
Trump has also been pressing Congress to pass the SAVE America Act, a bill that would require proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote and a photo ID to cast a ballot. The bill passed the U.S. House of Representatives in February but faces long odds in the Senate.
(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Nick Zieminski)
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