A federal appeals court in Boston rejects the Trump administration’s request to lift an injunction that blocks key parts of the president’s executive order tightening mail-in voting rules in 23 states. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit declines to pause a lower-court decision issued by Judge Indira Talwani, which several Democratic-led states obtained in an order dated June 25. The administration had asked the appeals court to allow implementation while it pursued an appeal, arguing that lawsuits challenging the directive were premature because federal agencies had not finalized actions and policies needed to carry out the order.
Multiple outlets report that the appeals court’s ruling keeps the injunction in place, leaving the blocked provisions from the executive order unable to go into effect in the affected states for now. With the midterm elections approaching and control of Congress at stake, the decision also keeps the dispute on a path that could involve further appeals, potentially to the Supreme Court, depending on how the parties proceed next.
