Top court upholds Trump bid to curb mail-in ballots for now

The US Supreme Court has granted President Donald Trump a temporary win by lifting a lower court block on his executive order aimed at restricting mail-in voting for the upcoming November midterm elections. The Republican president's directive, signed in March, sought to limit mail-in ballots, but it faced multiple legal challenges from Democratic-led states, which argued that under the US Constitution, states, not the federal government, hold primary authority over election administration.

A Massachusetts district court initially blocked the implementation of the executive order, but the Supreme Court on Monday lifted the stay, allowing certain aspects of Trump's directive to go into effect for now.

The Supreme Court majority opined that the District Court lacked jurisdiction to prevent the government from attempting to implement the executive order. However, they reserved final judgment on the merits of the case until additional litigation unfolds. The decision by the justices does not deem any measure taken by the government to implement the order necessarily lawful, leaving the outcome uncertain. Three liberal justices on the nine-member Supreme Court dissented from the ruling.

Sen. Chuck Schumer, a Democratic leader, denounced the decision as a "disgrace," alleging that Trump seeks to make it more difficult for Americans to vote, thereby avoiding accountability for his administration's perceived failings, including economic turmoil, military actions, and corruption charges. Former California Governor Gavin Newsom, a potential Democratic presidential contender, pledged to challenge the ruling through another legal action.

Despite his skepticism towards mail-in voting, Trump himself has utilized such ballots, including his recent mail-in ballot in Florida's Republican primary. Trump has long propagated unfounded claims of widespread fraud in mail-in voting, tying it to his debunked assertion that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from him by Democratic candidate Joe Biden.

Recent polls indicate that Trump's Republican Party is at risk of losing its slender control of Congress in the November midterm elections, particularly in the House of Representatives, the lower chamber. If Democrats secure a victory, they are expected to block Trump's agenda and consider impeaching him for the third time.