Trump advocates for prohibiting mail-in ballots - feasibility in question
The recent announcement by US President Donald Trump to sign an executive order banning mail-in voting and the use of voting machines for the 2026 congressional elections has sparked controversy and legal debate.
However, it is important to note that the Constitution does not grant the president any specific powers over elections [1][3][5]. The main responsibility for organizing elections in the USA lies with individual states, not the federal government. This is in line with the Constitution and federalist principles that assign states the power to regulate the "time, place, and manner" of elections [1][3].
Attempts by a president to end mail-in voting nationwide by executive order would be unconstitutional on its face and trigger immediate legal challenges. Such an order would not automatically override state laws, and courts have consistently upheld state control over election rules [1][3].
Legal experts and election oversight organizations confirm that while Congress can legislate some aspects of federal elections, it is difficult and does not create a path for a national mail-in voting ban. The president has no direct role in altering or banning election methods [3][5]. Recent attempts to issue executive orders restricting mail ballots or imposing proof of citizenship requirements have been blocked by courts [1].
It is also worth mentioning that for federal elections, mail-in voting is a popular method, with approximately one-third of ballots being cast by mail in the 2024 presidential election. Several studies have shown that election fraud in the USA is extremely rare [6].
In contrast to Trump's claims that the US is the only country offering mail-in voting and that other countries have abandoned it due to "MASSIVE ELECTION FRAUD," many countries around the world, including Germany, offer mail-in voting as an option [2].
In the US, the Democrats support mail-in voting to expand voting options, while the Republicans currently hold 53 seats in the Senate, and state legislatures controlled by Republicans could pass laws to ban mail-in voting [4]. However, changing the Senate's rules of procedure to pass such a law would require a majority of 60 of the 100 senators, a hurdle that has not been easily achieved in recent years.
In conclusion, although some presidents have expressed intentions or plans to ban mail-in voting by executive order, the constitutional framework and judicial precedents firmly prevent any such executive action from lawfully abolishing mail-in voting nationwide [1][2][3][5].
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