Padilla, Schumer Lead All Senate Democrats to Urge Supreme Court to Block Postal Service Rule Limiting Mail-In Voting

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), and Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Ranking Member Gary Peters (D-Mich.) among other representatives led a bicameral amicus brief challenging the legality of President Trump’s Executive Order and U.S. Postal Service rule seeking to exert control over mail-in ballots ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. 

The group, made up of a bipartisan, bicameral coalition of 261 lawmakers and former lawmakers, filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in the matter of State of California, et al. v. United States Postal Service, et al., a lawsuit brought by a coalition of State Attorneys General against the U.S. Postal Service or USPS. The court case challenges a final rule issued by the USPS pursuant to Trump’s directive that imposes unconstitutional and unworkable restrictions on mail-in voting, including requiring states to provide a “citizenship verification list” and attempting to give USPS control over who can vote by mail.

“The law is clear: states and Congress have authority over our elections — not the President and certainly not the Postal Service. Protecting the right to vote-by-mail is critical to ensure every eligible voter can make their voices heard in the November midterm elections and in future elections,” said Senator Padilla. “Despite the Trump Administration’s attempts to eliminate vote-by-mail and suppress voter participation, voting by mail remains one of the safest and most secure ways to vote, especially for service members, rural voters, and Americans living abroad. I urge the Court to uphold our Constitution and reject Trump’s attacks on our fundamental right to vote.”

Nearly one-third of Americans have voted by mail in recent elections — a voting practice Trump himself used as recently as August 2026, when he voted in Florida’s Republican primary.

In the court filing, the amici curiae argue that Trump’s Executive Order 4399 and USPS’s final rule violate the separation of powers and usurp congressional authorities outlined in Article I of the U.S. Constitution, which gives the States and Congress exclusive authority over election administration.

In addition to Padilla, Schumer, Durbin, and Peters, the amicus brief was joined by the entire Senate Democratic Caucus.