Appeals court rejects Trump bid to curb mail-in voting in 23 states

Judge rejects administration's request to lift injunction secured by several Democratic-led states on 25 June

A federal appeals court on Saturday declined to allow Donald Trump's administration to implement in 23 states his executive order that aims to tighten rules for mail-in voting before the November elections that will decide control of Congress.

The Boston-based first US circuit court of appeals rejected the administration's request to lift an injunction several Democratic-led states secured on 25 June from a lower-court judge who concluded that key parts of the Republican president's order were unconstitutional. In asking the court to pause the US district judge Indira Talwani's ruling while it pursues an appeal, the Department of Justice argued that because government agencies had yet to finalize actions and policies to implement Trump's directive, any lawsuit challenging his order was premature.