North Carolina has begun sending absentee ballots for the November election, putting President Donald Trump’s drive to impose new federal controls on postal voting on a collision course with the start of voting in the United States.
The state’s 100 county election boards began mailing ballots to voters who had requested them on Friday, making North Carolina the first state to distribute absentee ballots ahead of the November 3 midterm election.
The move comes as the Trump administration asks the Supreme Court to revive a United States Postal Service rule that would require states to meet new design and data-sharing requirements before ballots could be sent through the post.
A federal judge in Massachusetts has temporarily blocked the mandatory parts of the rule, saying it was likely that the USPS lacked the authority to impose the requirements and that the changes could be unconstitutional. On August 31, the judge rejected the administration’s request to lift the order.
The administration filed an emergency application with the Supreme Court on Thursday, arguing that the rule was a lawful and limited regulation of the postal system rather than an attempt to control elections.
Under the policy, ballot and return envelopes would have to comply with specified design standards. States would also be expected to obtain approval for their envelopes and upload information about voters receiving mail ballots to a USPS portal.
The court order has allowed the Postal Service to continue developing the portal and communicating with states about design standards, provided participation remains voluntary while the legal challenge proceeds.
The USPS said this week that it had spent months developing the system and was finalising a portal through which election officials could share lists of voters receiving ballots. It said verification procedures were not being carried out while the temporary restraining order remained in force.
Election officials and voting experts have warned that introducing compulsory requirements so close to polling day could create confusion, delay ballots and place additional pressure on state election offices and the Postal Service.
“Why the hell are you rocking the boat this late in the game?” said Stephen Richer, a former Republican recorder in Maricopa County, Arizona, who has defended the security of the 2020 election against claims promoted by Trump allies.
Ben Hovland, a former Democratic commissioner on the US Election Assistance Commission, said ballots and envelopes had already been printed in many states and that a wholesale change to the system would be impractical.
“It would be so outrageous to try to let this go into effect. It’s hard to even imagine,” Mr Hovland said. “It would be a break-glass moment for our democracy.”
The Trump administration has argued that the measures are intended to protect the integrity of mail voting. White House spokesperson Lauren Bis blamed the uncertainty on a judge she described as an “activist” and said the safeguards had been proposed months earlier, giving election officials time to prepare.
Critics dispute the likely benefits. Mr Richer said the USPS would not independently verify the lists supplied by states, meaning the new process could add administrative work without materially improving election security.
He said the requirements would instead create “a lot more opportunity for error” as officials handled ballot lists, envelope approvals and postal tracking under a new system.
North Carolina election officials have sought to reassure voters that the state’s arrangements remain unchanged. Sam Hayes, executive director of the North Carolina State Board of Elections, said county workers were ready and described the process as “business as usual”.
Jason Tyson, the board’s director of external affairs, said officials were prepared to explain any changes to voters and urged people to check their registration details and make a plan for voting.
In North Carolina, voters must request an absentee ballot rather than receiving one automatically. Ballots returned by post or in person must reach the county board of elections by 7.30pm on November 3, while in-person early voting is due to begin on October 15.
The state’s move marks the beginning of a national timetable that will see other states start mailing ballots over the coming weeks. That timetable is now unfolding while the legality and practical consequences of the Trump administration’s postal voting policy remain before the courts.
