US Supreme Court blocks new postal voting rules

Washington (ANTARA) - The Supreme Court of the United States (US) has blocked the implementation of new requirements concerning postal voting previously established by the US government, according to a court ruling issued on Tuesday.

The new requirements stipulated that voter lists be submitted to the US Postal Service, which would then be tasked with verifying recipients’ addresses based on those lists before sending out ballots.

In addition, the new rules also set provisions regarding envelope formats.

Previously, the US Postal Service did not have such responsibilities.

In its ruling, the Supreme Court stated that it would keep in place the lower court’s decision suspending the implementation of the rules.

“The government is unlikely to succeed on the merits of its challenge to the District Court’s initial order,” the ruling read.

The lower court had previously ruled that the US Postal Service lacked the authority to refuse to send ballots if state authorities failed to meet the new requirements regarding voter registration and the preparation of ballots for dispatch.