US Postmaster General David Steiner said the Postal Service has stopped work on a computer system tied to the Trump administration’s effort to change eligibility checks for mail ballots. “There's an injunction, so we're not doing anything,” he told the Associated Press.

A March executive order sought state citizenship lists and a USPS portal so ballots would go only to cleared voters. A later rule required envelopes with a logo, scan-ready design and a unique barcode. Courts blocked implementation; the Supreme Court left the injunction in place.

An internal memo, cited by AP, told staff that USPS “will not be enforcing any of these new rules in the 2026 federal election.” Ordinary election-mail procedures continue.

Steiner said he had read “portions” of a whistleblower report on the rushed platform. He still trusted colleagues and had planned a mid-September unveiling, but the project is no longer moving ahead.

The agency will still encourage optional use of the Election Mail logo and barcodes, which it has long recommended. Steiner urged voters to post ballots early: “say seven days… Everything is solved if people vote early.”

Validity rules and deadlines vary by state. Stopping the computer system does not suspend voting by mail.

Image: USPS collection box / Wikimedia Commons. Not a ballot centre; the sticker on the box is not an official notice. Cropped to 16:9.

Source consulted: PBS News / AP — Work has stopped on system that was key to Trump effort to limit mail voting; United States Postal Service — Election Mail.