2024年美国大选中约有三分之一的选民通过邮寄方式投票，其中包括大约四分之一的共和党选民；目前全美50个州均提供邮寄投票，更有8个州完全采用纯邮寄选举模式。然而，唐纳德·特朗普总统坚称邮寄选票存在欺诈并于3月31日签署行政命令，试图限制这一投票渠道。8月11日，马萨诸塞州联邦法官英迪拉·塔尔瓦尼裁定在全美范围内中止该命令的核心条款，指出在距离中期选举不足三个月之际，这项史无前例的指令正在选民中引发混乱，使得选举规则在此次选举周期中基本不可能发生改变。
该行政命令试图通过复杂的联邦名单和邮政新规对邮寄及缺席选票施加全面控制。命令指示国土安全部（DHS）编制年满18岁公民的名单并分发给各州，各州需在选举前60天向美国邮政局（USPS）提供合格选民名册，并强制采用带有特制标记和条形码的专用信封；任何未列入名单或未使用规定信封的选票将被禁止递送。法律专家指出，由于联邦向各州分发名单与各州向邮政局提交名册的截止日期均为选举前60天，两者在时间线上存在明显的逻辑矛盾与实操混乱。
更为根本的问题在于宪法管辖权的缺失。美国宪法明确赋予各州制定选举“时间、地点和方式”的权力，并授权国会制定或修改相关规则，而行政分支完全无权监管选举。塔尔瓦尼法官指出该政策严重践踏了三权分立原则。尽管政府向最高法院提出紧急申诉，但由于多项裁决阻隔且实操完全不可行，加之限制选民登记的《SAVE法案》在参议院搁浅，特朗普试图重塑选举规则的努力基本宣告失败，其主要后果仅仅是进一步加深了公众对中期选举结果的猜忌与不信任。
In the 2024 presidential election, approximately one-third of American voters cast their ballots by mail, including roughly 25% of Republicans; today, all 50 states provide mail-in voting options, with eight states conducting elections entirely by post. Despite this widespread adoption, President Donald Trump signed an executive order on March 31st directing the United States Postal Service (USPS) to restrict mail-in voting. On August 11th, a federal judge in Massachusetts issued a nationwide injunction blocking the core provisions of the directive, emphasizing that the unprecedented order causes severe voter confusion less than three months before the crucial midterm elections.
The contested executive order attempted to enforce stringent federal control over mail-in and absentee ballots through overlapping databases and postal mandates. It instructed the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to compile rosters of citizens aged 18 and older for states, requiring states to deliver verified voter eligibility lists to the USPS using custom-designed envelopes equipped with bar codes, while barring the delivery of non-compliant ballots. Legal analysts note severe operational flaws, particularly because the twin deadlines for DHS transmitting data to states and states submitting rosters to the USPS both occur exactly 60 days before election day, creating logistical impossibilities.
Beyond procedural dysfunction, the directive suffers from profound constitutional infirmity. The US Constitution grants individual states the authority to administer the times, places, and manner of elections—subject solely to congressional alteration—leaving the executive branch devoid of regulatory power over voting procedures. Consequently, Judge Talwani ruled the policy an unconstitutional violation of the separation of powers. With legislative alternatives like the SAVE America Act stalled in the Senate and administrative appeals facing legal hurdles, the administration’s efforts will likely fail to alter midterm voting procedures, serving primarily to erode public trust in electoral legitimacy.
Source: Donald Trump’s attack on mail-in voting looks doomed
Subtitle: A federal judge issues another blow to the president’s elections agenda
Dateline: 8月 13, 2026 03:44 上午 | NEW YORK