More than 22 million registered voters across California may find themselves at the center of an escalating clash between the Trump administration and state election officials.
The country’s highest-ranking postal official has acknowledged that a proposal under review could prevent mail ballots from being delivered in states that decline to provide voter information to the federal government.
Testifying Wednesday before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Postmaster General David Steiner said the US Postal Service would not deliver mail ballots under the proposed federal regulation if a state refused to submit absentee voter data requested by Washington.
“If a state refuses to turn their absentee voter list over to the federal government, will the Postal Service still mail their ballots under this proposed rule?” Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.) asked during the hearing.
“Under our proposed regulation, no,” Steiner answered.
The proposed rule traces back to a March executive order signed by President Donald Trump, which instructed the Postal Service to draft regulations requiring states to submit lists of eligible voters at least 60 days ahead of federal elections.
Trump administration officials have said the policy is intended to make sure ballots go only to eligible voters, citing concerns about possible fraud tied to mail-in voting.
Matt Klink, a political consultant, described the proposed requirement as a sensible move aimed at strengthening public trust in the election process.
“It’s remarkable that some states, blue states, trust the Postal Service to deliver millions of ballots but don’t trust anyone to verify who receives them,” Klink told The California Post.
“Confidence in elections requires more than asking voters to simply take the government’s word for it.” Klink argued providing voter information to the government should not be viewed as a partisan issue.
“Voting is a constitutional right, but only for eligible voters,” he said. “Asking states to share voter data to protect election integrity is a commonsense safeguard, not a partisan attack.”
Steiner defended the proposal during the hearing, saying the goal was to make sure “the right ballots are going to the right people.”
The potential impact could be especially significant in California, where every active registered voter automatically receives a mail ballot without requesting an “absentee” ballot every year.
According to state election data, California has more than 22 million registered voters, meaning millions of ballots could theoretically be affected if state officials refuse to comply with the federal requirement on constitutional, legal or privacy grounds.
Election data expert Paul Mitchell said he believes any attempt to withhold ballot delivery would quickly face legal challenges.
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“This is going to have to result in a lawsuit, that the federal government would lose,” Mitchell said.
He argued that election administration is a state responsibility and questioned whether the federal government could lawfully use the Postal Service to influence how states conduct elections.
“States administer elections,” Mitchell said. “The US Postal Service is a creation of the US Constitution and it would degrade Americans’ constitutional rights to have a president refuse the same services to residents of different states over a state-run part of our government – elections.”
Mitchell warned that if the rule were ever implemented, California could be forced to dramatically expand ballot drop boxes, voting centers and in-person polling locations to prevent voter participation from plummeting.
“If somehow the post office did become a political tool of the administration in this way, it would have a dramatic impact on the election,” he said. “It could be a massive cost to the state to try and fairly administer the election in a way that doesn’t dramatically reduce voter turnout – in red and blue areas.”
He added that officials could even be forced to explore unusual alternatives for ballot delivery if mail service became unavailable.
The proposal has also drawn criticism from Democrats who argue the administration is attempting to insert the federal government into an area traditionally overseen by states.
California Sen. Alex Padilla, the state’s former secretary of state, blasted the plan and warned it could jeopardize voting access nationwide.
“Tens of millions of eligible voters could be prevented from voting by mail if states do not fully submit to this new federal mandate,” Padilla said in a statement criticizing the proposal.
Democrats on the Senate panel also questioned whether the Postal Service has legal authority to enforce election-related requirements. Steiner acknowledged during the hearing that the agency does not administer elections but maintained the proposal is intended as a procedural safeguard.
“I would think that states would want the information to ensure that the ballots that they think they’re sending out are the ballots that are actually getting sent out,” he said.
Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) urged Steiner to reject the effort, telling him: “Please push back on being a pawn in this authoritarian playbook. The Postal Service is one of the most important institutions in our country. Don’t taint it with the obsession of this one man.”
The proposed regulation is currently undergoing a 30-day public comment period.
Under Trump’s executive order, the Postal Service is expected to issue a final rule by the end of July, setting the stage for what could become a major legal showdown between Washington and states such as California ahead of future federal elections.
This federal crackdown comes at a time when Republicans have continuously escalated their attacks on California’s election system, pointing to the state’s prolonged ballot counting timelines to allege widespread mail-in voter fraud without evidence.
In reality, election experts note the count takes weeks precisely because California prioritizes voter access, enforcing fewer restrictions by accepting any ballot postmarked by Election Day and legally requiring a meticulous signature-verification process for millions of mail-in envelopes.
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