The U.S. president has stated that he intends to eradicate mail-in voting and voting machines, among other measures. The proposal faces immediate legal obstacles, since federal elections are administered at the state level.
On August 18, 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that he will push for an executive order to eliminate mail-in voting and voting machines before the 2026 midterm elections. The measure would mean returning to a system centered on in-person voting with manual counts, which experts say is less accurate and slower. In the 2024 elections alone, more than 47 million ballots were cast by mail, representing around 30% of the total.
“I will lead a movement to get rid of MAIL-IN VOTING and, while we’re at it, the highly ‘inaccurate,’ very expensive and seriously controversial VOTING MACHINES,” the president wrote in a social media post. Later, at the White House, he added that a draft of the order was being prepared.
Recently, Trump once again insisted on his plan and said he is preparing an executive order requiring voter identification “with no exceptions” for every ballot. He also reiterated that “only paper ballots will be used here” and that “there will be no more mail-in voting,” except for the severely ill and military personnel overseas. These statements reignited the legal debate over the actual scope of the White House in electoral matters and follow the precedent of a federal court blocking, in June, another Trump order that sought to require proof of citizenship when registering to vote.
CAN TRUMP ELIMINATE MAIL-IN VOTING?
Under the U.S. Constitution, the states and Congress define the “manner” of conducting elections. The White House lacks the authority to impose the elimination of mail-in voting or digital voting systems on the states. In the words of Richard H. Pildes, professor of law at New York University School of Law and an expert in democracy and electoral law: “The Constitution does not grant the President any power to dictate to the states how they conduct national elections.” Any attempt by executive order would be challenged.
In states like Arizona, where early and mail-in voting are widely used, local authorities reacted firmly to Trump’s plans. The Secretary of State warned that if the ban were enacted, the case would be taken to court, while the Attorney General emphasized that the president “has no authority” to interfere with how the state runs its elections.
Meanwhile, the public largely supports this voting model. According to a Pew Research Center study published on August 22, 2025, 58% of adults in the United States support allowing any voter to cast a ballot by mail, with no excuse required. The survey was conducted from August 4 to 10 among 3,554 people nationwide.
Along those lines, Felipe Lorca, CEO of EVoting, highlights the importance of expanding citizen participation mechanisms. “From our perspective, we believe that greater participation means a better democracy. That’s why we always welcome more voting options that bring the process closer to more people, as long as security and transparency are guaranteed.”