Whistle-blower warns of 'chaotic' mail ballot plan
Report says major voting disruptions could result
By Zac Anderson
USA Today
..... A whistle-blower is warning that the technology developed by the U.S. Postal Service to carry out President Donald Trump's order exerting federal control over mail ballots could "derail the midterm elections," saying it hasn't bee properly tested and risks "catastrophic failure" if implemented.
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The Whistle-blower, a federal official with direct knowledge of the plan, describes a "secretive, rushed, chaotic, and fundamentally flawed process" in the report, which was prepared by the group Whistle-blower Aid and sent to Senator Richard Blumenthal, D-Connecticut.
.... "The Whistle-blower also raises grave concerns that the administration has bidded the high likelihood that the new ballot mail verification processes will result in major disruption in mail ballots ever getting delivered to voters," the report says.
..... Trump issued an executive order in March [2026] directing the Department of Homeland Security to develop lists of eligible voters in each state and requiring the Postal Service to delver ballots only to voters on the approved lists.
..... The president has made unfounded claims about widespread problems with mail voting, despite voting by mail himself.
..... His order escalated his bid to place new restrictions on voting ahead of the November [2026] midterm elections, when control of Congress is at stake. It was condemned by Democrats and voting rights groups, who said it interferes with state election administration and makes it harder for people to vote.
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A federal judge ion Boston blocked the order on June 25. [2026] The Postal Service moved ahead with the plan anyway, the whistle-blower complaint says.
..... "Just a few weeks later, on or around July 29, 2026, the project was suddenly resumed without explanation of what authority permitted USPS to ignore the court order," according to the complaint.
..... The Supreme Court ruled August 24 [2026] that the states' legal challenge was premature because a final Postal Service mail ballot plan hadn't been issued, and it lifted the lower court order blocking the effort. The Postal Service finalized the mail ballot rule August 26. [2026] It was quickly challenged in court, with a suggest again temporarily preventing it form moving ahead.
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The Postal Service's new mail ballot system could result in a major election disruption if allowed to proceed, the whistle-blower complaint says, calling it "insufficiently tested" and "poorly planned." The complaint raises concerns that the technology developed to implement Trump's order will "crash" ballot processing.
..... "Potentially millions of American voters may not receive their mail-in ballot this elect cycle in a timely manner, or at all," the complaint says, which "Warning of catastrophic failure which could derail the midterm elections."
..... Blumenthal said in a letter to the Postal Service that the agency should scrap the effort.
..... "We urge you to abandon this ill-conceived, unconscionable plan and ensure that all Americans exercise their constitutional right to vote including by mail, without interference," he said in the letter.
..... Contributing: Sarah Wire, USA Today