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Oregon’s top elected officials hailed a Monday ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that blocked President Donald Trump from restricting vote-by-mail in the November midterms.
The 7-2 ruling issued late on Sept. 14 is especially crucial in Oregon, where elections are conducted entirely via mailed ballots—and where elections offices will begin mailing those ballots in less than a month. Trump, who falsely blames mail voting for his 2020 reelection loss, had sought to use the U.S. Postal Service to screen the delivery of ballots, potentially paralyzing elections in states like Oregon.
Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield joined 22 other states and the District of Columbia in suing to stop the Trump administration’s executive order.
“What does this mean for Oregon voters? It means we’ll continue to vote in November just like we have for decades, with a Vote By Mail system that is safe, secure, and accurate,” Rayfield said in a statement. “We can expect that Trump will continue looking for ways to meddle with our elections, and we’ll continue blocking him. We must all remain vigilant, and we’ll keep fighting to ensure that no one—not even the president—can interfere with our right to vote.”
While the court ruling effectively eliminates Trump’s ability to control who receives a ballot from the Postal Service, the president has succeeded in making voters wary of a system they had long trusted. Indeed, Oregon Secretary of State Tobias Read warned voters last week not to mail their ballots and to instead use drop boxes.
On Sept. 10, the Oregon Legislature’s Joint Emergency Board approved $1.25 million to install an additional 20 drop boxes across the state. A spokesperson for Read said the court ruling would not change that plan.
Meanwhile, Read celebrated. “I think the Supreme Court has better things to do than explain the Constitution to the president, but I’m glad they did,” he told The New York Times.
