Judge Issues Permanent Injunction Blocking Trump Election Order Provisions

U.S. District Judge Denise Casper in Boston issued a permanent injunction on Wednesday barring the Trump administration from enforcing key provisions of an executive order concerning federal elections. The order directed states to require documentary proof of citizenship for voter registration, directed that mail ballots postmarked by Election Day but arriving afterward not be counted, and authorized the withholding of federal funds from states that did not comply.

Casper ruled that the lawsuit brought by Democratic state attorneys general was not premature. In her opinion, she stated that the Constitution assigns authority over elections to the states and to Congress, and that the executive order exceeded presidential authority. "The Constitution does not grant the President any specific powers over elections," the opinion read.

The ruling converts a preliminary injunction Casper issued last year into a permanent bar. The administration has since issued a second executive order directing the creation of a national voter list and imposing additional restrictions on mail balloting.

The SAVE America Act, legislation that would establish a statutory citizenship-proof requirement for voter registration, passed the House of Representatives but has not advanced in the Senate.

Separate federal judges have already blocked implementation of the citizenship requirement on the federal voter registration form and for military and overseas voters.