Trump signs executive order to tighten mail-in voting rules ahead of 2026 midterms

President Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order to tighten the rules around mail-in voting just ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

The order would require a list to be created in each state of citizens who are eligible to vote. Absentee ballots will only be sent to those on the approved list. Ballots will have secure envelopes with barcodes to track them.

The mail-in voting executive reforms, long sought by Trump, are all but certain to face legal challenge in the courts.

"I believe it's foolproof, and maybe it'll be tested. Maybe it won't," Trump said Tuesday in an Oval Office signing ceremony. "It's about voter integrity; we want to have honest voting in our country."