A federal appeals court in Boston on Thursday rejected the Trump administration’s request to remove an injunction barring the US Postal Service (USPS) from implementing the rule restricting the issuance of mail-in ballots, affirming a decision from a lower district court. The injunction, issued at the end of August by US District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston, prevents USPS from carrying out several provisions of their rule ahead of the November midterm elections.

The panel of three judges ruled that the president does not have the power to dictate or regulate state election policies, because that power was constitutionally assigned to Congress and the states. They held that the administration had not demonstrated proper entitlement to a stay, had not met his burden to show that the balance of equities tipped in his favor, or had not met his burden to show that a stay would not substantially injure other parties or disserve the public interest.

The judges cited the district court’s ruling in favor of voting organizations, stating that “‘the chaos engendered by the Final Rule’s immediate deadlines is significantly interfering with [the appellee organizations’] mission to provide [their] members with accurate and reliable information about how to vote, including by mail,’ such that the appellee organizations ‘do not know whether to advise their members to vote by mail, despite legal entitlement, due to the high risk of disenfranchisement.'”

Last week, President Donald Trump appealed this issue to the Supreme Court for the third time, asking the justices to approve his plan for restrictions on mail-in ballots under the USPS rule. They have not yet issued a ruling on the appeal.

This decision is the latest development in a series of rapidly evolving cases challenging Trump’s March 31 executive order, “Ensuring Citizenship Verification and Integrity in Federal Elections.” The order directs agencies to compile state-citizenship data using incomplete federal immigration databases and provide these to states so that only said individuals may vote. The order then directs USPS to only mail ballots to these individuals with special requirements, including agency approval and unique Intelligent Mail barcodes.

USPS is purportedly ready to implement the rule, however a whistleblower recently indicated that the “perilously rushed” implementation of the president’s order has the potential to unleash chaos upon the midterm elections.

The whistleblower’s allegations convey that “USPS lacks the technical or operational capability needed to effectively implement the EO’s provisions in a way that safeguards every citizen’s right to vote in the upcoming midterm elections. Despite this, the Trump Administration appears intent on USPS moving forward with its flawed plans, no matter the chaos they may create.”

Despite ongoing litigation and potential disruptions, North Carolina has already begun to issue mail-in ballots, and other states are expected to follow suit shortly.