AG Nessel Sues Trump Administration Over Unlawful Executive Order Attempting to Federalize Elections

LANSING – Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel joined a coalition of 24 attorneys general and governors in a lawsuit challenging President Trump’s recently announced unlawful Executive Order that attempts to interfere with states’ constitutional authority to administer elections by restricting voter eligibility and establishing federally authorized lists of absentee voters, amongst other restrictions. The lawsuit was filed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts.

“Mail-in ballots are a safe and secure voting option that over 2.2 million Michiganders availed themselves to in the 2024 election, many who presumably used that choice to vote for this very President,” said Attorney General Nessel. “Yet, while he reserves the right for himself, President Trump is working unilaterally to make it harder to vote from home for single moms, seniors, and the military serving overseas. Michigan voters overwhelmingly voted to expand absentee voting in 2018, and I will protect that choice against an administration that is hellbent on taking it away.”

On March 31, President Trump signed an Executive Order (EO) that, among other things, attempts to establish a national list of eligible voters, and directs the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), an independent federal agency, to transmit mail-in ballots only to those on the list. In the EO, the President also threatens states with the loss of federal funding and elected state officials with criminal prosecution if they do not comply with his many unlawful demands. The attorneys general argue that the EO would require states to act contrary to their own voter roll procedures, vote-by-mail systems, and state laws.

In their lawsuit, the coalition argues that neither the Constitution nor any act of Congress confers upon the President the authority to mandate sweeping changes to states’ electoral systems or procedures. The EO erects shadow voter eligibility lists within the federal government and uses threats of investigation and prosecution to coerce states into disenfranchising voters missing from those lists. It also directly interferes with mail voting by mandating that the USPS refuse to deliver voted ballots unless the voters are on USPS’s precleared list, which is maintained outside the control of the states who administer federal elections. Finally, the EO purports to lengthen the existing period for elections officials to preserve elections records to facilitate threatened prosecutions, contradicting existing requirements in state and federal law. Plaintiff states challenge and seek relief from each of these provisions. 

State and federal law entitle all eligible voters to cast ballots and have their votes counted in state and federal elections. The states filing this lawsuit permit registered voters to cast their ballots by mail if they meet their state’s requirements for doing so. Voters of all parties, in all states, and of every demographic utilize mail-in voting – including the President himself.

“Let me be clear: our elections are safe and secure,” said Governor Whitmer. “The president's recent Executive Order to restrict voting rights violates the U.S. Constitution and the role states play running elections. Any attempt to federalize our elections or make it harder for Americans to cast their ballots is an attempt to take away Michiganders’ constitutional right to vote. I won’t let that happen. Today, we are standing up to protect our fundamental right to vote against dangerous federal overreach so that every eligible citizen can vote and have their vote counted.”

“The Constitution grants the power and responsibility to run elections to the states, not the president or the federal government,” said Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson. “This Executive Order is illegal – it was designed to create confusion and chaos. If left unchecked, it will block millions of eligible American citizens from exercising their fundamental right to vote. It seems the president is determined to rule, not to govern, so we must now take this fight to the courts. I’m proud to stand with Attorney General Nessel and this coalition of States to protect voters, local clerks, and election workers from this blatant federal overreach. We will never stop fighting for Michiganders, for our Constitution, and for our democracy.”

Moreover, the administration of elections is highly complex and requires substantial planning and preparation. The attorneys general argue that the President’s EO would require States to upend their existing election administration procedures for upcoming elections and conduct statewide voter education at a dangerously quick pace – potentially within weeks of primary elections and mere months before the beginning of mail voting for the 2026 general election. The coalition argues that such drastic and rapid changes will undoubtedly create confusion, chaos, and distrust in state election systems, all while threatening to disenfranchise eligible voters. The coalition asks the court to prevent the federal government from implementing or enforcing the EO.

In 2018, Michigan voters approved Proposal 3, amending the Michigan Constitution to allow all citizens to vote by mail or secure ballot drop box in every election. The state constitution also created the option for every registered voter to opt in to the permanent mail ballot list and to receive a mail-in ballot for every election.

More than 2.2 million (2,232,721) Michigan citizens voted by mail in the 2024 presidential election, including military and overseas citizens. More than 25% of all active registered Michigan voters (over 1.8 million) have signed up to automatically receive a mail-in ballot for every election.

Voting by mail/drop box in Michigan is a secure and time-tested system based on standards for election security adopted from national best practices, including:

• Recordkeeping and procedures to prevent double or fraudulent voting;
• Official signature verification by local clerks to confirm a ballot’s validity;
• Secure, locked ballot drop box locations and video monitoring; and
• Bipartisan sets of election workers overseeing the processing and tabulation of mail-in ballots.

A video from Attorney General Nessel announcing today’s lawsuit can be found here and is free to use for public broadcast.

Joining AG Nessel in this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and the Governor of Pennsylvania.

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