Oregon Gov. Kotek speaks out after federal judge extended legal block against Postal Service, says President Trump ‘has to follow the law, just like everybody else’

Oregon – “President Trump and the U.S. Postal Service have to follow the law—just like everybody else. This fight is non-negotiable—just like your right to vote. We will see it through,” Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek said as a federal court continued to block new Postal Service requirements targeting mail-in voting ahead of the November midterm elections.

Kotek’s statement came after U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani extended an injunction preventing the U.S. Postal Service from enforcing a new rule that would impose additional requirements on mail-in ballots. Oregon Secretary of State Tobias Read called the decision an important victory for the state’s vote-by-mail system, saying it prevents the Postal Service from restricting ballots under the new requirements.

The legal fight, however, has continued since Kotek and Read made their statements.

The Trump administration has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to allow the Postal Service restrictions to take effect, creating an ongoing legal battle over how mail-in ballots will be handled in the November elections. The administration argues that the restrictions are within federal authority, while Oregon and other states and voting-rights groups have argued that the federal government cannot impose new election procedures on states through the Postal Service.

Talwani’s Sept. 4 ruling extended the block after she concluded that implementing the Postal Service rule so close to the election could create major problems for election officials and voters. The rule would require states to provide the Postal Service with lists of mail-ballot recipients and would impose unique barcode requirements on ballot envelopes. USPS would also have authority under the rule to refuse delivery of ballots that did not meet the new requirements.

Talwani wrote that the changes could create significant disruption because thousands of election jurisdictions would have to adjust their systems shortly before the election. She also questioned whether the federal government had the authority to impose the requirements without congressional authorization.

The Trump administration has appealed the decision, and the Supreme Court is now being asked to intervene. The administration has argued that allowing the lower-court injunction to remain in place could create confusion because states are already preparing and, in some cases, beginning to send mail ballots for the Nov. 3 election, according to Reuters.

For Oregon officials, the federal court fight comes as they are dealing with a separate problem involving mail delivery and ballot postmarks.

On Sept. 8, Read appeared alongside Kotek and U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley to defend Oregon’s vote-by-mail system after the state released new data showing a sharp increase in ballots rejected because of late postmarks.

Oregon reported that 7,314 ballots received during the seven-day post-election grace period in the May 2026 primary were rejected because they carried a late postmark. That was a 35% increase from the 5,404 ballots rejected for late postmarks during the May 2022 primary.

Among ballots received during the seven-day grace period, 13.1% were rejected because of late postmarks in the 2026 primary. That compares with 9.5% in 2024 and 8.2% in 2022, AP News reported.

Read has responded by urging Oregon voters to use one of the state’s official ballot drop boxes rather than relying on the mail. He has also requested emergency funding from the Oregon Legislature for 20 additional drop boxes and an opt-in statewide ballot tracking system that would allow voters to monitor the status of their ballots.

The issue has also attracted broader attention because USPS has changed the way it processes and transports mail, including greater reliance on regional processing hubs. Election officials in Oregon and Washington have warned that those changes can delay postmarks even when voters mail their ballots on time.

The Associated Press reported that more than 20,000 ballots in Washington were rejected for late postmarks during the 2026 primary, while Oregon’s late-postmark rejections also increased significantly. USPS has encouraged voters who choose to mail their ballots to do so at least a week before Election Day and has said voters can request a manual postmark at a post office.

Oregon officials say the federal court case and the problems with late postmarks demonstrate why voters need reliable options for returning their ballots.

“There is a lot of uncertainty right now,” Read said during the Sept. 8 press conference. “There are a lot of people trying to make voting harder or more confusing. But Oregon is not going to sit back and hope for the best. We are going to prepare. We are going to adapt. And we are going to protect every eligible Oregonian’s right to vote.”

Kotek similarly defended Oregon’s long-standing vote-by-mail system, saying it is something Oregonians have come to know and rely on.

The immediate legal question remains whether the Supreme Court will allow the Trump administration and USPS to implement the new mail-ballot requirements before the midterms. For Oregon voters, the dispute is unfolding alongside concerns about postal delays and the growing number of ballots rejected because of late postmarks.

With the November election approaching, Oregon officials are urging voters to avoid waiting until the last minute and are expanding attention on ballot drop boxes as a way to ensure ballots reach election officials without relying on postal delivery times.