With Election Day on November 3 approaching, voters planning to vote by mail must act now. Mail voting is a safe, secure, and lawful way to participate in our democracy. Voters should focus on meeting their states’ deadlines and following ballot instructions—not worry that the federal government might interfere with their access to mail voting or suddenly change the rules for delivering their ballots.
That is why Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated went to court. Earlier this year, President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing the U.S. Postal Service to establish stricter requirements for mail ballots. USPS subsequently developed a rule requiring state and local election officials to change ballot-envelope specifications, comply with new voter-information requirements, and implement new verification procedures. The Postal Service could have rejected potentially millions of ballots that did not meet those requirements.
The legal problem was clear: Neither the President nor USPS has the authority to impose these changes to mail voting. That power rests with states and Congress.
The practical threat was just as serious. A voter could register properly, request a ballot, and follow every instruction under state law, yet still face a new federal barrier to having that ballot counted.
The timing compounded the danger. With states already preparing for the November 2026 midterms, election officials warned courts they couldn’t redesign envelopes and overhaul procedures in time. Federal courts recognized the potential for widespread disruption, from printing delays to processing millions of envelopes through a system not yet operational.
Behind those legal arguments are real people: a senior who has voted by mail for years, a student away at college, a service member overseas, a voter with a disability, a rural resident far from a polling place, or a caregiver who cannot predict whether she can leave work on Election Day. In states that conduct elections entirely or almost entirely by mail, the potential disruption was even more far-reaching.
Mail voting is a safe, secure, and lawful option—not a loophole or a recent invention. Americans have relied on absentee voting since the Civil War. With the hard-fought expansion of voting rights to include Black women like us and other communities, millions of Americans today depend on mail voting to participate in our democracy.
For Delta Sigma Theta, protecting that participation is inseparable from our history. Just weeks after our Sorority’s founding in 1913, our Founders marched for women’s suffrage in Washington, D.C. They understood that the right to vote means little if people cannot exercise it.
More than a century later, we continue to put that conviction into action. Our members register and educate voters, help families make voting plans, mobilize communities, and advocate for policies that strengthen our democracy. And when government action threatens eligible voters’ access to the ballot, we are prepared to defend that access in court.
That is why Delta Sigma Theta joined the League of Women Voters and other civic organizations as a plaintiff in League of Women Voters of Massachusetts et al. v. Trump et al. Through our collective efforts, federal courts blocked a USPS rule that threatened to disenfranchise voters, and the Supreme Court left that protection in place through the 2026 midterms. As a result, the new rule that directed USPS to refuse to deliver ballots is not in place for the November 3 election.
This is an important victory. But its value depends on what voters do next.
If your state permits you to vote by mail, do not let confusion deter you. Your voting options under state law remain available. Check your registration, confirm your state’s deadlines, and make a plan. If voting by mail, request your ballot as soon as possible, if the deadline has not passed. Follow every instruction, return your ballot promptly, and use ballot tracking if offered. Requirements for when ballots must be received or postmarked vary by state; do not assume mailing your ballot on November 3 will be sufficient. If you encounter problems, contact your local election office or call 866-OUR-VOTE.
Then reach beyond yourself. Ask your parents and the college students in your family whether they have a plan. Make sure seniors know their options. Talk to first-time voters, caregivers, and neighbors who may need help getting to the polls. Correct misinformation when it spreads through group chats and social media.
Confusion can discourage participation as effectively as an outright barrier. We cannot allow uncertainty to silence voters.
The courts have provided important certainty for this election, but our work continues. Delta Sigma Theta will keep defending voting rights in courtrooms, legislative halls, and communities, as generations of our members have done.
Between now and November 3, our charge is immediate: know the rules, make a plan, and vote. The courts have protected an important pathway to the ballot. Now we must use it. Our votes are our voices. We cannot allow confusion to silence them.
Cheryl W. Turner is the International President and Chair of the National Board of Directors of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated. Meka Simmons is the Sorority’s General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer. Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated is a global public-service organization committed to sisterhood, scholarship, service, and social action.Kerry-Ann Hamilton
CEO
