Trump just declared war on mail-in voting. Here’s why that’s a terrible idea.

A warning from Arizona about the president’s latest power-grab.

By Stephen Richer

Last week President Donald Trump wrote that he’s going to “get rid of MAIL-IN BALLOTS … by signing an EXECUTIVE ORDER to help bring HONESTY to the 2026 Midterm Elections.”

I helped run Arizona’s elections for four years. This will not go over well in Arizona.

Arizona is a large, independent-minded, and fiercely self-sufficient state. We don’t need Trump and the federal government calling shots from Washington DC. We Arizonans can decide for ourselves how to conduct elections.

We’ve had no-excuse mail voting in Arizona since 1992. Its popularity has grown and grown ever since. Over 85 percent of our votes come from mail-in ballots, and approximately 80 percent of all registered voters in Arizona are signed up to automatically receive a mail ballot for applicable elections.

Mail ballots are used overwhelmingly by Republican and Democratic voters alike. This mail-ballot friendly regime has been supported by Republican governors and Democratic governors. In 2022, we Arizonans voted against putting restrictions on mail ballots.

Arizona’s pro-mail-ballot regime is a reflection of the West. We have big states and big counties, and we’ve used mail ballots to save our citizens the inconvenience of going into urban centers and standing in line. Utah, Colorado, Washington, Nevada, Oregon—all are vote-by-mail heavy states.

And in Arizona, mail ballots have special significance. A significant portion of the state travels during the summer—one week, one month, or the whole summer—anything to get out of the heat. Unfortunately, our statewide primary is in August or July of every even year. If we didn’t have mail ballots, we’d likely lose a large percentage of these “snowbird” voters.

Our mail voting system is safe. You can only request a mail ballot if you’re a registered voter. And to be a registered voter you must provide proof of identity and proof of citizenship at least 29 days before the election. Ninety days prior to every election, election offices send a postcard to every mail voter. If those postcards are undeliverable, then the election office won’t send out a ballot.

Every return ballot envelope is tied to a specific voter with a barcode. That means voters can’t send back multiple mail ballots. And if somebody steals the mail, election offices can deactivate the barcode. As a last step, voters must sign their return envelopes. Election workers compare that signature with signatures in the voter’s record. Those signatures must be consistent.

Arizona’s system might not be perfect. But it works for us. And if we want to change it, it can be done by the Arizona state legislature and Arizona governor, not by Washington DC.

If we do decide to change our voting system, we will likely look to the models of other states. This is one of the benefits of federalism. Instead of just one national model, we have 50 laboratories of democracy to choose from. It’s one of the many reasons why conservatives—myself included—have long celebrated states’ rights.

And the US Constitution recognizes the importance of states’ rights in election administration. Article 1, Section 4 of the Constitution gives states authority over the “Times, Places, and Manner” of election administration. To the extent it can be limited by the federal government, the Constitution gives that power to the Congress. Not the President.

For years, Arizona Republicans have shown more backbone than most in standing up and speaking out against these kinds of excesses. Having run—and won—in the state, I can attest to Arizonans’ deeply ingrained independent streak. But I’ve also seen up close and personal the damage that can be done by conspiracy theorists determined to spread shameless lies about our elections.

And so it’s up to us now to be brave. Since Trump retook office, we’ve seen elected officials and private interests cave to his demands, often without a fight. That can’t be an option in this case. If election integrity is to mean anything at all, our leaders will need to stand up and speak out against this Trumpian farce.

Trump promised that he would respect the Constitution, the rule-of-law, and states’ rights. But by threatening to ban mail ballots through Executive Order, he is doing exactly the opposite. That won’t go over well in Arizona. Or anywhere else in the West.

Stephen Richer is the CEO of Republic Affairs and a senior fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Ash Center. He is the former elected (Republican) Maricopa County Recorder. He is an Advisory Board Member and Spokesman for Home of the Brave.