Attorney General James Seeks to Immediately Halt Trump Administration’s Efforts to Undermine U.S. Postal Service and November Presidential Election

AG James Files Motion for Preliminary Injunction in USPS Lawsuit

NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James today took action to immediately halt the Trump Administration’s attempts to dismantle the United States Postal Service (USPS) and disrupt operations in an effort to undermine the November presidential election. Following a lawsuit she filed last week, Attorney General James today filed a motion for a preliminary injunction, asking the court to quickly stop President Donald Trump, the USPS, and Postmaster General DeJoy from continuing down the path of slowing mail operations in lead up to Election Day.

“We know President Trump’s ultimate goal here is to depress turnout and disenfranchise millions of voters,” said Attorney General James. “The president’s actions are the same as those used in dictatorships and authoritarian governments, but we won’t sit idly by as he tries to suppress democracy and every American’s fundamental right to vote. We are filing this motion to stop the president dead in his tracks and to ensure every eligible voter has the opportunity to cast a ballot come November.”

Last week, Attorney General James led a coalition of states and cities from across the country in filing a lawsuit to stop the Trump Administration’s attempts to dismantle the USPS. The slowdown is already having life-threatening impacts on veterans and seniors who are not receiving medication and economic impacts on individuals waiting for pension checks and paychecks. As the United States nears the November presidential election, the USPS is also expected to handle a record number of mail-in ballots because of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

The attorneys general of Hawaii and New Jersey, as well as the city of New York, NY and the city and county of San Francisco, CA all joined Attorney General James in filing this lawsuit and today’s motion for a preliminary injunction.

This matter is being handled by Assistant Attorney General Daniela Nogueira, Special Counsel Morenike Fajana, and Chief Counsel for Federal Initiatives Matthew Colangelo — all of the Executive Division; Assistant Attorney General Lindsay McKenzie and Deputy Bureau Chief Elena Goldstein — both of the Civil Rights Burau; and Assistant Attorneys General Joshua Tallent and Laura Mirman-Heslin — both of the Environmental Protection Bureau. The Civil Rights Bureau and the Environmental Protection Bureau are both part of the Division for Social Justice. Both the Executive Division and the Division for Social Justice are overseen by First Deputy Attorney General Jennifer Levy.