How Trump’s Plan To End Mail-In Voting Could Hurt College Students

In the past few years, voting has been a heavily legislated facet of American politics. The 2024 presidential election cycle saw 10 states enact new voter ID laws for in-person voting, and in 22 states, a slew of 38 new regulations affected those trying to vote either absentee or by mail, including shortening the time frame to request or return a mail-in ballot and reducing the locations mail-in ballots could be dropped. Now, a little more than a year out from the 2026 midterm elections, President Donald Trump has proposed another piece of legislation: end all voting by mail. 

In an Aug. 18 meeting with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Trump said, “We’re going to start with an executive order that’s being written right now by the best lawyers in the country to end mail-in ballots because they’re corrupt.” (He also said he wants to eliminate the use of voting machines, but that’s a whole other conversation).

This declaration has raised immediate concern for a vast number of people across the country, especially people of color and low-income communities. In 2022, 21% of Black voters, 38% of Hispanic voters, and 55% of Asian voters used mail-in ballots. Additionally, 63% lower-income individuals (those making less than $15,000 a year) mailed in their ballots as well.  

And you know another group that would be hit hard by this potential change? College students. 

College Students Rely On Voting By Mail

In the 2024 election, 47% of young people (aged 18-29) voted — and of these voters, 28% voted by mail, and another 10% dropped their ballot in a drop box. (FWIW, Trump has yet to give his opinion on drop boxes.) Clearly, voting by mail is a popular choice for Gen Zers — and especially so for college students.

For the almost 20% of college students who attend school outside of their home state, mail-in ballots are crucial for providing access to voting. When students move to another state for school, they are able to gain residency in their college state, which in turn allows them to vote in the state of their school. However, this process takes time — 12 months in most states — and requires students to provide documentation of their residency (such as bills, paystubs, and other legal documents). In addition to proving their new residency, students must also sever ties with their previous home state, meaning little to no financial activity in their previous home, and few to no trips back. Students who move onto their campus or college town in the summer won’t be eligible to vote in that state until the following November — and that’s assuming they manage to follow all the prescribed protocols correctly. It’s a taxing process, meaning many students opt to be absentee voters — instead just voting by mail via their home state, another completely legal option (for now, that is).

Even college students living in their home state will face many barriers to civic engagement if Trump ends mail-in voting; this could include being unable to get time off work or school to vote in person, not having reliable transportation to get to the polls, or not having the required form of ID to vote in person (since some states don’t allow the use of student IDs for identification purposes). 

Can Trump Actually End Mail-In Voting?

While Trump has made his intention to restrict mail-in ballots clear, he doesn’t actually have the authority to restrict mail-in ballots on the national level via an executive order. As stated in Article I, Section IV of the Constitution: “The Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof …” This effectively gives states the individual power to decide what manners of voting are acceptable for their citizens.

That said, state laws may be amended by Congress, as Article I, Section IV of the Constitution also states: “… the Congress may at any time by Law make or alter such Regulations, except as to the Places of [choosing] Senators.” So basically, Trump cannot outlaw mail-in ballots by executive order alone… but he can use his power to embolden states to become more restrictive in their voting laws, or to encourage lawmakers in Congress to draft such a bill. 

For young voters wanting to ensure mail-in voting remains intact, you take action by familiarizing yourself with your rights, getting friends informed and involved, and calling up your lawmakers and representatives to encourage them to fight for mail-in voting. 

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