Rich Fiesta, executive director of the Alliance for Retired Americans, joined the America's Work Force Union Podcast to discuss voter registration ahead of the November election, the Supreme Court's decision keeping injunctions in place against a Trump administration executive order that would have directed the Postal Service to withhold certain mail-in ballots and what those developments mean for older Americans who vote by mail at higher rates than any other age group.
Fiesta directed listeners to vote.org to check their registration status and polling location. He noted that several states, including North Carolina, have already begun sending mail-in ballots, and most states will send theirs in early to mid-October.
Fiesta also walked through the resources available at retiredamericans.org, including fact sheets on Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and prescription drug pricing, as well as the Alliance's annual congressional voting record dating back to 2001. It covers 10 key votes per year in the House and Senate.
- Voter registration should be verified by now, regardless of how long a voter has been registered. States have already begun sending mail-in ballots. Computer systems change, registration rolls are periodically updated, and polling locations shift. Fiesta encouraged people to use vote.org, which allows any voter to check registration status, confirm their name and address are current, and find their polling location.
- The Trump administration issued an executive order directing the Postal Service to withhold mail-in ballots from voters not on a White House-generated list, which Fiesta described as illegal on its face on multiple grounds. Courts in Massachusetts and Washington, D.C., issued injunctions blocking the order, and the Supreme Court kept those injunctions in place, preserving normal mail ballot procedures under state law for the November election.
- In the 2024 election, 40 percent of voters over the age of 65 cast their ballots by mail, a higher rate than any other age group. The Alliance for Retired Americans’ annual congressional voting record, available at retiredamericans.org, has information going back to 2001. It covers 10 key votes per year in both chambers and allows voters to assess how their representatives have voted on Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and prescription drug pricing.
Check Your Registration Now — Not Later
National Voter Registration Day has come and gone, but the window to act on what it highlighted is still open. Rich Fiesta said the single most important thing any voter can do right now is go to vote.org and confirm their registration is current. Name, address, status — all of it.
The reason to do it now rather than later is that states are starting to send out ballots. North Carolina sent mail-in ballots last week. Iowa and several other states are preparing to do the same in the first two weeks of October. Most states will have sent their ballots by mid-October. For voters who discover a problem with their registration, there is still time to fix it — but that window narrows quickly, Fiesta said.
Fiesta also noted that long-term voters should not assume their registration is intact. Computer systems change. Registration rolls are periodically purged. And polling locations shift more often than most voters realize. Vote.org has information on both registration status and current polling location, which is worth confirming before Election Day.
Registration deadlines vary by state and are typically around a month before the election, though some states allow same-day registration. Fiesta said the time to check is now, not when the deadline is 48 hours away.
The Mail Ballot Fight and the Supreme Court
Earlier this year, President Trump issued an executive order directing the U.S. Postal Service to withhold mail-in ballots from voters who were not on a list generated by the White House. Fiesta described Trump’s order as a directive to the Postal Service to censor mail based on a government-compiled list, which he believes would give executive branch control over the election process, when the Constitution explicitly reserves that right to the states.
Fiesta said federal law prohibits the Postal Service from censoring mail, and the Constitution assigns control over the date, time, place and registration processes of elections to the states. Multiple parties challenged the executive order in court. Judges in Massachusetts and Washington, DC issued injunctions blocking it. The Supreme Court declined to lift those injunctions, keeping them in place while the cases proceed toward a decision on the merits.
As a result, normal procedures will apply to the November election. States will send mail ballots under their own laws. The Postal Service will deliver them. Voters who choose to vote by mail can do so through the same process they have traditionally used.
Why This Matters More for Older Americans
Fiesta noted that the stakes of the mail ballot fight are particularly high for older Americans. In the 2024 election, 40 percent of voters over the age of 65 cast their ballots by mail, a higher rate than any other age group. For many older voters, mail balloting is not simply a preference; it is the most practical and accessible way to participate. It eliminates the need to stand in line, removes concerns about November weather and allows voters to participate on their own schedule in a secure and familiar way.
An executive order that would have disrupted mail ballot delivery would have fallen hardest on the age group that depends on it most.
Resources at RetiredAmericans.org
The Alliance for Retired Americans is marking its 25th anniversary this year. Its website, retiredamericans.org, offers a range of resources for older voters and their families. Fact sheets on Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and prescription drug pricing are written to be comprehensive and easy to read. The Alliance's annual congressional voting record covers 10 key votes in the House and Senate, dating back to 2001. It allows any voter to look up how their representative or senator has voted on the issues that matter most to retirees and seniors.
Fiesta's message is the same one the Alliance has carried since its founding: vote for the people who are on your side. The voting record is the tool that makes that assessment possible.
More information is available at retiredamericans.org. To check voter registration status and polling location, visit vote.org.
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