October 8, 2026, 3:28 p.m. ET
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court has for the second time sided with the Trump administration in a dispute over radio and television advertising rates that could help the Republican Party maintain control of Congress in the November election.
The justices on Oct. 8 blocked for now a lower court’s effort to stop what the appeals court called a “maneuvering” by the federal agency that regulates the airways.
The Richmond-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the Federal Communications Commission was intentionally delaying responding to Democratic candidates’ objections to a new policy to prevent courts from intervening before the midterm elections.
On October 7, the appeals court gave the FCC two days to issue its decision.
The Supreme Court suspended that order at the request of the Trump administration, issuing a temporary ruling that ends the immediate delay. The justices asked Democrats to respond to the administration’s appeal by October 10.
In September, the justices also ruled in favor of the Republicans, ruling that the appeals court could not block the policy before the FCC completed its internal review of the Democrats’ complaint.
As an election approaches, states are required by federal law to grant their lowest rates to “any person legally qualified as a candidate for public office in connection with his or her campaign.”
In March, the Federal Communications Commission said that applied to ads run by political parties in coordination with candidates — not just ads paid for by the candidates themselves.
Four Democrats running for the House or Senate in battleground races, including Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff, have disputed that interpretation.
Republicans, who are trying to fend off a blue wave to protect their majorities in the House and Senate, stand to benefit from the high court’s intervention because their political committees have raised far more money than Democratic Party committees. That could help the Republican Party close resource gaps in key races where Democratic candidates have outpaced Republicans.
In its Oct. 7 ruling, the appeals court — divided 2-1 on the issue — said the FCC was trying to “create from scratch a new rule completely outside of judicial review.”
The court said it had given the FCC “substantial pardon, but its shenanigans must stop.”
In an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court, the Justice Department said the FCC was continuing to take public comment on the policy “and it was also entirely reasonable to refrain from issuing a ruling on campaign finance rules in the middle of the election season.”
Gn headline
