The Trump administration is ramping up pressure on states to change
election practices
[July 09, 2026]
By GEOFF MULVIHILL and MARC LEVY
President Donald Trump’s administration is threatening to withhold some
federal funding from states that don't make changes to voting practices
and is warning state election officials that they face arrest if they
don’t remove noncitizens from voter rolls.
Letters to states and grant application details are the latest in a line
of actions by Trump’s administration to shape details of running
elections that have long been the job of states.
Courts have largely rejected the administration’s previous efforts,
which reflect untrue claims about widespread voting fraud and come less
than four months ahead of crucial midterm elections where Democrats seek
to take control of one or both chambers of Congress and check Trump’s
power.
“The overall point is that Trump is trying to use whatever levers of
power and persuasive power that he might have to try to interfere with
how states and localities are going to conduct the 2026 election,” said
Rick Hasen, a UCLA law professor and the director of the Safeguarding
Democracy Project. “Some of this is aimed at changing how the rules are
conducted. Some of it appears to be aimed at undermining voter
confidence in the integrity of the election process.”
Justice Department warns election officials of prosecution
In letters sent Tuesday, to election officials for all 50 states and the
District of Columbia — often secretaries of state — the Department of
Justice's Civil Rights Division said they and other election
administrators could face criminal charges if they knowingly allow
nonvoters to vote or remain on voting rolls.
It also called on the states to tell the federal government within five
days how they intend to comply with the law.
Derek Muller, a law professor at the University of Notre Dame who
specializes in election law, said it’s not clear the 50-state letter
means anything except to restate some parts of the law, with a request
to follow up, “which I’m sure many states will ignore.”
The letter also warns that anyone who knowingly and willfully gives
false information in registering to vote or voting would face criminal
prosecution.
Robert Weiner, director of the voting rights project for the Lawyers
Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said the rate of voting by
noncitizens is “infinitesimally small,” and he suggested the
government's actions are motivated by factors other than securing
elections.
"I predict that the president is trying to create chaos and then use
that chaos to take drastic measures in states that oppose his policies
or to refuse to recognize the results of the elections in those states,”
Weiner said.
Antiterrorism grants include election requirements
A Federal Emergency Management Agency antiterrorism grant announcement
in June includes a list of election-related requirements, saying that
20% of grants for states and urban areas would be withheld until they
comply.
The program includes more than $1 billion for states and local and
tribal governments for a variety of programs aimed at preventing terror
at crowded places, online, with border security — and around elections.
FEMA expects to award 56 grants.
“Recipients can ensure that their efforts contribute to a secure,
transparent, and resilient electoral process, thereby reinforcing public
trust and the integrity of democratic institutions,” the grant
announcement says, noting that securing election infrastructure is a
national security priority.
The list of items for states includes verifying the citizenship of all
registered voters and election workers.
Places that use electronic voting systems that use bar codes or QR codes
to count votes would have to submit plans to switch to hand-marked paper
ballots. Every jurisdiction would have to show it audits results.
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Danielle Grisolano brings her dogs Lincoln and Pepper with her to
vote in the Democratic primaries at Denver Public Library, Tuesday,
June 30, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/Rebecca Slezak)
UCLA's Hasen said it could be difficult even for states that want to
comply. It's too close to the midterm election to make some of the
changes, he said, and some would require state legislatures to pass
new laws.
The White House on Wednesday referred questions to FEMA, which did
not immediately respond to an interview request.
Response from states appears to be partisan
Some states are pushing back, while others are defending the latest
actions.
They seem to be breaking along party lines.
Oregon’s secretary of state, Democrat Tobias Read, accused the
Justice Department of “knocking on our door again with more threats
and no evidence to back up their fever dreams about non-existent
voter fraud.”
Oregon elections are secure, accurate, and fair, he said, adding
that he isn’t “intimidated by political threats or manufactured
controversy.”
The Michigan secretary of state’s office, headed by Democrat Jocelyn
Benson, said it has discussed its work repeatedly with the Justice
Department and in public statements, congressional hearings and
court testimony — information that it said “is either in the DOJ’s
possession or easy reach.”
“We will be happy to provide it again to help address any
confusion,” the office said in a statement.
In a statement, Ohio Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose
defended the Justice Department’s missive to states, saying it’s
reminding them of their legal obligation regarding election
integrity. A lot of states aren’t taking it seriously, he said
without giving examples or citing evidence. He said Ohio has worked
with the federal government to ensure that its voter rolls are
accurate and that only U.S. citizens vote.
Georgia's secretary of state's office says the state has already
taken many of the actions required in the FEMA grant, including a
citizenship audit of voter rolls.
Several of Trump's election actions have faced resistance
Trump has repeatedly and wrongly asserted that fraud cost him
reelection in 2020, and his administration has put forth a series of
policies and actions aimed at how elections are run.
In recent days, courts have rejected the Justice Department's effort
to collect the names and contact information for every election
worker in Georgia in the 2020 election and others trying to force
New Hampshire and Pennsylvania to turn over detailed information
about registered voters. With those rulings, the federal government
has lost similar cases more than 10 times around its requests for
details from 30 states and the District of Columbia.
Last week, a group of Democratic governors asked the U.S. Postal
Service to withdraw its proposed rule seeking to implement an order
from Trump to create a list of eligible voters — and potentially
limit who can receive a ballot in the mail. A court previously put
the order on hold, saying it was unconstitutional.
Also last week, the Supreme Court rebuked Trump and ruled that
states can count mailed ballots that arrive after Election Day.
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Associated Press reporters Gabriela Aoun Angueira, Bill Barrow, Kate
Brumback and Josh Kelety contributed to this article.
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