President 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鈥檛 remove noncitizens from voter rolls.
Letters to states and grant application details are the latest in a line of actions by Trump鈥檚 administration to that have long been the job of states.
Courts have largely rejected the administration鈥檚 previous efforts, which reflect about 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鈥檚 power.
鈥淭he 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,鈥� said Rick Hasen, a UCLA law professor and the director of the Safeguarding Democracy Project. 鈥淪ome 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.鈥�
Justice Department warns election officials of prosecution
In letters sent Tuesday, to election officials for all 50 states and the District of Columbia 鈥� often secretaries of state 鈥� 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鈥檚 not clear the 50-state letter means anything except to restate some parts of the law, with a request to follow up, 鈥渨hich I鈥檓 sure many states will ignore.鈥�
The letter also warns that anyone who knowingly and willfully gives false information in registering to vote or voting would face criminal prosecution.
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 鈥� and around elections. FEMA expects to award 56 grants.
鈥淩ecipients can ensure that their efforts contribute to a secure, transparent, and resilient electoral process, thereby reinforcing public trust and the integrity of democratic institutions,鈥� 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.
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鈥檚 secretary of state, Democrat Tobias Read, accused the Justice Department of 鈥渒nocking on our door again with more threats and no evidence to back up their fever dreams about non-existent voter fraud.鈥�
Oregon elections are secure, accurate, and fair, he said, adding that he isn鈥檛 鈥渋ntimidated by political threats or manufactured controversy.鈥�
The Michigan secretary of state鈥檚 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 鈥� information that it said 鈥渋s either in the DOJ鈥檚 possession or easy reach.鈥�
鈥淲e will be happy to provide it again to help address any confusion,鈥� the office said in a statement.
In a statement, Ohio Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose defended the Justice Department鈥檚 missive to states, saying it鈥檚 reminding them of their legal obligation regarding election integrity. A lot of states aren鈥檛 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 in Georgia in the 2020 election and others trying to 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 to withdraw its proposed rule seeking to implement an order from Trump to create a list of eligible voters 鈥� and potentially limit who can receive a ballot in the mail. A court previously put the , saying it was unconstitutional.
Also last week, the Supreme Court rebuked Trump and ruled that 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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