The Trump administration has intensified its efforts to challenge election procedures ahead of the midterm vote, while many of its initiatives have encountered resistance from federal courts, state officials and election experts.
Led by Attorney General Todd Blanche, the Justice Department has sought access to unredacted voter rolls, challenged state election practices and warned officials about possible criminal consequences over the handling of election records. The department has also repeatedly raised concerns about alleged noncitizen voting, although the article notes that verified cases are extremely rare and that bipartisan investigations have not supported claims of widespread activity.
On Thursday, the department sent letters to election officials in all 50 states warning that criminal action could follow if election records were not preserved for 22 days. A federal judge had earlier criticized similar threats made by the administration in another case.
Legal experts said the actions could help create uncertainty around the election even when the underlying lawsuits fail. Shelby Wayment of UCLA’s Safeguarding Democracy Project said the strategy could allow the administration to question the legitimacy of the results after the vote. The Justice Department rejected that characterization, saying it was following the facts and the law rather than a political timetable.
According to a Brennan Center analysis cited in the article, federal district courts have ruled against the Trump administration 34 times since 2025 in cases involving access to voter rolls and executive orders. Former Justice Department official Justin Levitt described many of the initiatives as efforts to project control, while emphasizing that elections are administered by state and local authorities.
In California, the Justice Department sued to force the state to sequester mail ballots linked to approximately 20,000 voters it said were noncitizens. A federal judge rejected the request in a strongly worded order, and a subsequent appeal was denied. The judge questioned both the administration’s allegations and how it had calculated the figure.
A review of the department’s list by the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights found that more than 40 percent of the names were not present in California’s current voter files, according to a court filing cited by the article. The Justice Department disputed the group’s handling of the data and asked a judge to consider possible contempt proceedings. It also issued grand jury subpoenas to local election officials.
In Alaska, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent certification of the Senate result if Democrat Mary Peltola wins. The case concerns a spoiler candidate whose name resembles that of Republican incumbent Daniel Sullivan. Alaska’s Supreme Court had previously ruled that the candidate could remain on the ballot.
Alaska Governor Michael Dunleavy ordered an investigation into whether state charges could be brought against Peltola and said he could not commit to certifying her victory while the investigation continued. A federal judge later dismissed the Justice Department’s lawsuit, ruling that its request likely conflicted with voters’ right to a secret ballot. The department then asked an appeals court to reverse that decision.
The Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security have also made claims about alleged noncitizen voters in Nevada and Washington. DHS initially said more than 270,000 noncitizen voters had been identified across four states, including Nevada. Its reported figure for Nevada later fell from 15,903 people to 185, but Nevada officials said their records showed that those individuals were citizens and that the federal government had provided no substantive evidence otherwise.
In Washington, the Justice Department said federal data indicated that about 400 noncitizens were registered to vote and asked officials to isolate their ballots. Secretary of State Steve Hobbs criticized the timing of the request and said the department had not provided individualized evidence, explained how the list had been compiled or identified its sources.
A separate lawsuit in Texas, filed by the Potter County Republican Party, seeks to prevent certification unless all ballots are counted by hand. The filing cites alleged risks from artificial intelligence and voting-machine components manufactured in China, but the article says those claims were presented without evidence. Levitt dismissed the lawsuit as lacking seriousness.
David Becker of the Center for Election Innovation and Research said he expected the administration to raise doubts or challenge results if the election did not go as President Trump wanted. At the same time, he said courts and election institutions had so far resisted the administration’s efforts.
Sources: WIRED.