“President Donald Trump continued on Monday to sow unfounded doubt about mail-in voting ahead of the midterm elections, despite encouraging Republicans to vote any way they can,” ABC News reports.
“Trump’s remarks came amid a meeting at the White House with the 2020 election denier Tina Peters on Monday.”
“The 2026 midterms are shaping up to be the most intensely observed, recorded, dissected and challenged election in American history,” Axios reports.
“A small army of partisan and nonpartisan observers will show up. So will a surge of Justice Department monitors, organizers looking for signs of ICE and citizen journalists broadcasting their search for illegal voting in real time.”
“President Donald Trump declared ‘Voting in America is CORRUPT’ in a late-night Truth Social post on Sunday as he seized on Brazil’s presidential election to renew his attacks on the way ballots are counted in the United States,” Mediaite reports.
A new Public Policy Institute of California/Independent Voter Project poll in California finds Xavier Beccara (D) leading Steve Hilton (R) in the governor’s race, 48% to 38%.
“Democratic state officials and organizations across the country are preparing for a scenario in which the Trump administration deploys federal agents to the polls in November,” the Washington Sun reports.
“The administration has said it has no plans to send federal agents to polling locations on Election Day. But President Donald Trump and some of his close advisers have left voting rights organizations and state officials uneasy after deflecting when asked about whether they will be deployed.”
“U.S. intelligence agencies are monitoring schemes by Russia and other adversaries to meddle in the midterm elections, but countering those threats has been complicated by the Trump administration’s slashing of the federal government’s election security infrastructure,” the Washington Post reports.
“President Trump, who has long staged a rhetorical and legal assault against voting by mail even as he used the method himself to cast his ballots, released a video on Saturday urging Republicans to vote early and by mail in the midterm election,” the New York Times reports.
Said Trump: “Vote early. Vote by mail. Or vote in person on Election Day.”
“It was the latest contortion from Mr. Trump on mail balloting. He has for years promoted unfounded claims that mail voting is rife with fraud, while working to restrict the practice for Americans, an effort that has been stymied by lawmakers and the courts. As recently as July, he said ‘mail-in ballots are inherently corrupt.'”
“For America’s two major political parties, Nov. 3 is shaping up to be an Election Day of mutual distrust. The proof is in the deluge of litigation already filed in courthouses around the country,” the New York Times reports.
“The Trump administration is heading into the midterms fixated on the unfounded claim that voter registration by noncitizens is a widespread problem. The Democrats, noting that President Trump tried to overturn his 2020 election loss — and that he recently encouraged his followers to ‘cheat like hell’ in the midterms — are bracing for what they say will be an onslaught of Republican tactics, from the intimidation of voters to the potential seizure of ballots.”
“The specific contours of these anxieties are evident in the scores of election-related lawsuits filed by the two parties and their allies. They are concerned with matters as granular as the proper way to seal a ballot envelope in North Carolina, and as sweeping as the role of the federal government in an election system that is, per the Constitution, administered by the states.”
“Election Day is still a month away, but more than 690,000 Americans have already voted across at least 29 states. There are signs emerging of the advantage Democrats have in motivating their voters – a trend that’s played out in polling all summer long,” CNN reports.
“In several states with key Senate or governor races this fall, Democrats make up a larger share of voters requesting ballots so far than they did at this point in 2024.”
“A federal judge on Monday blocked the authority of President Donald Trump’s administration to withhold some federal counterterrorism funding from states that don’t meet its election administration demands,” the Associated Press reports.
“Courts have largely rejected the administration’s previous efforts, which reflect untrue claims about widespread voting fraud and come ahead of November’s midterm elections where Democrats seek to take control of one or both chambers of Congress and check Trump’s power.”
ProPublica: “According to several people knowledgeable about the discussions, the administration initially floated an idea that would have virtually shut down mail voting: requiring all ballots to be delivered exclusively through certified mail. The proposal — which would have required voters to be home and sign for delivery of their ballots — was ultimately abandoned, after vehement Postal Service objections that it would have been impossible to execute.”
“Even after the idea fizzled, Postal Service officials were cut out of crucial conversations as the Trump administration moved forward with what became the final executive order, two people familiar with the matter said. Issued in March, its contents came as a shock even to the Postal Service’s lawyers.”
“Trump’s order would have forced postal workers to serve as gatekeepers, deciding which ballots would be delivered and which wouldn’t. Beyond that, it would have inexplicably handed authority over the plan’s execution to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who has no formal oversight over the Postal Service.”
“One major variable hanging over the midterm elections has nothing to do with gas prices, campaign funding, or candidate quality,” Bloomberg reports.
“It’s about Donald Trump’s far-reaching attempts to use the power of the federal government to shape who votes, and how.”
“After his flailing attempt to overturn the 2020 election, Trump is taking a more systematic approach this year to transform the nation’s electoral system, with aides more willing to back up his debunked claims of massive voter fraud.”
“The effort so far has involved or attempted to involve the departments of Homeland Security, State, Justice, and Commerce, the Postal Service, the former head of national intelligence, and FBI.”
“Voting records in Georgia and Nevada show Georgia House candidate David Dillie (D) cast ballots in both states in the 2026 primary elections,” the Atlanta Journal-Consitution reports.
“The State Department is ‘assessing’ how to share passport information with state and local governments, as well as some nonprofit groups, ahead of the midterm elections,” NewsNation reports.
“According to a department spokesperson, the goal is to share the information in a way that ‘protects Americans’ data, deters fraud and supports the integrity of U.S. citizenship.'”
“Election experts have warned Donald Trump’s administration could use the crucial hours and days after November’s midterm elections to disrupt the results after struggling to enforce a crackdown on voting,” The Guardian reports.
“With less than six weeks remaining until polls close, and control of U.S. Congress in the balance, the post-election ‘counting window’ is seen as as a particularly vulnerable moment by former U.S. federal government officials.”
“The Supreme Court on Friday allowed the federal government to deploy its own immigration database to check voters’ citizenship, greenlighting a key part of the Trump administration’s push to expand its role in elections,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“The administration has also threatened prosecutions of elections officials and is preparing to send poll monitors to a swath of states. Other efforts—such as getting the Postal Service to impose new restrictions on mail-in ballots—have been blocked by the courts for the midterms.”
“Many states say they now see the federal government as an adversary on elections, with tensions and confusion already running high across multiple fronts.”
“Friday’s Supreme Court ruling clearing the way for states to use a sweeping online system to identify ineligible voters is a victory for the Trump administration, which has routinely promoted unfounded claims of widespread illegal voting by noncitizens,” the New York Times reports.
“But the impact of the decision on the November midterm elections is likely to be limited, according to election law experts.”
“The Supreme Court on Friday cleared the way for states to use the federal government’s overhauled immigration database to purge noncitizens from voter rolls ahead of the midterms,” the Washington Sun reports.
“The unsigned decision sided with the Department of Homeland Security, which sought to revive the modified system — which contained Social Security information and other individual data — after U.S. District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan ordered it shut down in June. Three justices dissented from the decision.”
New York Times: Supreme Court allows federal voter identification tool ahead of midterms.
Taegan Goddard
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire -- which for more than two decades has been one of the nation's most influential political news sites.
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