Ben Sheehan explains why Trump cannot nationalize the midterm elections.
Elections are run at the state and local level — it is spelled out in article one, section four of the Constitution. State and county governments, all 3200 of them, decide everything from the number of polling places in your state to the budget for each precinct, to whether or not you can vote early or by mail. The president has no involvement in any of these decisions.
The only involvement the federal government does have in the midterms is if Congress were to pass a law that would affect congressional elections, only a bill that can be filibustered in the Senate. Also, there’s the Election Assistance Commission which can offer advice and money to states and counties to help run their elections. But those states and counties don’t have to accept it. That’s it. The president has no involvement or say in the midterms at all. But what could Trump try to do?
He could try to use the Department of Justice to get information on registered voters, like we just saw in Minnesota. The attorney general, Pam Bondi, said that she would remove ICE and Border Patrol agents from Minneapolis in exchange for the state’s voter rolls, to which the state secretary of state said “no thank you,” which is honestly too polite.
Or, as Steve Bannon just suggested, Trump could send ICE and Border Patrol agents to polling places. If that happens, ignore those people and walk past them. Or if you’re worried about encountering them at all, vote early or by mail. Lastly, Trump could try to use the Department of Justice to open investigations into state and county elections offices like we’re seeing right now in Fulton County, Georgia.
But all of these actions are subject to lawsuits, which should be quick for judges to decide since the Constitution is clear on this. So if you’re worried, here’s what you can do:
Call and pressure your state and county elections officials. This could be your state elections board, your secretary of state, your county board of supervisors or commissioners or your county clerk. Call them and tell them not to comply with the White House’s demands. You can also have your state legislators and governor pass and sign laws to safeguard or state’s elections, or have your state attorney general sue the White House if it oversteps. Call and tell these people who work for you that they need to have a plan in place for when the White House tries to mess with elections. They probably do anyway, but they should hear it from you.
Check your own voter registration daily, just to make sure that you have not been removed from the voter rolls.
If you’re worried about what can happen at the polls, sign up to be a poll worker. Power the Polls is a great way to do this really easily and get yourself on the front lines guarding our elections. And please do it soon because the primaries are coming up in March.
This is a lot, but it’s important to pay attention to real threats while ignoring fake ones. The president cannot cancel the midterms. The president cannot use the military and invoke martial law and have the military enforce local, federal, and state law, especially around elections. It’s not a thing that’s possible in the Constitution legally or practically.
Ben Sheehan is a political commentator and digital creator. He specializes in civics education, which is showcased in his latest book, What Does the Constitution Actually Say?: A Non-Boring Guide to How Our Democracy Is Supposed to Work. Check out his Substack, Politics Made Easy.
