Jul 10, 2026 16:28 pm IST

Opinion | By Trump, For Trump: Inside The Murky Election Crisis America Is Sleepwalking Into

Trump has learnt that overturning an election after losing is extraordinarily difficult. This time, he is shaping the battlefield before America votes.

Brig (Retd) Anil Raman Brig (Retd) Anil Raman Columnist

Brig (Retd) Anil Raman Columnist

On July 9, President Donald Trump removed the remaining leadership of the US Election Assistance Commission, the bipartisan federal agency that supports the administration of American elections. The two Democratic commissioners learned of their dismissal through an email from the White House Presidential Personnel Office; the sole Republican commissioner resigned. With less than four months before the November midterm elections, the commission was left without commissioners.

Two days earlier, the Justice Department had warned election officials in all 50 states and Washington, DC, that they could face criminal prosecution if they knowingly retained non-citizens on voter rolls or facilitated their voting. The administration has also begun using federal funding to pressure states to change election practices, while continuing its attempts to obtain state voter data.

These actions form part of a four-pronged strategy. The first seeks to shape who can vote, through citizenship requirements, access to voter rolls, and pressure on registration officials. The second seeks to shape how votes are cast and counted, through interventions in mail voting, voting machines, and election administration. The third seeks to shape how votes translate into political power, most visibly through mid-decade redistricting. The fourth creates the institutional and political conditions for contesting an adverse result.

In 2020, Trump tried to reverse the election after Americans had voted. In 2026, the effort has moved to precede the contest.His administration is acting before the election to shape its rules, institutions, and administrative environment, while preparing the ground from which an unfavourable result can later be challenged.

Deciding Who Gets to Vote

The campaign began soon after Trump returned to office. On March 25, 2025, he signed an executive order titled "Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections". Among other measures, it sought documentary proof of citizenship for the federal voter-registration form, changes affecting mail ballots received after election day, and greater federal access to state voter information.

Federal judges struck down key provisions, and the administration shifted to other instruments. The Justice Department........

© NDTV