Tag

#2026 midterms

4 incidents

Grade 3 of 5: Serious Rights Violation

Supreme Court Revives DHS 'SAVE' Voter-Citizenship Database Ruled Unlawful, Weeks Before the Midterms (September 2026)

DHS turned SAVE, a benefits-eligibility tool, into a mass voter-citizenship checker by pulling in Social Security numbers and other federal records. A federal judge found that unlawful and found that eligible citizens had their registrations cancelled after being wrongly flagged. Weeks before the midterms, and inside the 90-day pre-election period, the Supreme Court let DHS resume using the system while the appeal continues, over a dissent warning that the harm of disenfranchising 'even a few lawful voters' outweighs any harm to the government.

Grade 1 of 5: Significant Democratic Concern

White House Airs Taxpayer-Funded Pro-Trump TV Ads on Fox News and Newsmax Ahead of the Midterms (September 2026)

Six weeks before the midterm elections, the White House used public money to air a campaign-style ad glorifying the president on Fox News and Newsmax. It called the spot a patriotic public service announcement. Democrats asked federal watchdogs to investigate whether it breaks the long-standing ban on spending appropriated funds on 'publicity or propaganda' and the Hatch Act. No watchdog finding had been issued as of this entry's last update.

Grade 2 of 5: Major Abuse of Power

Trump Removes Every Remaining Election Assistance Commissioner Months Before the Midterms (July 2026)

Trump emptied the Election Assistance Commission, the only federal agency dedicated solely to election administration, firing its two Democratic commissioners by email and accepting the Republican's resignation. The White House said the firings were authorized by the Supreme Court's new removal-power ruling. The agency cannot update voting-system guidelines or take other formal votes until new commissioners are confirmed. It had been sitting on a pending demand, pressed by Trump's 2025 election order, to require documentary proof of citizenship on the federal registration form.

Grade 4 of 5: Critical Rights and Rule-of-Law Concern

Executive Order on Elections: Voter Suppression and Presidential Seizure of Election Administration

An executive order attempting unprecedented presidential control over federal elections — requiring proof of citizenship to register, decertifying voting machines in 39 states, restricting mail ballots, and demanding state voter files — struck down by three federal courts as unconstitutional but partially implemented by compliant states ahead of the 2026 midterms.