Concerns Rise Over Potential Election Interference Ahead of 2026 Midterms

With Republicans facing the possibility of losing their current slim majority in the House—or less likely, the Senate—in the upcoming 2026 midterm elections, former President Trump has made clear his intentions to challenge the fairness and integrity of the electoral process.

In a social media message posted on Monday, he accused Democrats of unprecedented levels of cheating and announced plans to issue an executive order targeting what he described as "massive voter fraud" to "restore honesty" in the 2026 midterms. He also vowed to lead efforts to eliminate mail-in ballots, along with voting machines he labeled as "highly inaccurate," costly, and controversial. Contrary to his claim that only the United States uses mail-in voting, many other democracies, including Canada and the United Kingdom, also employ this method. Furthermore, his assertion that states act merely as federal agents in vote counting is both legally incorrect and politically fraught, raising serious concerns about federal interference in state-run elections.

The apprehension that such actions could undermine the 2026 elections is grounded in recent history—after all, there was an attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Even if Republicans lose control of the House and Senate, these claims risk delegitimizing future Democratic victories among his supporters.

By promoting the narrative that Democrats can only win through cheating, he asserted that the party is "virtually unelectable" without what he calls the "completely disproven Mail-In scam." These accusations contribute to deepening political polarization and foster an environment of persistent conflict, as described by insiders close to him who speak of "maximum warfare, everywhere, all the time."

The responsibility to safeguard American democracy now increasingly falls on states, judicial systems, and the electorate to resist further erosion of electoral integrity.

For many years, experts have advocated for a national, nonpartisan administration of elections akin to other modern democracies. Instead, the United States operates a highly decentralized system where states hold primary authority, delegating election administration and ballot counting to county-level officials. This patchwork of varied voting rules, equipment, and personnel has proven inefficient and poses significant risks, especially in an era of heightened polarization where any local error can fuel allegations of stolen or mishandled elections.