The Trump administration is actively seeking to access voting equipment from various states to strengthen election integrity, as reported by The Washington Post. The Department of Justice (DOJ) has reached out to at least nine states to ask for copies of voter rolls or to discuss potential access to their voting systems. This initiative is part of a larger effort by the Trump administration to tackle concerns over voter fraud prior to the mid-term elections in 2026.
In March, President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at preserving the integrity of U.S. elections. This directive mandates that all states require government-issued proof of U.S. citizenship for voter registration. It also ensures that Attorney General Pam Bondi collaborates with state election officials to monitor compliance and investigate any violations.
Trump recently expressed concerns on social media about the 2020 elections, claiming they were “merged, stolen,” and indicated similar attempts may happen in 2024. His comments suggest ongoing apprehensions about election security.
The DOJ’s outreach reportedly includes requests to states like Alaska, Colorado, Florida, Minnesota, Nevada, New York, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin. While some states, like Colorado and Florida, are already offering publicly accessible voter data, others are still deliberating over the DOJ’s requests.
In Alaska, the DOJ inquired about the rationale behind not removing voters from the rolls due to mental incompetence. In different states, officials have been questioned about their protocols for identifying and eliminating ineligible voters, including non-citizens.
A consultant associated with the White House, James Small, has been asking county clerks whether they would permit federal or third-party inspections of election equipment. Yet, there appears to be resistance among local officials to comply with these demands for increased transparency.
Carly Copps, a Republican clerk in Weld County, Colorado, expressed her concerns, stating, “That’s tough for me. For security reasons, no one has access to my voting equipment.”
Since Trump took office, election integrity has been a primary focus of his administration. The DOJ reportedly sued Orange County, California, last June for not providing essential documents proving that officials were excluding non-citizens from voter rolls. Furthermore, in May, a lawsuit was filed against North Carolina, asserting that the state could not keep an accurate voter registration list in line with federal laws.
In contrast, the Democratic National Committee, along with several affiliated organizations and leaders, has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration regarding the executive order on election integrity. Neither the White House nor the DOJ commented on inquiries from the Daily Caller News Foundation.
