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Reuters
a day ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Does Trump have the power to ban mail-in ballots in U.S. elections?
Aug 19 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump wants to ban mail-in ballots in federal elections, a form of voting popular with many Americans. About three in 10 ballots were cast through the mail in the 2024 general election, according to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. Trump, a Republican, does not have clear legal authority to do this, though his allies in Congress and state governments could enact policies barring the practice. Here is a look at Trump's authority and how the law could be changed. Only states and the U.S. Congress can pass laws regulating elections. A unilateral ban by the president on mail-in ballots would likely exceed Trump's limited authority to enforce existing law. In a Monday social media post, Trump said mail-in ballots are susceptible to fraud and that he would lead a movement to ban them, beginning with an executive order bringing "honesty" to the November 2026 midterm elections. Republicans have filed scores of lawsuits seeking to end mail-in voting in recent years, citing possible fraud. Democrats generally support mail-in ballots as a way to expand access to voting. Voter fraud in the U.S. is extremely rare, multiple studies have shown. White House representatives provided a general statement about Trump's election policies but did not answer questions about his legal authority to ban mail-in ballots or what an executive order would say. States are responsible for administering their votes under the U.S. Constitution, and Republican-controlled legislatures could pass laws banning mail-in ballots so long as they do not conflict with federal law. Congress could ban the use of mail-in ballots in federal elections and override state laws protecting their use, but Trump's Republican Party has slim majorities in Congress and would face difficulty getting past opposition by Democrats. Republicans hold 53 Senate seats. To pass a mail-in ballot ban they would need to end the filibuster, a longstanding tradition requiring 60 of the chamber's 100 members to approve most legislation. State and federal laws banning mail-in voting could be challenged in court as unconstitutional impediments to voting. Presidents in the U.S. have some discretion in enforcing election laws, and Trump could try to use those powers to end or restrict mail-in voting, though it is unclear how. In June, a federal judge blocked parts of an executive order by Trump requiring voters to prove they are U.S. citizens and attempting to prevent states from counting mail-in ballots received after Election Day. The Trump administration is appealing. "The Constitution does not grant the president any specific powers over elections," said U.S. District Judge Denise Casper, an appointee of Democratic President Barack Obama.
Fox News
01-08-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Senate Republicans launch crackdown on DC permitting illegal immigrants, noncitizens to vote in elections
EXCLUSIVE: Senate Republicans, led by Alabama Sen. Katie Britt, are gearing up to wield their federal oversight powers to force Washington, D.C., to demand an end to what they call the capital's dangerous experiment of allowing illegal immigrants and noncitizens to vote in local elections. The development follows reports that roughly 400 noncitizens voted in the 2024 general election, with about 100 participating in the primary. Federal law supremacy prohibits state or local jurisdictions from allowing illegal immigrants from voting in federal elections, since a measure by then-Rep. C.W. Young, R-Fla., called the IIRAIRA passed in 1996. However, state and municipal leaders have the ability to allow illegal immigrants to vote in lower-tier elections, and Washington, D.C., is one of several that has. Congress, meanwhile, has unique constitutionally-explicit leverage over the governance of the District on any matter, including local affairs and the overturning of council-passed laws. Britt's bill would prohibit noncitizens from voting in District elections and repeal the Local Resident Voting Rights Amendment Act of 2022 – which the City Council passed that authorized noncitizen voting in municipal elections. "This isn't just about local school boards or fixing potholes. This is about the direction of our nation's capital," Britt said. "In the city representing the strongest democracy in the world, the D.C. City Council chose to flagrantly violate one of democracy's core principles. This is a slap in the face to every American citizen, whether they live in DC or not, who should be the only voters deciding who represents them in every election and at every level of government. "I am hopeful we gain bipartisan support in the Senate for this commonsense bill--it is our duty to protect the votes of hardworking American citizens and those who came to our country legally and took the time and effort to go through the naturalization process. Ultimately, this is about strengthening the integrity of our elections." Noncitizen voters spoke to the Washington Post after the last election, including a woman named Ana Lemus who came to the U.S. more than a decade ago from El Salvador. Her daughter, who was 4 years old at the time, said she is voting to help address "wealth inequality and police brutality" among other concerns. In the House, Rep. August Pflueger, R-Texas, is championing companion legislation. While Britt's bill so far only has Republican co-sponsors, Pflueger's effort has garnered about 50 Democratic supporters. In addition to Washington, select communities in Maryland, New York and Vermont – plus California in certain school board races – allow illegal immigrant voting. The first city to allow it was Takoma Park, Maryland, back in 1992. Current Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., helped spearhead that "Share The Vote" effort in the community, which abuts the nation's capital to its northeast.
Fox News
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Conservative legal group presses agency to act on Trump's voter citizenship mandate despite court injunctions
Pro-Trump legal advocacy nonprofit America First Legal (AFL) is calling on the federal Election Assistance Commission (EAC) to begin requiring proof of citizenship for all federal voter registration applicants after the president's effort to do so by executive order was blocked by the courts. AFL filed a petition on Wednesday with the EAC, calling on the agency to amend the national voter registration form to require applicants to provide any one of the following documents proving U.S. citizenship: a U.S. passport, birth certificate, consular report of birth abroad, certificate of naturalization, certificate of citizenship, state-issued REAL-ID compliant license, or other reliable government-issued identification. The move follows a March executive order issued by President Donald Trump, titled "Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections," which sought to compel the EAC to begin requiring a proof of citizenship requirement on the national voter registration form, in addition to other provisions pertaining to the prohibition of non-citizen voting. Trump's move has been slammed by critics who have argued that it is already illegal for non-U.S. citizens to vote in federal elections. However, a hopeful voter does not need to provide any proof of citizenship and can just self-attest. The portion of Trump's March executive order calling on the EAC to amend the national voter registration form and require all states to comply and use it was ultimately blocked by multiple federal judges following lawsuits that challenged Trump's authority. In AFL's petition to the EAC, the group argues that even though the legal challenges and their resulting temporary injunctions from federal judges are still being adjudicated, the injunctions "are based entirely on separation of powers principles," which leaves the EAC with room "to take commonsense election integrity measures on its own volition." "The executive order used spending powers to have the EAC ensure state election officers were enforcing the law by requiring proof of citizenship," Vice President of America first Legal, Daniel Epstein, further clarified to Fox News Digital. "What we are doing is forcing a change in the forms EAC distributes and we have the ability to enforce in court." Fox News Digital reached out to the EAC for comment but did not receive a response.
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
What is the president's role in federal elections?
President Trump continues to talk about his role in changing how federal elections are conducted. But did the founders intend for the executive to get involved in the process? CBS News election law expert and political contributor David Becker explains.
