President Donald Trump, set to deliver a primetime address on election integrity, poses what analysts call one of the gravest threats to free and fair elections in American history. Despite his rhetoric, Trump is actively working to tilt the electoral playing field in favor of Republicans ahead of the midterm elections, according to critics.
Trump’s efforts to prevent Democrats from gaining control of Congress include pushing voter suppression measures and continuing to falsely claim he won the 2020 election. That lie, which he has repeated for years, could have deadly consequences, experts warn, as it fuels distrust and violence.
The president has also endangered national security by tasking hundreds of FBI agents and intelligence officials with proving his baseless 2020 victory, diverting resources from counterterrorism efforts against threats from Iran and other adversaries. Meanwhile, his administration has withheld 20 percent of $1 billion in annual terrorism preparedness grants from states that refuse to adopt voter ID laws and other restrictions favored by Trump.
Unlike past losing candidates who accepted voters’ decisions, Trump filed over 60 lawsuits to overturn his defeat—all of which failed. He then summoned supporters to Washington on January 6, 2021, leading to a deadly riot at the Capitol. The House impeached him, but the Senate acquitted him. Since then, Trump has pardoned more than 1,500 rioters, calling them “patriots” and undermining his own “law and order” claims.
Trump is now demanding Congress pass the Save America Act, a voter suppression bill requiring photo ID and proof of citizenship to register. Over 21 million citizens lack easy access to such documents, and 60 million married women have birth certificates that don’t match their current names. The bill lacks Senate support to overcome a filibuster, but Trump retaliated by refusing to sign a major bipartisan housing bill, letting it become law without his signature while calling it “a big yawn.”
In another attack on election integrity, Trump urged Republican-controlled states to gerrymander districts to favor his party. Eight states complied. The Supreme Court also ruled this year to allow elimination of majority-minority districts, reducing Black voting power—a move that benefits Republicans since most Black voters support Democrats.
Trump issued an executive order in March restricting mail-in voting through the Postal Service, but a federal court struck down key parts as unconstitutional. The Justice Department is appealing. He also removed the two Democratic members of the Election Assistance Commission after the Republican members resigned, clearing the way for appointees who will follow his agenda.
“Trump’s actions show he has no interest in election integrity—only in winning by any means,” said A. Scott Bolden, a former D.C. Democratic Party chair and NewsNation contributor. “All Americans who believe in constitutional checks and balances need to vote for Democratic candidates in the midterms to stop this assault on democracy.”
Trump’s goal, Bolden added, is to preserve Republican majorities so he can rule by executive order, wage war without congressional authorization, weaponize government against enemies, and enrich himself—he earned at least $2.2 billion in 2025. The midterms, he said, are a critical test for the survival of democratic norms.
For more on Trump’s mounting challenges, see this analysis of his primetime address. Also read about Democrats’ strategy to counter Trump.
