A federal judge has barred the Trump administration from issuing additional threats to election officials.
U.S. District Judge Trina Thompson said President Donald Trump’s DOJ goons likely violated Voting Rights Act laws against intimidating election workers and exceeded their constitutional authority over elections by issuing a written threat this week.
“In the lead-up to the election, high-ranking DOJ and DHS officials have engaged in a campaign to intimidate, threaten, and coerce state and local officials and employees who are engaged in administering the ongoing midterm 2026 election,” she wrote.
The ruling means administration officials cannot issue legal threats against election officials who count disputed ballots, and it bars the administration from demanding that ballots from registered voters not be counted if the administration disputes them.
Election worker unions brought the complaint leading to Friday’s ruling, claiming officials were being intimidated by “high-ranking” Trump administration officials, The Washington Post reported.
The DOJ and Homeland Security Department intend to seek relief or appeal the ruling, which comes only four days before the midterm elections. It marks the latest legal setback for the Trump administration as it cooks up schemes to undermine what is expected to be a stunning defeat for Republicans.
Reached for comment, DOJ spokeswoman Kiersten Pels emailed the Daily Beast: “The judge issued an order against the federal government without even waiting to hear from the United States, while in other cases the Department’s own urgent election claims are delayed by judges until after Election Day. That is a two-track system of justice. The Department is reviewing the order and evaluating all options.”
The DOJ had called on California officials to discount the votes of 200,000 people it claims are non-US citizens. However, a California appeals court judge struck down that order this week. It also sent a letter to election officials nationwide that they will face legal action if they fail to preserve election records.
In California, the DOJ warned election officials they face “scrutiny” unless they try to identify ballots cast by non-US citizens.
Trump has long claimed that elections are marred by mass voter fraud, and on Monday offered a $1 million reward for people who report suspected fraud that leads to conviction.
Election experts have repeatedly said there is no evidence of mass fraud in US elections. Yet, the president’s bogus election fraud claims formed the basis of his attempt to overturn his defeat to Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election, resulting in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
