DOJ to Monitor Elections Amidst Administration Concerns
Source reports published 23 Oct 2026, 2:53 pm – 24 Oct 2026, 6:16 am AEST
The Department of Justice plans to monitor midterm elections, focusing on high-population areas and jurisdictions with competitive races. The DOJ’s role is to ensure voting rights are followed and to alert officials to potential problems, with prosecutors now participating in monitoring efforts.
What happened
- Attorney General Todd Blanche stated his intention not to improperly interfere with elections, but declined to rule out federal involvement in election certification if a ‘doomsday scenario’ were to occur.
- The DOJ is seeking to force state officials to turn over unredacted voter data and halt the counting of ballots cast by individuals the federal government believes are likely noncitizens.
- State officials and voting rights groups have expressed concerns over federal meddling, citing President Trump’s claims about election fraud and noncitizen voting.
- The DOJ’s monitoring efforts, guided by federal statutes, will focus on areas with high voter populations and potential issues like language access or disability access.
- Monitors will observe voters and report any concerns, and if violations are observed, the DOJ will escalate the issue and work with local law enforcement.
- Prosecutors will participate in monitoring, though they will not personally prosecute.
- The DOJ has abandoned a long-held rule against prosecutors serving as election monitors, aiming to deter voter intimidation.
- States have received notifications of DOJ monitor locations, and observers will be present at polling locations to report irregularities.
- Colorado’s Secretary of State, Jena Griswold, stated that election observers are a ‘normal part of the process’.