The War on Voting: States Restrict Direct Democracy, Watchdog Warns, and Trump Prepares False Claims About Voting Machines

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On the same day an international election watchdog expressed “concern” over the Trump administration’s dismantling of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, voters in multiple states are preparing to weigh ballot measures that would make it significantly harder to pass state constitutional amendments — as President Trump prepares a national address this Thursday to again press his false claims about voting machine vulnerabilities.

International Watchdog Sounds Alarm on U.S. Election Integrity

On Tuesday, the Stockholm-based International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) issued a statement expressing “concern” over the removal of the bipartisan leadership of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC), which leaves the commission without any sitting members.

The EAC has supported the U.S. election system “by testing and certifying voting systems, distributing federal election assistance, developing voluntary guidelines, and providing technical expertise and support to election officials”.

International IDEA emphasized that “the bipartisan governance of the EAC has been an important expression of the United States’ longstanding commitment to politically neutral election administration”. The organization warned that “significant changes to the leadership or governance of electoral institutions only months before nationwide elections, even where their operational functions continue, risk creating uncertainty and may affect public confidence in the impartiality of the electoral process”.

The statement comes after President Trump fired the EAC’s two Democratic commissioners — Thomas Hicks and Benjamin Hovland — and accepted the resignation of its sole Republican commissioner, Christy McCormick, on July 9. A fourth commissioner, Republican Donald Palmer, had left earlier this year. The four-member board, created in 2002 after the chaos of the 2000 presidential election, now has no sitting members.

Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Rep. Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.) — the top Democrats on the congressional committees that deal with election law — issued a joint statement condemning the firings: “Purging commissioners just months before the midterm elections and further gutting support for our state and local elections officials is a blatant part of his plan to politicize our elections and enable more unlawful and dangerous election interference”.

States Move to Restrict Direct Democracy

Voters in a handful of states will weigh in on ballot measures this year that could raise the thresholds needed to pass state constitutional amendments, making it significantly harder for voters to enact policy changes themselves. Voting rights advocates warn these measures could “stifle direct democracy and give minority views outsized power”.

North Dakota, South Dakota and Utah will consider measures to raise the threshold for approval of a constitutional amendment from a simple majority to 60% of the vote. In Utah, the change would only apply to tax-related proposals.

Missouri voters will consider Amendment 4 in the upcoming August primary, which would require that any constitutional amendment pass in each of the state’s eight congressional districts — not just win a statewide majority. The higher threshold would not extend to any measure sent to the ballot by lawmakers, which would still only require a simple statewide majority to pass.

Since 2020, Missouri voters have approved measures that raise the minimum wage, expand Medicaid coverage and grant a statewide right to reproductive health care, including abortion access. All these measures won a majority of the statewide vote but did not meet a majority threshold in all congressional districts.

Kelly Hall, executive director of the Fairness Project, a nonprofit that backs ballot measures that promote social and economic justice, said severe limits on constitutional amendments have become a trend.

“The theme of 2026 is the battle over direct democracy availability itself,” she told NPR. “This is a really powerful tool … and one of the most frequent topics that we will see voted on this November is, can voters continue to exercise that right meaningfully?”

Quentin Savwoir, director of programs and strategy at the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center, which works to pass progressive ballot measures, called these efforts to raise vote thresholds the “antithesis of democracy”.

“What we all learn in our American public education system is that our democracy is anchored in majority rule,” he said. “I understand ‘majority’ to be 50% plus one. But when extremist lawmakers decide that they don’t like progressive policy, when they decide that they don’t like the thing that’s going to materially enhance someone’s life, then they start to change the goal posts”.

Currently, 26 states allow citizens to place ballot measures before voters. But only one — Florida — requires 60% approval for amendments. This higher threshold has kept various measures from passing in Florida, including an effort in 2024 that would have enshrined the right to an abortion in the state constitution. That year, the measure got approval from 57% of voters but failed.

Trump to Again Press False Claims About Voting Machines

President Donald Trump will give a national address on Thursday night about newly declassified intelligence on investigations into U.S. elections and what the White House says are voting machine vulnerabilities, an administration official told Reuters.

The Republican president could use his televised speech to again press his false claim that he lost the 2020 election to Democrat Joe Biden due to massive fraud. Numerous courts, ballot audits and his first-term Justice Department found no evidence of such fraud, including vote-machine rigging. The federal cybersecurity watchdog joined other federal, state and local officials in declaring the vote “the most secure in American history”.

Propelled by Trump’s repeated claims that U.S. elections are “rigged,” the administration has for over a year sought to increase federal oversight of election administration and reshape the way Americans vote — an effort that legal experts say would take power away from states in violation of the U.S. Constitution.

By casting the 2020 election as illegitimate, Trump is laying the groundwork to challenge Republican losses and undermine Democrats if they win back power in Congress in November, multiple election experts have said.

The administration official said Trump would discuss “newly declassified intelligence related to 2020”. A forensic analysis submitted last year by Mojave Research, a contractor hired by former Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, found flaws in voting machines seized in Puerto Rico but no evidence of hacking. Gabbard, whose resignation was effective last month, also produced her own report that outlined “significant vulnerabilities” in voting machines and further safeguards that could be implemented. The White House has delayed releasing the report, and Trump has persisted in trying to prove that his 2020 defeat was due to fraud.

The White House also recently formed a task force to investigate elements of the 2020 election. One source said journalist John Solomon, a former Fox News contributor, is working on the effort.

The Bottom Line

Today’s news reveals a democracy under assault on multiple fronts. An international election watchdog has expressed concern over the Trump administration’s dismantling of the bipartisan Election Assistance Commission — leaving the agency that certifies voting systems with no sitting members just months before the midterms. Multiple states are moving to make it harder for citizens to pass constitutional amendments, a direct attack on direct democracy. And President Trump is preparing another national address to press false claims about voting machines — claims that courts, audits and his own Justice Department have repeatedly debunked.

The people must pay attention. The people must speak out. And the people must vote.

What You Can Do Right Now

Check Your Voter Registration. Visit your state’s election website or Vote.org to confirm your registration and update your address. Make sure you’re ready to vote in November.

Contact Your State Election Officials. Let them know you oppose efforts to restrict direct democracy and raise thresholds for constitutional amendments. These measures are designed to silence voters.

Speak Out. Contact your members of Congress. Tell them you oppose the dismantling of the Election Assistance Commission and demand they protect the integrity of the 2026 midterms.

Talk to Your Neighbors. Many people don’t know about these attacks on our democratic infrastructure. Spread the word.

Support the Fight For the People PAC. Support Democrats at every level who will defend the right to vote and protect our democratic institutions. Sign up to volunteer and/or chip in whatever you can at fightforthepeoplepac.com and democrats.org. Join the effort for a better America. Be the voice.

Sources

International IDEA: “Statement by International IDEA on the U.S. Election Assistance Commission” (July 14, 2026)
WLIW-FM / NPR: “Some states will ask voters to make it harder to pass constitutional amendments” (July 14, 2026)
GPB News / NPR: “Some states will ask voters to make it harder to pass constitutional amendments” (July 14, 2026)
Reuters / The Print: “Trump to assert voting machine vulnerabilities in Thursday speech” (July 14, 2026)
Ohio Capital Journal: “Trump guts election commission in move seen as increasing his sway over midterms” (July 13, 2026)
The Boston Globe: “Trump administration fires members of independent election group” (July 10, 2026)
The New York Times: “Trump Administration Fires Members of Independent Election Group” (July 10, 2026)
NPR: “Former member of federal Election Assistance Commission speaks out after dismissal” (July 13, 2026)

Written and composed with AI.