Trump removes last commissioners from election assistance agency
The White House confirmed the removals months before the 2026 midterms, leaving the bipartisan federal election body without commissioners.
By Daniel Okafor · Business Editor
3 min read
President Donald Trump has removed the last sitting members of the federal Election Assistance Commission, leaving the independent bipartisan body without any commissioners months before November’s midterm elections. The White House confirmed the move Friday and said Trump was acting as part of his effort to tighten federal control over election rules, according to Al Jazeera, AP and Reuters.
The commission, created by Congress in 2002 after the disputed 2000 presidential election, supports state and local election officials. Its work includes issuing voluntary election guidelines, certifying voting systems and maintaining the national mail voter registration form, according to Al Jazeera.
The White House said in a statement that “the President, and head of the Executive Branch, reserves the right to remove individuals that may not be totally aligned with the important task of securing America’s elections.” The administration also said it had been working with agencies and local partners to protect elections from fraud and abuse ahead of the midterms.
Reuters reported that the two Democratic commissioners, Thomas Hicks and Benjamin Hovland, were dismissed by email on Thursday. The only remaining Republican commissioner, Christy McCormick, resigned, while another Republican appointee, Donald Palmer, had already left in April, according to Al Jazeera.
Federal law requires the commission to be divided evenly between Democrats and Republicans, and four commissioners normally lead the agency. Trump can nominate replacements, though Al Jazeera reported that it was not clear whether he planned to fill the seats or leave them empty.
Fight over election authority
The removals add to concerns among critics that Trump may try to exert more influence over the midterm elections, which will determine control of Congress for the remainder of his term, Al Jazeera reported. Election administration in the United States is handled by states under the Constitution, rather than run directly by the federal government.
The Election Assistance Commission had declined to carry out part of a March 2025 Trump executive order that would have required proof of citizenship on the national mail voter registration form, according to Al Jazeera. A federal judge later blocked that portion of the order, finding that Trump had exceeded his authority, and the president has appealed the decision.
Voters already must affirm that they are citizens before casting ballots, and voting by noncitizens is illegal in the United States. Al Jazeera reported that cases of noncitizen voting are rare.
The administration has also sought stricter vote-by-mail rules and threatened to withhold some federal funds from states that do not adopt new election requirements, according to Al Jazeera. Many of those measures have been challenged in court.
Earlier this week, the administration sent letters warning election officials that they could face prosecution if they fail to remove noncitizens from voter rolls, Al Jazeera reported. Trump has defended his election actions as necessary to protect election integrity.
Trump has repeatedly claimed, without evidence, that fraud caused his 2020 loss to Democrat Joe Biden. His latest action follows a Supreme Court ruling last month that expanded the president’s authority to fire members of independent agencies without cause, according to Al Jazeera.
In a 6-3 decision favoring Trump, the court said “neither Congress nor the courts may saddle” the president with executive-branch officials he does not approve of. That ruling has become a key backdrop for Trump’s efforts to remake federal agencies during his second term.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.