Power Grab/Fire anyone who can stop him
A 17-page draft order circulating among Trump allies would use a national emergency to require hand counts and voter ID in the midterms
The draft, reported by the Washington Post and reviewed in full by PBS News, proposes federal control over parts of the 2026 midterms. It has not been signed.
What happened
On February 26, 2026, the Washington Post reported a 17-page draft executive order circulating among Trump supporters that would declare a national emergency over foreign interference in the 2026 midterms. PBS News then reviewed it in full. It would require hand-marked paper ballots, public hand counts, voter ID at the polls, and voter re-registration with proof of citizenship.
Attorney Peter Ticktin, a longtime Trump acquaintance, confirmed the draft had circulated “for a while” and said he had discussed it with the president and with White House and Justice Department staff. A White House official said staff routinely hear from outside advocates.
Asked about the draft on February 27, Trump said, “Who told you that?” and denied considering an emergency declaration. Executive Order 14399 of March 31, 2026 directs DHS citizenship lists, Justice Department prosecutions of ballots issued to ineligible voters and Postal Service ballot-mail standards. The draft’s hand-count, voter-ID and emergency-control provisions did not appear in it.
Who benefited
No one yet, because the order has not been signed. If adopted, it would move control over how a federal election is run from the states to the president in the months before the midterms.
Who wanted something
Ticktin and the activists circulating the draft argued the National Emergencies Act empowers the president to act. Ticktin said he had raised it with Trump and with White House and Justice Department personnel. Earlier that month Trump had posted that there would be voter ID for the midterms “whether approved by Congress or not.”
Who lost out
State and local election officials would lose authority the Constitution gives them to run elections. They were already fielding federal pressure to run voter rolls through the SAVE database and consider hand counts. Voters would face re-registration and slower, less accurate counts.
Why it matters
The Constitution assigns election administration to the states, and no statute lets a president take it by declaring an emergency. A draft that does so reached the president, by Ticktin’s account. He answered with a denial rather than a repudiation, and no reporting connects the draft to the order he signed.