Trump and his associates step up efforts to exert influence on the upcoming midterm elections in the United States
In a series of events that have raised eyebrows and concerns, the Trump administration has been seeking access to election equipment and voter data in several states, including Colorado. This broad effort, led by the Department of Justice (DOJ), is aimed at obtaining sensitive election records and investigating alleged voting irregularities.
The DOJ's actions in Colorado have caused significant concern among local election officials due to the legal and security risks involved. Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold has emphasised that accessing or tampering with voting equipment without proper authorisation is a felony under state law. This underscores the serious legal implications for election officials who might comply with such requests without explicit authorisation.
Local election officials have expressed discomfort and concern, noting that such federal requests can place them in precarious legal positions and potentially compromise election security. This heightened caution is evident in the responses of Colorado's election clerks. Both the Democratic and Republican clerks have declined the DOJ's request, with the Republican clerk of Weld County, Koppes, noting the potential legal and security risks.
The DOJ's requests have been part of a wider pattern, with demands for sensitive voting data made to numerous states across the political spectrum. This has alarmed voting rights advocates and former DOJ attorneys, who question the legality and motives behind the data collection effort. The efforts are viewed as controversial, with critics stating that they threaten election integrity and voter privacy while possibly serving political objectives linked to the Trump administration’s ongoing challenges related to election legitimacy.
The push for election data extends beyond the DOJ. The Republican National Committee has pushed to obtain voter registration records from states. In Colorado, a former Mesa County elections clerk, Tina Peters, was sentenced to nine years in prison after being convicted on state charges for her role in a breach of her county’s election system. The Trump administration has taken up Peters' cause, with the Justice Department reviewing her case as part of a broad mandate from Trump to counter prosecutions seen as politically motivated.
The push for election data and the ensuing controversies have not been limited to Colorado. Election officials in the state have faced threats due to their roles in election administration and their use of Dominion Voting machines. An elections office in southern Colorado housing Dominion machines was firebombed recently, with no one injured in the after-hours incident.
In response to the DOJ's request, Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold declined to comply, stating that the federal government has no "legal basis" to seek the 2020 election records. This stance mirrors the position of many other states, which have also rejected similar requests.
The Trump administration's push for election data and its efforts to change the ground rules for next year's midterms continue to raise concerns and spark debates about election integrity, voter privacy, and the role of federal intervention in state elections.
- The Trump administration's continued pursuit of election equipment and voter data in various states, such as Colorado, has been met with alarm by voting rights advocates and former DOJ attorneys, who question the legality and motives behind this data collection effort.
- Amid this escalating controversy, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has been asserting its need for sensitive voting data from numerous states, prompting concerns about election integrity and voter privacy.
- This broader pattern of federal requests for election data has raised concerns among local election officials, who believe such requests place them in precarious legal positions and potentially compromise election security.
- In an unprecedented move, the Republican National Committee has also tried to obtain voter registration records from states, causing further unease among election administrators.
- Coinciding with these controversies, election officials in several states have faced threats due to their roles in election administration and their use of Dominion Voting machines.
- In response to the DOJ's request, Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold and numerous other states have rejected similar requests, citing the lack of a legal basis for federal intervention in state elections.
- The NFL, NCAA football, car-accidents, fires, general-news, crime-and-justice, sports-betting, and American football, unlike the ongoing political turmoil surrounding elections, provide a different kind of spectacle and interest for Americans.
