Trump Signs Election Integrity EO
President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed a wide-ranging executive order aimed at tightening rules around mail-in voting and voter eligibility, describing the move as an effort to rebuild trust in U.S. elections…
President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed a wide-ranging executive order aimed at tightening rules around mail-in voting and voter eligibility, describing the move as an effort to rebuild trust in U.S. elections.
Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump said the order focuses on what he called “voter integrity” and longstanding concerns about mail-in ballots. He characterized the measure as a significant step toward preventing election fraud, arguing that stronger safeguards are needed.
“We’re going to be signing an executive order,” Trump said. “I believe it’s foolproof… I think it’s very obvious what’s said.”
The order directs several federal agencies to coordinate with states in compiling updated lists of eligible voters. Using data from agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration, the federal government will generate “State Citizenship Lists.” These lists are meant to identify U.S. citizens who will be at least 18 years old by the time of a federal election and who reside in a given state. According to the order, those lists would be shared with state election officials ahead of elections and updated regularly.
In addition, the order calls on the Department of Justice to prioritize investigations into cases where ballots may have been issued to individuals not eligible to vote. That includes scrutiny of the processes involved in printing, producing, and distributing ballots.
Mail-in voting procedures are another central focus. The order instructs the U.S. Postal Service to begin developing new rules within 60 days. Proposed changes include clearly labeling ballots as official election mail, adding tracking technology such as Intelligent Mail barcodes, and implementing design reviews to standardize how ballots are handled. The goal, according to administration officials, is to create a system where ballots can be tracked more reliably from distribution to return.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the administration envisions a process that ties each ballot to a trackable envelope, allowing officials to confirm that ballots are sent to and returned by eligible voters.
Trump also signaled that additional election-related policies could follow, including voter ID requirements and proof-of-citizenship measures. He argued that such steps are necessary to ensure fair elections, while also suggesting that opposition to them is politically driven.
At the same time, the order is already facing pushback. Election officials in states including Oregon and Arizona said they plan to challenge it in court, arguing that it oversteps federal authority and intrudes on states’ constitutional role in administering elections. Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes noted that his state already operates a widely used vote-by-mail system and questioned the reliability of federal data in determining voter eligibility.
Trump acknowledged the likelihood of legal challenges but expressed confidence that the order would hold up. He framed the issue in broader terms, saying that confidence in elections is essential to the country’s stability.
“If you don’t have honest voting,” he said, “you can’t have really a nation.”
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