CBS’ Margaret Brennan confronts Hakeem Jeffries over claim Trump is rigging 2026 elections

WASHINGTON, DC: A tense exchange unfolded on Sunday, October 26, during CBS’s 'Face the Nation' segment, when host/moderator Margaret Brennan grilled House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries over his claim that President Donald Trump is trying to rig the 2026 midterm elections.

Jeffries accused Trump of urging Republican-led state legislatures to redraw congressional maps to favor the GOP, a move he described last week as an attempt to “rob” Americans of a fair vote.

However, Brennan implied that both parties are engaging in similar power plays.

Brennan challenges Jeffries 

“Donald Trump is trying to rig the midterm elections,” Jeffries said in a recent speech.

“He wants to alter the congressional maps all across the country, starting in Texas, to try to rob all of you and the American people the ability to actually make the decision in a free and fair election,” he added.

Brennan pointed out that Jeffries had previously condemned Trump and other Republicans for using similar “rigged election” rhetoric following the 2020 race.

“You said, 'Democrats- there are no election deniers on our side of the aisle,'" Brennan noted. 

"But recently, you’ve been using the term ‘rigged elections’ in reference to the upcoming midterms," she added. 

"Democrats were appalled when President Trump used language like that. How do you justify using that now? Doesn’t that undermine faith for voters you need to show up?” Brennan asked.

Hakeem Jeffries defends his use of the term

Jeffries pushed back, insisting that his criticism referred specifically to the redistricting maneuvers and not the election process itself.

“I’ve been using that term in the context of Donald Trump’s unprecedented effort to gerrymander congressional maps in a partisan fashion all across the country in order to rig the midterm elections,” Jeffries said.

“And deny the ability of the American people to actually decide who should be in the majority as it relates to the House of Representatives,” he continued. 

Brennan notes Democrats are redrawing maps too

Brennan then interjected, highlighting that Democrats have also been accused of aggressive redistricting in states like California and New York.

“You know Democrats are also going through gerrymandering and redistricting,” she said, seemingly implying that both parties are using similar tactics.

Jeffries seemingly did not directly address that point, instead reiterating his argument that Trump’s push for Republican-led map changes was part of a coordinated national effort to undermine fair representation.

The exchange underscored growing partisan tensions over redistricting battles ahead of the 2026 midterms. 

Jeffries spent the weekend in Southern California, campaigning for the 'Proposition 50' ballot initiative that would allegedly let Democrats gerrymander California’s congressional map.

He also has reportedly continued to lobby state lawmakers in Illinois for a stalled redistricting effort there.