Trump calls on Republicans to 'nationalize voting' ahead of midterms

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump on Monday, February 2, said that Republicans should "nationalize voting" and continued to repeat claims of widespread voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election. 

Trump made the remarks during an appearance on former Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino’s podcast, which he relaunched on Monday. His comments come less than a week after the FBI conducted a raid on an elections office outside Atlanta, seizing ballots and other voting records from the 2020 election.

Trump calls on GOP to nationalize voting 'in at least 15 places'

During the podcast appearance, Trump explicitly stated, “The Republicans should say, ‘We want to take over. We should take over the voting in at least 15 places.’ The Republicans ought to nationalize the voting.”

This suggestion is at odds with the Constitution, which delegates the administration of elections to the individual states. Trump also repeatedly insisted without evidence that he won the 2020 presidential election “in a landslide” and alleged that people “voted illegally.”

The statements also referenced the recent FBI raid in Fulton County, Georgia, with Trump hinting that “you’re going to see some interesting things come out” from the situation. Dozens of legal challenges to the results of the 2020 election found no credible evidence of widespread voter fraud. 

In Georgia, both a statewide audit and a recount requested by Trump’s own campaign verified that former President Joe Biden won the state. In recent months, Trump has intensified efforts to undermine the legitimacy of the 2020 election results.

In January, he vowed that “people will soon be prosecuted for what they did” in relation to the election. Additionally, the Justice Department under Trump has sued roughly two dozen states, seeking access to their statewide voter registration rolls.

Trump signals election oversight plans ahead of 2026 midterms 

Trump’s renewed threat to nationalize voting echoes a promise he made last summer to sign an executive order aimed at bringing “honesty” to the 2026 midterm elections.

In a social media post, he wrote, “Remember, the States are merely an ‘agent’ for the Federal Government in counting and tabulating the votes. They must do what the Federal Government, as represented by the President of the United States, tells them, FOR THE GOOD OF OUR COUNTRY, to do.”

To date, Trump has not issued the proposed executive order, but last March, he did sign a separate order requiring proof of citizenship on the national voter registration form and changing mail‑in voting procedures for states. That order has been largely blocked by federal judges, though its final fate remains uncertain.

White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said in response to questions about Trump’s nationalization comments that Trump “cares deeply about the safety and security of our elections.”

Jackson noted that the POTUS has urged Congress to pass the SAVE Act and other legislative proposals that would establish a uniform photo ID requirement for voting, prohibit no‑excuse mail‑in voting, and end ballot harvesting.