Trump’s Push to ‘Nationalize’ Elections, Explained

 https://time.com/7366147/trump-nationalize-voting-federalize-elections-fraud-republicans/

As President Donald Trump continues to allege widespread electoral fraud benefitting Democrats, his latest attempt to upend U.S. elections in the name of correcting that fraud is a call for the Republican Party to “nationalize” voting.

The Constitution decentralizes the U.S. election process and has specifically left the President out. Article I, Section 4, Clause 1 states that “the Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by Law make or alter such Regulations, except as to the Places of chusing [sic] Senators.” 

In practice, this means local officials across thousands of jurisdictions administer elections and tabulate votes, with safeguards built in that the American Bar Association says makes it “almost impossible for systems to be breached on a scale to affect federal or state results.” 

At the heart of Trump’s push are repeated accusations that previous U.S. elections were rigged. Trump has claimed that he won the 2020 presidential elections over his then-opponent Joe Biden, despite state and federal officials as well as numerous courts rejecting such claims. “The 2020 election, I won that election by so much,” Trump told Bongino. “Everybody knows it.”

Sen. Alex Padilla (D, Calif.), meanwhile, accused Republicans of “desperately trying to rig the rules for future elections” instead of trying to win on their policies. “The right to vote is fundamental, and Congress should be working to make it easier, not harder, for eligible Americans to participate.”