Today @wapo reported activists are urging Trump to declare an emergency based on claims of Chinese interference in the 2020 election and use emergency powers to dramatically alter election rules. Trump has no power to run elections, even in an emergency. 🧵washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/…
The Constitution gives power over elections to the states and Congress, not the president. That's why Trump's attempts to change election rules so far have been blocked by the courts. brennancenter.org/our-work/analy…
An emergency declaration won't change that. It's true that an emergency can unlock a lot of powers for the president - powers contained in 137 different laws, by my colleagues count (h/t @LizaGoitein). But not a single one concerns elections. brennancenter.org/our-work/resea…
True, the president might try to use the emergency powers he does have in other areas to indirectly justify meddling in elections. But none of these emergency powers allows him to override election laws, so any powers he exercises would be limited by those election laws.
Thankfully, there are a number of very strong federal laws making federal interference in elections a crime. (For examples, look at 18 U.S.C. Sections 592, 593, 595, etc.)
To be clear, this administration is engaged in a concerted campaign to undermine elections and that is the primary threat to our democracy in 2026 (not some manufactured emergency). We should take these efforts seriously, as I've said before. nytimes.com/2026/02/12/opi…
And Trump has said he will issue another executive order doing all kinds of wild things like banning mail voting and voting machines or imposing a show-your-papers requirement. So he very well may try. But if he thinks his emergency powers will make it possible, he's wrong.
He's tried before and we sued him and won. And if there's one thing the Supreme Court has actually been willing to check him on, it's his abuse of emergency powers (see the recent tariffs decision). So if he tries again, I think he can expect the same result.
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
