Trump’s Midterm Threats Recall a Bleak Chapter in American History
Foreign Policy
by Julian E. ZelizerFebruary 23, 2026
AI-Generated Deep Dive Summary
U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent comments about nationalizing voting in key states ahead of the November midterm elections have raised alarms among experts and observers. In a podcast interview with former deputy FBI director Dan Bongino, Trump suggested that Republicans should take control of election administration in 15 states to ensure election integrity—a move that could undermine longstanding constitutional norms. This followed the FBI’s seizure of voting records from Georgia’s Fulton County, which has been a flashpoint for unproven claims of election fraud by Trump and his allies since the 2020 presidential election. These actions have deepened fears that Trump and congressional Republicans are attempting to subvert the midterm elections, possibly deploying federal immigration agents to suppress voter turnout in Democratic strongholds.
The broader context of these developments is troubling. Since the Supreme Court’s Shelby County v. Holder decision struck down a key provision of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Republicans at both the national and state levels have pushed to impose new barriers to voting under the guise of preventing fraud—an issue that has been repeatedly disproven by investigations. The House of Representatives recently passed the SAVE America Act, which would require stringent photo identification—often inaccessible to many citizens—and restrict mail-in voting, among other measures. These efforts align with Trump’s broader pattern of behavior, including his role in the January 6 attack on the Capitol and his ongoing campaign to overturn the legitimate results of the 2020 election.
The significance of these actions cannot be overstated. American democracy has always been fragile, as evidenced by periods of significant retrenchment following moments of progress. The Reconstruction era, which sought to empower newly freed Black Americans through voting rights, was followed by the Jim Crow system that systematically stripped those rights away—a reminder of how political actors can exploit power to undermine democratic structures. Trump’s actions and the Republican Party’s broader agenda raise concerns about the future of free and fair elections in the U.S., particularly
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Originally published on Foreign Policy on 2/23/2026