Federal election interference and more news from the states

It’s finally Friday! And we’re continuing our countdown to Election Day with a story on the Trump administration’s sweeping efforts to assert authority over state elections.

President Donald Trump’s legal campaign came under intense scrutiny in courtrooms across the country, as Democrats and voting rights groups alleged federal election interference. 

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., ordered the U.S. Department of Justice to either reveal by midday Friday all states where it has demanded election officials pull aside or not count ballots — or else promise it won’t direct election officials to refuse ballots from some voters, States Newsroom’s D.C. Bureau reports.

Be sure to check your inbox on Sunday for a special edition of Daybreak, where we’ll be sharing a full preview of what to expect on Election Day. Have a great weekend.

Alaska: Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy said that he is ordering the state’s Department of Public Safety to investigate whether Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Mary Peltola, her campaign or national Democratic groups violated state law by recruiting independent candidate Dan J. Sullivan to run in this year’s election.

Texas: The attorney general’s office sued the Harris County clerk for promoting get-out-the-vote ads it described as “racially discriminatory” because they targeted Black, Latino and Asian voters while excluding “European ethnicities.” In response, the Harris County clerk said the audience tags on the ads had been removed.

Michigan: The state Supreme Court issued an order declining to hear an appeal by the Republican National Committee, the state’s Republican Party and the Chesterfield Township clerk in their lawsuit challenging election guidance from Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson on how to handle mail-in ballots with mismatched numbers.

Florida: Trump has approved the DeSantis administration’s request that the Federal Emergency Management Agency provide individual assistance to eight counties in the Panhandle that suffered damage from Hurricane Isaias.

Idaho: In the weeks leading up to the 2026 midterm elections, the Trump administration announced it is prosecuting three alleged noncitizen voting cases in the state. The cases came more than a year after state election officials referred more than a dozen cases to the U.S. Department of Justice for possible prosecution.

Tennessee: Two independent expenditure groups have now spent just under $10 million attacking independent gubernatorial candidate David Hatley.

Arkansas: A proposed constitutional amendment aimed at solidifying Arkansans’ right to keep and bear arms is needed to better protect that right, supporters say, but opponents argue it will make it more difficult to implement gun safety regulations. 

See the rest of the news of the day from all 50 states, plus our D.C. Bureau and Stateline, on News From The States.

As concerns rise about the potential for federal influence over the results of next week’s midterm elections, many voting experts and advocates remain confident that the nation’s highly localized systems of administering and counting votes will persevere, Stateline reports.

Facing sinking approval ratings over high prices, the White House has amped up attacks on state-administered elections: In recent weeks, the federal government sued Alaska and California to intervene in their elections and demanded election officials in Washington state pull aside ballots of 400 alleged noncitizens — laying the groundwork for a high-stakes showdown at the U.S. Supreme Court. 

For months, state officials have been planning for federally induced electoral chaos in the form of federal law enforcement or immigration agents at polls, election investigations or attempts to overturn unfavorable results. 

At stake is not only whether Republicans will maintain their grip on Congress, but also control of state governments across the country, which could provide a new check on Trump’s power.

Trump, who still has refused to acknowledge his 2020 election defeat, has sought to cast doubt and seize control of elections for years. His administration has aimed to nationalize elections, purge voter rolls, restrict mail-in voting and raise alarms without evidence about an epidemic of noncitizen voting.

Reporters roundtable: Ballot measures are top draw in some states

In some states, ballot measures are expected to be the main force driving voters to the polls in November.  Across the country, voters will decide 145 questions during the midterms.

Reproductive rights are on the ballot in four states. In California, residents will decide on a “billionaire’s tax,” among other issues. Elsewhere, ballot questions could determine who has the power to initiate future questions and whether lawmakers have the power to overturn them. There’s a lot on the line.

In Episode 52 of the Stories From The States podcast, States Newsroom journalists discuss the questions before some voters and how interest in the issues might affect state-level races. Subscribe to Stories From The States on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or YouTube.

Disability advocates in Oregon announced they’ve opened their phone hotline and a new website for people with disability-related voting problems to get assistance and report issues in the run-up to the Nov. 3 midterm election, Oregon Capital Chronicle reports.

Disability Rights Oregon has opened its voter hotline for every election for many years, according to Tom Stenson, the group’s deputy legal director. Stenson’s among those who answer calls to the hotline.

Voters with blindness or low vision have called to see if it is legal for someone to help fill out their ballot and return it for them (the answer is yes, besides the signature) or if there is an alternative way to fill out and cast their ballot that protects their privacy. For that, Stenson said, voters with limited or no vision can call their county clerk and arrange to vote at the clerk’s office via a computer tablet that reads out loud the ballot options and allows voice selection. Clerks can also bring tablets to voters at their homes if needed.

And people who have lost mobility in an arm or hand have called with concerns about whether their ballot could be disqualified because their signature will look different than in the past.