Trump Orders Major Overhaul Of US Elections, Mentions India
Citing India and some other countries as examples, Donald Trump said the US now fails to enforce "basic and necessary election protections".
US Donald Trump signed a sweeping executive action to overhaul elections in the the country, including requiring documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections and demanding that all ballots be received by Election Day.
The order noted that the US has failed “to enforce basic and necessary election protections" and calls on states to work with federal agencies to share voter lists and prosecute election crimes. It threatens to pull federal funding from states where election officials don’t comply.
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The order aims to require votes to be “cast and received" by Election Day and says federal funding should be conditional on state compliance. Trump’s order is likely to face legal challenges, given that the Constitution gives authority over elections to the states.
The order instructed the Election Assistance Commission to amend its guidelines for voting systems to “protect election integrity" and also barred foreign nationals from contributing or donating in US elections.
It noted, “Foreign nationals and non-governmental organizations have taken advantage of loopholes in the law’s interpretation, spending millions of dollars through conduit contributions and ballot-initiative-related expenditures. This type of foreign interference in our election process undermines the franchise and the right of American citizens to govern their Republic."
Donald Trump Mentions India
Citing India and some other countries as examples, Donald Trump said the US now fails to enforce “basic and necessary election protections". He said, “India and Brazil are tying voter identification to a biometric database, while the United States largely relies on self-attestation for citizenship."
“Germany and Canada require paper ballots when tabulating votes, while the United States has a patchwork of methods that often lack basic chain-of-custody protections," he added.
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