The U.S. Justice Department, under the Trump administration, has quietly dismantled key election integrity measures just five months before the midterm elections that will determine control of Congress.
According to sources with knowledge of the situation, the department has canceled election-integrity training sessions for prosecutors and FBI agents, deleted a 281-page guide to prosecuting election offenses, fired most of the lawyers in its Public Integrity Section, and failed to replace the director of its Election Crimes Branch. Additionally, the DOJ has not taken the usual steps to establish a "command center" to monitor and address emergencies on Election Day, such as voter intimidation and targeted disinformation.
These actions have alarmed current and former prosecutors, who warn that the department is unprepared to handle threats to election integrity in November. Ryan Crosswell, a former public corruption prosecutor, expressed concern that the DOJ may be trying to interfere with elections rather than protect them.
The DOJ did not respond to detailed questions but issued a statement claiming its top priorities are ensuring election integrity and protecting against voting fraud and civil rights violations. Former DOJ attorneys described the command center as an intense, around-the-clock operation at FBI headquarters, where investigators directed law enforcement responses nationwide and prosecutors took long shifts answering calls about possible crimes.
The center was used to spot and deter disinformation campaigns, such as lies to suppress votes from particular groups. The Trump administration has shifted responsibility for election crimes to local U.S.
attorneys' offices, which are not as well-versed in election law. Biannual training sessions at the National Advocacy Center in South Carolina were canceled in March, and an online course scheduled for July was also canceled, with internal notes citing "changes in priorities." The DOJ has also removed the 281-page guide on election offenses from its website, though a copy was obtained by NOTUS.
The previous head of the Election Crimes Branch, Rob Heberle, quit after the DOJ dropped corruption charges against former New York City Mayor Eric Adams, and he has not been replaced. There are concerns that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) could be put in charge of election security, despite it being illegal to send armed federal officials to polling locations without a violent threat.
The DOJ's Justice Manual previously required local U.S. attorneys to consult with the Public Integrity Section on election-related matters, but that policy was suspended in June last year.
The midterm elections are still five months away, giving the DOJ time to reverse course. In past years, each local U.S.
attorney's office would designate a "district election officer" by October, and the DOJ said it has already appointed such officers in each district. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has emphasized a focus on "voter integrity," including investigations into the 2020 election results in Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Fulton County, Georgia.