Democrats sue Trump administration to block 'intimidation' of election officials before midterms

Democratic Party leaders are suing Donald Trump and his administration in federal court, accusing them of trying to usurp states’ authority over elections and intimidate state and local officials into complying with unlawful demands two weeks before the November 3 midterm elections.

The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday in Washington, seeks a court order barring the administration from purging legally registered voters from statewide registration lists or denying ballots to legally registered voters, the Associated Press reported. The plaintiffs also ask for a ruling that the administration has illegally threatened state election officials with prosecution.

The plaintiffs include Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the Democratic Governors Association. Named defendants are Trump, the Justice Department, Attorney General Todd Blanche, the Department of Homeland Security and DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin.

The 44-page complaint cites the Justice Department’s recent actions in California, where it sued to stop state election officials from counting mail-in ballots cast by people the federal government identified as “likely” noncitizens until their immigration status could be confirmed, The Hill reported. It also points to “shoddily compiled lists” of suspected noncitizens that, Democrats say, crumbled on inspection.

“For over a decade now, President Donald J. Trump has bombarded the American people with lies and misinformation about American elections and voter fraud,” the suit says, arguing the claims have been “debunked at every turn” but are used as a pretext to “seize control over elections”.

The Justice Department said election integrity is a top priority and that its actions are grounded in law and being litigated in open court. The White House said it was seeking accountability and accused Democrats of interfering with “common sense election-security measures”.

The case has been assigned to Chief Judge James Boasberg, who has been vilified by the White House for earlier rulings against the administration.