Washington — President Trump declared Friday he would seek to bypass Congress and require voter identification in the November midterm elections as legislation on the issue appears doomed in the Senate.
“There will be Voter I.D. for the Midterm Elections, whether approved by Congress or not!” Mr. Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
He said there should also be proof of citizenship and a ban on mail-in ballots, with some exceptions.
Mr. Trump has claimed, without evidence, that widespread voter fraud has helped Democrats win elections. Instances of noncitizens voting are exceedingly rare and already illegal.
In another post, the president said he would be making his case in a forthcoming executive order.
“This is an issue that must be fought, and must be fought, NOW!” he wrote. “If we can’t get it through Congress, there are Legal reasons why this SCAM is not permitted. I will be presenting them shortly, in the form of an Executive Order.”
Election experts have said the president doesn’t have the legal authority to change election rules on his own, without an act of Congress. Last year, a federal judge rejected Mr. Trump’s efforts to require proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections via executive order.
“Our Constitution entrusts Congress and the states — not the president — with the authority to regulate federal elections,” the judge wrote. “Consistent with that allocation of power, Congress is currently debating legislation that would effect many of the changes the president purports to order. And no statutory delegation of authority to the executive branch permits the president to short-circuit Congress’s deliberative process by executive order.”
Earlier this week, the House passed a strict voter identification bill, titled the SAVE America Act, that Democrats have warned would disenfranchise tens of millions of eligible voters.
The legislation would require voters to show proof in person of U.S. citizenship, like a passport or birth certificate, to register to vote in federal elections. The measure also has a requirement that voters show a photo ID to cast a ballot. The photo ID must also contain proof of citizenship, according to the measure.
The legislation lacks the 60 votes needed for passage in the Senate.
