Try and Stop Us Digest — September 30, 2026

Must Read

Could Trump Declare A "National Emergency" To Seize Control Of Voting?

A growing chorus of Trump allies is pushing him to declare a national emergency and take over elections, and the plan is shifting toward seizing voting machines right around Election Day itself. Democracy Docket: Attorney and conspiracist Peter Ticktin says Trump could declare martial law around Nov. 3 to seize machines in key races "before certification," with a mandatory hand count first. Legal experts agree the move would have no basis — election law expert Rick Hasen notes none of the 50 federal emergency statutes give a president power over elections — but advocates warn the attempt itself would sow chaos. Fair Fight Action's Max Flugrath: "Add in DOJ monitors, the RNC's new focus on voting machines, and the 2020 lies coming from our government — the chaos is the point."

Election Denier Who Pushed To Overturn 2020 Resigns From DOJ

Kurt Olsen, the attorney who helped Texas try to get the Supreme Court to overturn the 2020 election, has resigned from the Justice Department. CBS News: Olsen had been working on DOJ's "grand conspiracy" investigation targeting Obama- and Biden-era officials, which has produced no charges. He was previously the White House's "Director of Election Security and Integrity," made the Fulton County referral that led the FBI to seize boxes of 2020 ballots, and spoke to Trump by phone on Jan. 6, 2021, according to a 2022 congressional subpoena. He's the second prosecutor on the conspiracy case to resign this month.

At Least 18 Current North Carolina Election Officials Are Election Deniers And 2020 Conspiracy Theorists

At least 18 North Carolina county election officials have promoted 2020 election conspiracies, including one board chair who once called for Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act. Asheville Citizen-Times: Clay County Board Chair James Davis wrote in 2020 that Trump should use military courts to try "traitors" who "colluded" with China; he was appointed chair in 2025 by GOP State Auditor Dave Boliek, who took over board appointments statewide in 2024 and flipped every one of North Carolina's 100 county boards to Republican control in 2025. Voting Rights Lab, which compiled the list, warns the combination of "bad actors in positions of authority" and gaps in state law make North Carolina "a high risk target for election manipulation" this cycle.

In The States

LOUISIANA — A federal judge let a challenge to Louisiana's proof-of-citizenship voting law move forward, after finding officials in one parish may have discriminated against applicants based on national origin. Democracy Docket: Lafayette Parish sent a citizenship-proof demand to an applicant born in Guatemala; the judge found that plausible enough to let the discrimination claim proceed, though he dismissed some other claims and issued no injunction blocking the law. Louisiana's registration deadline is Oct. 5.

MICHIGAN — Voters in multiple Michigan counties are still waiting on absentee ballots after clerks missed the state's mailing deadline. Votebeat: Antrim and Presque Isle counties hadn't gotten ballots out as of Tuesday. Clerks blame a tight printing window between the August primary and the deadline, plus a limited pool of approved ballot printers. Antrim's deputy clerk: "I don't know how, honestly, to get it out any faster."

MISSOURI — Rep. Emanuel Cleaver says he's introducing a national ban on mid-decade redistricting after the Supreme Court's third and final rejection of Missouri's gerrymander saved his seat. Washington Sun: Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), unmoved by the court chaos, said he still "would love to have more Republicans" and that redistricting is "totally up to the states." People Not Politicians' Richard von Glahn: "The big picture from Missouri is that people are going to resist power grabs."

NORTH CAROLINA — Voting rights groups asked a court to block North Carolina's new mail-ballot restrictions before more ballots are rejected, arguing the rules disproportionately hit elderly, disabled, young, and non-native English-speaking voters. Democracy Docket: The rules, passed along party lines the same day ballots went out, add a signature-verification requirement on top of North Carolina's existing photo-ID and witness rules. As of Tuesday, 93,402 mail ballots had been requested and 13,495 counted statewide.