Election integrity in the United States can be a fraught subject. Merely raising the prospect that a future election might be compromised makes many democracy experts uncomfortable. It can undermine faith in our reliable, well-run election system and amplify the false claims about fraud that often come from President Trump. Even people who respect the sanctity of elections sometimes malign them. Many Democrats, for example, have wrongly suggested that voter-identification laws undermine the system by causing large declines in turnout.
In truth, American elections have never been more reliable or accessible. For every election, thousands of principled election officials painstakingly update voter rolls, mail information to households, train poll workers, oversee voting and transport ballots with a documented chain of custody. Voter fraud is extremely rare, and voter turnout in the past two presidential elections reached higher levels than in any other over the previous century.
Yet it would be naïve to assume that the status quo is guaranteed to continue. The sanctity of the 2026 elections is indeed under threat. And the reason is Mr. Trump.
He has repeatedly demonstrated his willingness to interfere with elections to benefit himself and his party. He has broken the law to do so and broken longstanding bipartisan traditions. Since he entered politics a decade ago, he has suggested that election outcomes are fair only if his side wins. In 2020, after he lost the presidential election, he attempted to direct a sprawling conspiracy to overturn the result. As it was failing (thanks to the honesty of election administrators from both parties), he encouraged protesters to march to Congress when it was meeting to certify his defeat — and later celebrated their violent attack.
Since he returned to the presidency last year, he has if anything shown a willingness to go further. He has pushed for extreme gerrymandering of congressional districts, outside the normal 10-year cycle, to help Republicans hold the House even if most voters want them out. His Justice Department is building an unprecedented database of voter information that experts fear the administration may use to cast unfair doubt on voters’ eligibility. He signed a legally dubious executive order that could force states to reject some mail-in ballots. He recently told The Times that he regretted not sending the National Guard to seize voting machines after the 2020 presidential election.
The threat took on a new urgency this week, when F.B.I. agents searched an election center in Atlanta related to Mr. Trump’s baseless accusations of fraud in 2020. Chillingly, his director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, accompanied agents on the search. As an article in The Times explained, the search “could be used to justify a forced takeover of the elections operation” in Georgia’s most populous county, which skews heavily Democratic. It is a reminder of Mr. Trump’s willingness to use the tools of state power — prosecutors, national security officials, National Guard members and F.B.I. and immigration agents — in the service of his political interests.
To look at this pattern and conclude that the 2026 midterm elections are safe is to leave American democracy exposed. In a divided country where many elections are close and congressional control could come down to a handful of races, a local disruption affecting turnout or vote counting could have national consequences. If you are somebody who has previously dismissed talk of election interference as overwrought, we understand where you are coming from. Yet we urge you not to assume that the past will repeat itself.
We are relieved to see that an array of civic-minded Americans — including Democrats, independents and Republicans — are responding to the threat and already taking steps to protect the integrity of the 2026 elections. They need help in this nonpartisan endeavor. They have far fewer resources at their disposal than the president does. Much as the editorial board makes annual recommendations of high-impact charities to support, we want to suggest several ways that you can help safeguard democracy ahead of the midterms. We ask you to consider them.
Our first set of recommendations involves actions rather than donations:
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Work the polls. In 2024, nearly half of the country’s election precincts said they struggled to recruit poll workers. Shortages lead to longer voting lines and overworked election administrators. We particularly encourage young and middle-aged people to sign up: In the last three general elections, fewer than a quarter of volunteers were 40 or younger. (In many states, you can become a poll worker at 16 or 17.) The positions, which are nonpartisan, are paid. You can find out how to apply with the recruitment look-up tool at this link.
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Watch the polls. In most states, political parties appoint poll watchers who observe elections to ensure fairness. In some places, nonpartisan groups can also select poll watchers. To find out how to volunteer, start by contacting the Democratic or Republican committee in your county.
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Don’t spread dubious information. It’s surprisingly easy for misleading stories to travel through trusted friends or relatives. Heather Gerken, president of the Ford Foundation, notes that influential disinformation often arrives via a well-meaning peer rather than a random bot. People from both political sides are susceptible to this — whether it was Democratic conspiracy theories in 2004 about fraud in Ohio or the recent Republican conspiracy theories about 2020. Double-checking information before hitting “share” can keep election conversations grounded in reality.
You can also support organizations that are helping to protect election officials and safeguard the process. All the ones we recommend here are nonpartisan.
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The Election Official Legal Defense Network pairs election officials with pro bono attorneys who can advise them on how to respond to threats and lawsuits, which have increased in recent years. The network was founded in 2021 by a former White House lawyer for Barack Obama and a former election lawyer for George W. Bush. You can donate here.
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The Campaign Legal Center, founded in 2002 by a Republican lawyer who served as chairman of the Federal Election Commission, works to ensure that election rules remain fair. The group is fighting the Trump administration’s demands for voter data and an executive order that would force states to change voter ID requirements and ballot deadlines. There will probably be more litigation ahead of the midterms, especially after a recent Supreme Court decision made it easier for any candidate to challenge election rules. You can donate here.
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The Carter Center, founded in 1982 by Jimmy Carter, has brought its global election monitoring program to the United States. This year, the Carter Center plans to have nonpartisan observers watch elections in Georgia, Michigan, Montana, Nevada and New Mexico. The center will also host civic education events and offer resources for voters and election officials across the country. You can donate to the Carter Center’s democracy program here.
In 1981, Ronald Reagan began his first Inaugural Address by observing that the orderly transfer of authority was “a commonplace occurrence” to most Americans but was “nothing less than a miracle” to much of the world. Our elections remain both commonplace and miraculous. This country should be proud that it can feel so routine for a citizen to drop a ballot in the mailbox or walk down the street to cast a vote. In 2026, we should guard that tradition.
Source photograph by spxChrome, via Getty Images.
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