Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin is warning state officials that they could face funding cuts or investigations if they fail to comply with President Donald Trump’s election security demands. This comes as the nation prepares for the upcoming midterm elections, which will determine control of Congress.

Election Security Concerns

Mullin’s remarks were made at the White House complex, just a day after President Trump’s primetime address on the topic. The President has been pushing for increased election security, citing concerns about the integrity of the voting process. However, experts say that these concerns are likely overblown, and that the Constitution gives states control over how elections are run.

Mullin also advanced a claim made by President Trump that the federal government had found 250,000 noncitizen voters on the rolls in several states, including California, Nevada, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. However, election experts say that this claim is based on incomplete data and is not supported by evidence.

State Responses

Several states have pushed back against the Trump administration’s demands, with California Governor Gavin Newsom saying that his state will fight to protect its election integrity. Nevada Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar also expressed confidence in the integrity of his state’s voter rolls, saying that they conduct their own voter list maintenance and that noncitizen voting is exceedingly rare.

The Trump administration has also been criticized for its handling of election security, with some arguing that it has dismantled the nation’s cybersecurity infrastructure. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, which is responsible for protecting the nation’s election systems, has been without a Senate-confirmed director for some time and has had its budget cut.

Original reporting: Texarkana Gazette — read the source article.