Trump fires Election Assistance Commission leaders
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The White House on Thursday fired the leadership of the federal agency that provides funding and security guidance to election officials— a move that’s already raising alarm bells among election officials about federal interference ahead of the midterms.
EAC is one of the few remaining federal entities tasked with providing election security support to states. Created by Congress in 2002, the agency is meant to be bipartisan. It certifies voting equipment and has administered hundreds of millions of dollars in federal support for elections.
The EAC has also been in the awkward position of trying not to draw the president’s ire while also standing up for election officials who have faced violent threats because of conspiracy theories pushed by the president. Some election officials feel the agency has fallen short on the latter.
“It is irresponsible and dangerous that this administration remains dead set on causing chaos for our election officials across this country,” Adrian Fontes, the Democratic secretary of state of Arizona, said in a statement reacting to the EAC purge. “This move undermines the integrity of nonpartisan election administration.”