Trump officials sought ways to bypass election agency before firings, sources say

Thomas Hicks and Benjamin Hovland were terminated by email on July 9, and President Donald Trump ousted the U.S. Election Assistance Commission’s leaders on Thursday after the White House spent months looking for ways to bypass the agency and use emergency powers to force changes to voting machines. The firings removed the agency’s leaders. The move landed about four months before the November 2026 midterms, when state and local election offices depend on the commission for guidance, certification and federal funds.

Created by the Help America Vote Act of 2002 after the Florida recount crisis, the EAC is the only federal agency solely focused on election administration. It develops guidance under HAVA, adopts voluntary voting system guidelines, accredits testing laboratories, certifies voting systems, audits HAVA funds and maintains the national mail voter registration form. The commission is designed to have four members, with no more than two from the same political party, and official action requires bipartisan participation.

Christy McCormick resigned on June 9, and Donald Palmer left in April, leaving the EAC without a functioning quorum. New appointments require Senate confirmation, a step that can slow down any effort to restore the panel before election deadlines tighten.

The vacancy could disrupt work on grants and voting-system certification, two functions that help counties buy equipment and keep it in service. In May, a Trump election-security official sought to ban voting machines used in more than half of U.S. states.