Donald Trump's executive order prioritized federal prosecution of state election officials who send or receive ballots to non-citizens or others ineligible to vote.
Posted by Bulwark Takes, Checked
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Bulwark TakesSep 15, 2026
The executive order (EO 14399, signed March 2026) does direct the Attorney General to prioritize investigation and prosecution of state and local officials who issue federal ballots to ineligible voters, which matches the claim's core.
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What was said
… Postal Service. The agency would be barred from delivering ballots mailed by states to people not on those lists. It also required states to use tracking barcodes on ballot envelopes, and it prioritized federal prosecution of state election officials who send or receive ballots to non-citizens or others ineligible to vote. Now, the last point was kind of interesting because, and when we're talking to a couple um legal experts about this, they said that would have been incredibly chilling, right? …
Bulwark Takes · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. The White House fact sheet says the Order directs the Attorney General to prioritize investigation and prosecution of election officials who issue or distribute federal ballots to ineligible voters.[2]
Supports. The Supreme Court's order in Trump v. California quotes §2(b) as requiring the Attorney General to prioritize investigation and, as appropriate, prosecution of State and local officials or any others who issue federal ballots to ineligible voters.[3]
Supports. CNN's July 2026 report describes the order as directing prioritized federal prosecution of state election officials who send or receive ballots to non-citizens or others ineligible to vote, using the claim's own wording.[4]
Context. The Supreme Court's text notes that the Order is an internal directive to the Executive Branch and that its actions are subject to feasibility and compliance with existing law, so it does not itself impose prosecutions on states.[3][6]
Context. A later October 2026 judge's order barred DOJ from threatening such prosecutions in connection with noncitizen-voter demands, but it does not contradict the existence of the prioritization directive in the executive order.[1][5]
Sources
6 sources: 1 fact-checker, 2 primary, 1 tier 2, 1 tier 1, 1 not rated
- 1Judge orders Trump administration to cease threats to prosecute election officialsreuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: context
- 2Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Ensures Citizenship ...whitehouse.gov · primary source · cited for: supports
- 326A124 Trump v. California (08/24/2026)supremecourt.gov · primary source · cited for: supports, context
- 4Trump asks Supreme Court to let him curtail mail votingcnn.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 5Judge orders Trump administration to stop election official ...bbc.com · tier 1 · cited for: context
- 6Trump v. California | 609 U.S. ___ (2026)supreme.justia.com · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- Donald Trump issued an executive order to deliver mail ballots only to people on lists of mail-in voters that states must turn over to the USPS.True
- Donald Trump issued an executive order on March 31, 2026, directing the Department of Justice to prioritize the prosecution of election officials and workers who allow ineligible people to vote.True
- Donald Trump stated he issued the executive order on mail-in ballots to stop illegal voting by non-U.S. citizens.True
- Donald Trump's executive order required states to use tracking barcodes on ballot envelopes.True
- Donald Trump signed two executive orders attempting to create new federal voting rules.True