{"id":4032,"date":"2026-08-22T17:34:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-22T17:34:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=4032"},"modified":"2026-08-22T17:34:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-22T17:34:11","slug":"despite-threats-from-white-house-colorado-election-officials-predict-little-change-to-2026-general-election","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=4032","title":{"rendered":"Despite threats from White House, Colorado election officials predict little change to 2026 general election"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Executive orders to limit mail-in ballots, lawsuits over voter registration data, threats to funding and more have poured out of the White House leading up to the 2026 general election.<\/p>\n

Read more Today in History: August 22, helicopter crash in Iraq kills 14 US soldiers<\/a><\/p>\n

But despite the \u201cnoise,\u201d Colorado election overseers and advocates say they are confident that this fall\u2019s exercise in democracy won\u2019t feature any particular hurdles for voters, or subversion of their intent. Ballots will still be mailed, voter rolls won\u2019t face purging and workers will tally and honor the will of voters, they say \u2014 though officials in Colorado still expect a pressure campaign in the election\u2019s fallout, especially if results don\u2019t go President Donald Trump\u2019s way.<\/p>\n

\u201cReally, it truly has been a case where we were expecting a lot of (nonsense around the election) and it has lived down to those expectations so far,\u201d said Matt Crane, the Republican head of the Colorado County Clerks Association, using an expletive to describe the state of things.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe knew there would be a lot of noise from the election denier community, up to and including the president, and this network he has allowed to grow and wreak havoc and undermine confidence in our elections.\u201d<\/p>\n

Among the attempted changes by the Trump administration: an August 2025 attempt to procure \u201call records\u201d from Colorado relating to the 2024 election and whatever was available from the 2020 election; a December 2025 lawsuit filed by the Department of Justice against Colorado demanding detailed voter registration information; and a\u00a0March 31 executive order that sought to restrict mail-in ballot access and create a federal voter list<\/p>\n

The White House has also dismantled or defunded federal programs and boards that help with cybersecurity and the administration of state and local elections. The Trump administration has threatened to withhold federal funding or even arrest state election officials if they don\u2019t remove noncitizens from voter rolls.<\/p>\n

Those efforts have largely languished or have been outright shut down by the courts. Still, election officials see them as building on Trump\u2019s longstanding, and baseless, claims that elections were rigged against him, even as he won the presidency twice. Numerous federal officials have glommed onto those claims, specifically rejecting the reality that President Joe Biden won the 2020 election.<\/p>\n

Despite regular, mandated audits of results and repeated legal challenges, voting is safe, secure and accurate.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe big picture is that the Constitution is clear: States run elections, not Donald Trump,\u201d Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold, a Democrat, said. \u201cHe does not have the authority to change how elections are run by executive order or by threat. The bigger picture is that Trump is laying the groundwork to reject the 2026 results if they don\u2019t go his way. That\u2019s what this is all fundamentally about.\u201d<\/p>\n

Colorado, like other states, has taken steps where it can to help fill some gaps left by the federal government pulling back its support, Crane and Griswold said. That includes bringing in physical and cybersecurity assistance for county clerks, mailing ballots earlier to minimize problems from delays, and creating a provision to allow the governor to declare an emergency in case of interference.<\/p>\n

The efforts add up to confidence in Colorado\u2019s upcoming general election, officials said. Most voters should see little, if any, difference in how they cast their ballots and how they are tallied. Election Day is Nov. 3 and ballots should start going out to registered voters on Oct. 9.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am confident about the \u201826 elections,\u201d Griswold said. \u201cBut we have seen an increase in hostility, to say the least. I think something that is really striking is that, at this point, most of our contingency planning, some of our top concerns are about federal interference as opposed to foreign interference.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Colorado Common Cause, a government watchdog and advocacy nonprofit, has also started hosting trainings on non-partisan election protections, Executive Director Aly Belknap said. The organization has formed a coalition with 70 other groups, including faith leaders, business executives, unions and other voting rights advocates. The training includes how to serve as poll monitors, report suspicious activity, including from federal agents,\u00a0and work with lawyers to ensure a fair, accessible election.<\/p>\n

State and federal law, as well as the U.S. Constitution, already establish strong protections for voting, Belknap said, but that doesn\u2019t mean there won\u2019t be further attempts to exert federal pressure on how elections are run and who can participate. In particular, she has concerns about indirect pressure, such as a massive push of immigration enforcement in swing districts like Colorado\u2019s 8th Congressional District, that could suppress the vote.<\/p>\n

\u201cBroadly, we\u2019re in an emergency for what the underpinnings of democracy is in this country,\u201d Belknap said.<\/p>\n

Her concerns also don\u2019t end once Election Day passes. She, like Griswold and Crane, worries about post-election challenges to the results, especially if there are close races.<\/p>\n

Belknap also points to other existential challenges to American self-governance, such as the gutting of the Voting Rights Act and the rush toward partisan gerrymandering that seeks to cement one-party control in different states. That last point has put her group in a particular bind, as it supports a national ban on the practice, but worries a ban on the practice in Colorado essentially sets different rules for red and blue states. Such a ban on partisan redistricting in Colorado has been proposed for this year\u2019s ballot.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe biggest emergency we need to be watching is that this is part of an overall project,\u201d Belknap said of federal attempts to control election administration. \u201cThis really is an emergency for the Republic.\u201d<\/p>\n

Crane, the executive director of the county clerk\u2019s association, likewise has existential concerns about what the affect the Trump administration and the universe of social media conspiracy theorists will have on trust in U.S. elections. The loss of trust caused by baseless claims of election fraud may be generational, he said.<\/p>\n

He encouraged people with questions to contact their local clerks, and volunteer to serve as election judges \u2014 just don\u2019t take viral social media posts and outlandish claims alleging fraud at face value.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople have fought and died for this right,\u201d Crane said. \u201cThey have marched and been beaten. To have so many dishonor the sacrifice people have made with their lies and misinformation, it is disgusting.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stay up-to-date with Colorado Politics by signing up for our weekly newsletter, The Spot.<\/em><\/p>\n

Read more Running backs competing until preseason finish line for CU Buffs<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Trump’s Executive orders to limit mail-in ballots, lawsuits over voter registration data, threats to funding and more have poured out of the White House leading up to the 2026 general election.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4031,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4032","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"\nDespite threats from White House, Colorado election officials predict little change to 2026 general election - Colorado Springs Moverss<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=4032\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Despite threats from White House, Colorado election officials predict little change to 2026 general election - 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