President Donald Trump has called for Republicans to “take over” and “nationalize” voting in at least 15 unspecified locations, renewing his long-debunked claims of widespread election fraud. Speaking on a podcast with his former FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino, Trump said, “It’s amazing that the Republicans aren’t tougher on it. The Republicans should say, ‘We want to take over. We should take over the voting — the voting — in at least many, 15 places.’ The Republicans ought to nationalize the voting, and we have states that are so crooked and they’re counting votes.”
Donald Trump went on Dan Bongino’s show and said Republicans should nationalize elections across the country so they can take it over. We need to take him very seriously when he says things like this. pic.twitter.com/RndIq47CCZ
— Mike Nellis (@MikeNellis) February 2, 2026
Trump also repeated his false assertion that he won the 2020 presidential election and accused certain states of counting votes incorrectly. He singled out an election inspector in Colorado, claiming she was jailed for challenging ballot handling despite being 71 years old and in poor health. “They put a woman in jail — a wonderful woman, 72 years old, had cancer — because she was a voting inspector,” he said. “She was in charge of a voting area, and she saw boxes of votes come in. So she went over to check it, and they put her in jail for voter manipulation, and she’s still in jail. And they better let her out fast.”
In the podcast, Trump also criticized previous presidents, including Joe Biden, Barack Obama, and Jimmy Carter, framing them as ineffective while contrasting their records with his own.
Trump’s remarks drew immediate pushback from some Republican lawmakers. Representative Don Bacon, a Republican from Nebraska, posted, “I opposed nationalizing elections when Speaker Pelosi wanted major changes to elections in all 50 states. I’ll oppose this now as well.” Trump gave no details on how he would implement such a plan, or which locations he was referencing.
I opposed nationalizing elections when Speaker Pelosi wanted major changes to elections in all 50 states. I’ll oppose this now as well. I work w/the NE Gov & Unicameral to ensure we have secure elections where every citizen’s vote counts. This is what the Constitution calls for. https://t.co/jYIxwiR2ns
— Rep. Don Bacon 🇺🇸✈️🏍️⭐️🎖️ (@RepDonBacon) February 2, 2026
Trump’s renewed claims of election fraud come as Republicans continue to debate election security and voting access ahead of the 2026 midterms. Analysts have noted that proposals to nationalize elections or use federal agents to monitor polling places would raise significant legal and constitutional questions, though Trump and his allies have framed them as measures to prevent fraud and protect the integrity of elections.
