Washington, D.C. — President Donald Trump has removed the final members of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, leaving the federal election agency without commissioners months before the 2026 midterm elections.
ProPublica first reported that Trump fired Democratic commissioners Benjamin Hovland and Thomas Hicks, while Republican commissioner Christy McCormick was allowed to resign. Reuters also reported that the dismissals left the bipartisan commission vacant and its future uncertain.
The EAC was created after the 2000 election as part of the Help America Vote Act. It certifies voting systems, supports state and local election offices, distributes election-security grants, and maintains the national mail voter registration form. The agency is designed to have four Senate-confirmed commissioners, with no more than two from the same political party.
The removals come as Trump has pushed for changes to election rules, including a March 2025 executive order directing the EAC to require proof of U.S. citizenship on the federal voter registration form. Voting-rights groups and Democratic election officials called the move reckless, warning that it could weaken nonpartisan election administration.
A White House official told ProPublica that the president has the right to remove officials not aligned with “securing America’s elections.” Any replacements would require Senate confirmation.
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