The Justice Department is warning state election officials they could face federal prison time for failing to preserve election records ahead of Tuesday's midterms.
Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter sent the letters Thursday, framing them as a reminder of officials' duty to retain ballots, poll books, sign-in sheets and related records, according to ABC News.
"It is a crime to willfully fail to comply" with the retention rules, McCotter wrote in a letter obtained by the outlet. "Such a failure is punishable by up to a year in prison and a $1,000 fine." (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: ICE Flags 19 More Foreign Nationals Accused Of Voting In US Elections)
The notices reached all 50 states and carry the signature of McCotter, the department's second-ranking official, Votebeat reported. The letter also states that willfully destroying, concealing or altering election records breaks the law.
Reminding election officials to follow federal law is a civic service, not a “threat.” They should welcome efforts to ensure that illegal votes by noncitizens do not cancel out votes by U.S. citizens. Many election officials work with DOJ. But a few would rather bury their heads… pic.twitter.com/q302WNv1W2
— Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter (@PADAGMcCotter) October 31, 2026
Several state officials said the demand departs from how past administrations conveyed the same rules, according to ABC News. Democratic Connecticut Secretary of the State Stephanie Thomas took issue with the letter's tone.
"While I hope the decision to emphasize criminal penalties was intended simply as a reminder of the law, it could have been handled differently," Thomas said. Her office treats the obligation as routine and gained nothing from the letter, Votebeat reported.
The notice is one of several the administration has sent election officials this year, Votebeat noted. The warning arrived a day after a federal judge in California rebuked the administration over its treatment of election officials. That fight centers on ballots from voters the government suspects are noncitizens.
The letters follow the FBI's seizure of more than 600 boxes of ballots and election materials from Fulton County, Georgia, in January, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. A federal judge and Trump appointee, J.P. Boulee, declined in May to order the records returned, the newspaper reported.
Federal law requires officials to safeguard voting records for 22 months after an election, Votebeat noted.
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