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Todd Blanche won't rule out DOJ action to block election certification

newsOct 22, 2026441,156

Attorney General Todd Blanche told reporters he would not categorically rule out the Department of Justice taking action that could block states from certifying election results, citing “some ‘doomsday’ scenario” as a hypothetical. Blanche said it is “never” the DOJ’s intention to “improperly interfere with elections or the state confirmation process,” but added “to say that there’s no circumstances that we would ever do that, of course, I’m not going to say that.” His remarks come amid a Justice Department push of investigations and prosecutions into alleged voter fraud, including door-to-door checks for noncitizen voters and litigation in California seeking review of about 18,000 registered voters. Legal limits remain significant: the DOJ’s role in elections is strictly limited by law and the Constitution, and David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election and Innovation Research, said the department has “no authority” over certification and courts would likely block federal interference. A federal judge, Araceli Martínez-Olguin, recently barred Department of Homeland Security field interviews in nine states tied to the administration’s “Unlawful Voter Initiative,” an example of courts limiting federal election-related operations. The immediate consequence is likely more litigation and court challenges if the DOJ pursues election-related actions, even as experts and judges signal legal barriers to stopping state certification.

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