President Trump is scheduled to deliver a primetime speech tonight at 9 p.m. Eastern focused on election security as he renews long-standing complaints about voting systems ahead of November’s midterm elections.
The White House has been deciding whether to disclose sensitive intelligence related to China’s intention or ability to interfere in the 2020 U.S. election, according to Reuters reporting. Some Trump officials worried the information could be misleading.
Intelligence collected during Trump’s first term from 2017 to 2021 did not show Beijing had manipulated or changed votes, sources told Reuters. The White House task force led by conservative journalist John Solomon has spent recent weeks reviewing documents from the intelligence community ahead of the speech.
Trump has spent years making false claims about the 2020 election. Numerous courts and vote recounts found no evidence of large-scale fraud in that election. He has also advanced other unsubstantiated claims, including that mail-in balloting is rife with fraud, voting machines are vulnerable, and non-citizen voting is widespread.
Since returning to office in January 2025, Trump has sought to expand federal power over elections, which legally reside with state governments under the U.S. Constitution. In recent months, he has pressured Senate Republicans to advance the SAVE America Act, which would require photo ID to vote and proof of U.S. citizenship to register while mandating that states share voter registration information with the federal government.
Some Republican leaders have urged Trump to focus on issues that matter most to Americans. “The only thing I can tell you is, we are focused on the 2026 election, at least I am, and I think most of my colleagues are,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune said when asked about the speech.
Republicans are navigating political headwinds as the midterm elections approach, with Trump’s approval rating underwater and voters deeply frustrated by the Iran war and attendant high energy prices. Democrats need to flip only three Republican seats to take a majority in the House of Representatives.
White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said on the eve of the speech that “nobody knows yet what President Trump will ultimately say.” It remains unclear whether television networks will grant the White House air time for the address, a practice typically reserved for major addresses on issues of national import.
Sources
- Reuters — Trump’s planned primetime speech on election security, intelligence on China’s intentions regarding the 2020 election, Republican concerns about the speech timing, and Trump’s long-running false claims about the 2020 election
- KFI AM 640 — Confirmation of 9 p.m. Eastern speech time and focus on election security
- NPR — Trump’s escalated calls for Republicans to pass tighter federal voting rules for midterms
