President Donald Trump is scheduled to deliver a primetime address tonight at 9 p.m. ET focusing on election security and voting machines, as he teases what he calls “really big news” on the topic. The speech comes four months before the November 2026 midterm elections and marks a rare primetime address on elections from the current administration.
According to Reuters, the White House is considering using the speech to disclose sensitive intelligence related to China’s intentions or ability to interfere in the 2020 U.S. election, though some Trump officials worry the material could be misleading. Trump has spent years making unfounded claims about electoral outcomes, falsely claiming his 2020 loss to Joe Biden was rigged and asserting without evidence that mail-in voting is rife with fraud and voting machines are vulnerable to manipulation.
U.S. television networks are weighing whether to carry the address live. Historically, networks have carried most presidential speeches on the grounds that they provide information of public importance. However, spokespeople for ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, and Fox News did not respond to Reuters questions about whether they planned to broadcast the address, according to reporting from the outlet. The networks face pressure from multiple directions: declining to air the speech could anger an administration that has already placed unprecedented pressure on broadcast networks, while airing it risks amplifying unsubstantiated claims about elections.
Network Concerns and Political Pressure
The decision carries particular stakes given recent tensions between the Trump administration and major media companies. Walt Disney-owned ABC is facing two pending inquiries from the Federal Communications Commission, including one examining whether its daytime talk show “The View” violated equal-time rules. Trump has repeatedly attacked NBC and its parent company, Comcast, which he has dubbed “Concast,” and stormed out of an interview with NBC political reporter Kristen Welker last month. At CBS, the takeover of Paramount by David Ellison—whose billionaire father Larry is a Trump ally—has roiled the newsroom and prompted departures from senior staff, according to Reuters. Fox News, which generally carries Trump’s speeches, paid out $787 million in 2023 to settle a defamation suit over its airing of false claims about the 2020 election.
Some Democrats, including U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, have urged networks not to air the speech, arguing Trump is likely to repeat debunked claims. The speech also comes as Trump has escalated calls for Republicans to pass tighter federal voting rules ahead of the midterms. The address will stream on the National Desk’s website and YouTube at 9 p.m. ET for those seeking to watch online.
Sources
- Reuters — network dilemma over airing the speech, White House intelligence disclosure plans, Trump’s history of unfounded election claims, network pressure and regulatory inquiries
- CNN — Trump expected to address foreign efforts to influence U.S. elections
- The New York Times — speech scheduled for Thursday evening on election security and voting machines
- PBS — Trump’s address focus on election integrity, foreign interference, and voting security
- Politico — Trump promising to reveal “really big news” on election security, Republican concerns about the speech
