President Donald Trump is scheduled to deliver a primetime address to the nation tonight at 9 p.m. ET from the White House, focusing on election security and voting machines as the country heads toward the 2026 midterm elections.
The speech will feature declassified intelligence on investigations into U.S. elections, according to multiple reports. Trump has signaled the address will be substantial, calling it a “very big announcement” on election integrity.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said during a Thursday briefing that Trump will also “possibly” mention the current situation with Iran and the economy at the top of the speech. “It is also very possible that he could address a range of topics,” Leavitt said, while urging networks to carry the speech live and for Americans to tune in.
Trump’s focus on election security comes as he has spent years sowing doubts about electoral outcomes. He has falsely claimed his 2020 loss to Democrat Joe Biden was rigged, claimed without evidence that mail-in voting is rife with fraud, and asserted that voting machines are vulnerable to manipulation, according to Reuters reporting.
The White House is considering using the speech to disclose sensitive intelligence related to whether China had the intention or ability to interfere in the 2020 U.S. election, which Trump claims was stolen from him. However, some Trump officials worry that the intelligence, which was collected and analyzed during his first term, could be misleading, Reuters reported.
Major Networks Decline to Air Speech on Broadcast Channels
Two of the three major U.S. television networks have decided not to broadcast Trump’s primetime address on their primary platforms. ABC News said it will run the speech on its ABC News Live streaming platform and ABC News Radio, but not on its broadcast channel. NBC News plans to carry the remarks on its free streaming service, NBC News NOW, but will not air the speech on its main broadcast channel, according to Reuters.
The ABC and NBC streaming channels generally draw a fraction of the viewers that their traditional broadcast signals reach. CBS did not respond to Reuters questions about whether it planned to carry the address live. CNN and Fox News also did not respond to requests for comment.
Networks have broad First Amendment rights to decide what they choose to broadcast, according to legal experts. Historically, broadcasters have carried most such speeches on the grounds that they provide information of public importance.
Some Democrats have opposed the broadcast. U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez urged networks not to air the speech, arguing Trump is likely to repeat debunked claims. However, FCC Chair Brendan Carr said he thought the broadcast networks should air Trump’s remarks. “This is something that the American people have every right to be able to get over the airwaves,” Carr said in an interview with NewsNation on Wednesday.
The speech comes at a sensitive moment for U.S. media. 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. The FCC could move as early as next month to begin the process of withdrawing the licenses for Disney’s eight company-owned ABC stations.
Fox News, the conservative-leaning cable network that generally carries all of Trump’s speeches, may be wary of this one. In 2023, the network had to pay out $787 million to settle a defamation suit over its airing of false claims about the 2020 election, according to Reuters.
Sources
- Reuters — confirmed network decisions, speech topics, intelligence disclosure plans, Trump’s history of election claims, and legal context
- AP News — verified Trump’s address on elections and voting machines
- KSBW — confirmed 9 p.m. ET timing and election security focus
- The Hill — verified Karoline Leavitt’s preview of the speech and network coverage calls
- Fox News — confirmed Leavitt’s comments on Iran and economy topics
