WATCH: Padilla Questions Panelists on Fighting Back Against Trump’s Attempts to “Take Over” Federal Elections

WASHINGTON, D.C.— U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration and California’s former Secretary of State,questionedelected officials and leading election experts during a Rules Committee Democrats spotlight forum he convened titled “Protecting the Future of American Democracy: Stopping the Trump Administration’s Attempted ‘Takeover’ of Elections.” Padilla heard from the panelists on efforts to expose and bring accountability for the Trump Administration’s anti-voter executive order, Fulton County election office raid, and potential to declare a national emergency to enable the President’s attempted election takeover.
The panelists at the forum included Mo Ivory, a Fulton County, Georgia Commissioner; Rob Bonta, California’s Attorney General; Norm Eisen, Founder of Democracy Defenders and Former U.S. Ambassador to the Czech Republic; and Stephen Richer, Former Maricopa County, Arizona Recorder, Fellow at the CATO Institute, and CEO of Republic Affairs.
Padilla questioned Attorney General Bonta on Democratic state attorney generals’ collaborative efforts to successfully oppose Trump’s anti-voter actions, including his unconstitutional “election integrity”executive orderlast March.
Padilla also asked Commissioner Ivory and Mr. Richer about the unlawful seizure of 2020 election ballots by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in Fulton County, Georgia. The Senatorrecently demandedan Intelligence Community briefing following Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s presence at the raid. He heard from Commissioner Ivory on how Fulton County election officials are still doing their jobs ahead of the midterm elections. Mr. Richer also discussed his analysis of key White House lawyer and notorious election denier Kurt Olsen’s involvement as part of the basis for the warrant for the Fulton County FBI raid.
Additionally, Padilla questioned Ambassador Eisen on the risk that the Trump Administration maydeclare a national emergencyto implement sweeping anti-democratic changes to federal elections, including jeopardizing vote-by-mail. Ambassador Eisen made clear there is no basis for the declaration of a national emergency, and that the voter identification provisions President Trump is trying to push are unconstitutional.
A video of Padilla’s opening remarks is availablehere.
His full line of questioning is available to watchhere.
His closing remarks are available to watchhere.
The Rules Committee Democrats’ spotlight forum series continues to underscore the dangers of the Trump Administration’s unprecedented attacks on election security, integrity, and funding required to smoothly administer elections and protect American democracy. The firstspotlightforumlast May focused on Congressional Republicans’Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Actand Trump’s illegal anti-voter executive order, both of which threaten to disenfranchise millions of eligible American citizens. Thesecond forumlast Julyfocusedon the Trump Administration’s disturbing voter suppression tactics and pressure campaign for racial gerrymandering in Texas and other Republican-led states.
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