USA: ‘Rights Can Be Hollowed out One Procedure at a Time until They Survive in Name Only’

by CIVICUSThursday, October 29, 2026Inter Press Service CIVICUS discusses voter suppression ahead of the USA’s 2026 midterm elections with Aklima Khondoker, an Atlanta-based civil and voting rights attorney, civil society organisation executive and founder and principal of Atabey Strategies, a consultancy firm that advises civil society organisations on democracy and electoral participation. Aklima KhondokerOn 14 September, the US Supreme Court maintained a freeze on the postal ballot provisions of Donald Trump’s March 2026 executive order, meaning they won’t apply in the November midterms. This was the latest setback to Trump’s efforts to manipulate the election. Since January 2025, Trump has pardoned around 1,500 people charged over the 2021 Capitol attack and placed 2020 election deniers in election security roles. The administration has ordered voters to show documentary proof of citizenship to register, and the Justice Department has sued 30 states for their voter rolls. Courts have blocked the citizenship requirement and dismissed most of these lawsuits.How is the Trump administration changing the way elections are run?President Trump has called for ‘nationalising’ elections,...