The Washington District Court halted the Trump administration’s practice of reducing certain federal payments to states that fail to meet election-related conditions.
Washington District Court Judge Amir Ali issued the ruling. The suspension came before the congressional midterm elections scheduled for November 3, 2026.
Court questions legal basis for election conditions
The court ruled that Congress had not authorized federal agencies to make the relevant grants conditional on requirements concerning the conduct of elections.
The ruling also stated that grant conditions must be directly connected to the program’s primary purpose. The court noted that the election-related conditions did not align with the criteria set out in the law.
Twenty percent of state funds was to be withheld
The suspended regulation provided for cutting part of the federal counterterrorism funds allocated to states that failed to meet the election conditions. Under the grant program announced by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, 20 percent of the funds allocated to states and urban areas was to be withheld until the conditions were met.
The conditions included verifying that all registered voters and election officials were United States citizens.
Local governments that count votes using electronic systems with barcodes or QR codes were also asked to submit plans to switch to paper ballots completed by voters by hand.
Some city governments filed lawsuits arguing that the Federal Emergency Management Agency lacked the authority to set such conditions on the conduct of elections. Several state governments also filed similar lawsuits against the same practice.
