Civil rights groups, NJ Democrats condemn Trump mail ballot order as 'power grab'

Civil rights organizations and New Jersey Democrats condemned President Trump's executive order targeting mail-in voting, calling it an unlawful attempt to rewrite election rules by decree.

'Any changes to election rules cannot be made by the President through a blatantly unlawful executive order that seeks to disenfranchise voters in the name of debunked conspiracy theories about widespread election fraud,' said New Jersey Attorney General Jen Davenport. 'This is a clear power grab.'

Legal scholars quoted in the coverage echoed the point. The president and executive branch have no role in election administration. The U.S. Constitution leaves election rules to states and, if they choose to intervene, Congress. That structure, they said, has not changed and cannot be altered by an order from the Oval Office.

Several state attorneys general said they were prepared to sue to block the order before the primary calendar began.