As Trump & Republicans Work To Undermine Democracy, Leader Schumer To Discuss Strategy To Protect Voting Rights & Safeguard Free And Fair Elections At The Center For American[...]

Washington, D.C. - This afternoon, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) will speak at the Center for American Progress to expose the latest efforts by Donald Trump and Republicans to strip voting rights, rig our elections, and undermine our democracy-and what Democrats are doing to stop them.

Donald Trump and Republicans know their failed economic agenda has driven up costs on everything from gas to groceries and housing to health care, and that the American people will hold them accountable in November. That's why Republicans are doing everything they can to stack the deck in their favor and make it harder for people to vote, including trying to purge voters, restricting the most common ways people vote, turning over state voter rolls to the Department of Homeland Security, and limiting voter registration. Senate Democrats are fighting back. Last month, Leader Schumer and Senate Democrats announced a history-making, "Election Protection Task Force" to defend our democracy against Trump and Republicans' attempts to intimidate and disenfranchise voters and capture our elections.

Today, Leader Schumer will speak at the Center for American Progress to discuss Democrats' plan to protect our democracy and ensure our elections remain free and fair. Leader Schumer has been leading the Senate fight to protect our elections, despite what Donald Trump, Congressional Republicans, and even the MAGA Supreme Court are trying to do.

Below are excerpts from Leader Schumer's remarks as prepared:

"If Republicans wanted to win back voters, they could change their policies. They could lower costs. They could protect health care. They could stop handing favors to billionaires and corrupt buddies. They could try - just once - to make life easier for working families. With policies so unpopular, what's a wannabe autocrat to do? Launch a coordinated, multi-front campaign to subvert the election. That is what the SAVE Act is about. Republicans call it election integrity. It is not. It is voter suppression in a suit and tie."

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"Let's call this what it is: A coordinated campaign to rig the 2026 election before a single vote is cast. Trump's unprecedented plan to rig the 2026 election requires an unprecedented response. That's why I'm launching Senate Democrats' Election Protection Task Force - the most expansive election protection effort our caucus has ever undertaken in American history. This is not a messaging exercise. It is a real operation before, during, and after Election Day: lawyers, observers, rapid-response teams, cybersecurity experts, and state and local coordination ready in key battlegrounds and high-risk jurisdictions to protect voters, election workers, the count, and the certification process."

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"We will work with state and local officials. We will identify where voters and election workers are most at risk. And we will be ready to respond the moment Trump or his allies try to intimidate voters, interfere with the count, disrupt a recount, or corrupt a certification. We will mount lawsuit after lawsuit at every stage of the process. Mark my words: we're ready to protect free and fair elections at every polling location, precinct, county office, and courthouse."

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"Let me be very clear: Local officials run elections. Voters decide elections. Donald Trump does not. This is not about process. It is about power. Republicans are already ignoring your wages, your health care, your rent, your grocery bill, and your freedom. Now they want to make sure you cannot hold them accountable. That is what Trump's election scheme is about. But in America, voters choose their leaders - leaders do not choose their voters. The fight for 2028 starts in 2026. And Senate Democrats are going to fight like hell to make sure our elections belong to the voters - not Donald Trump."

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