By Bo Erickson and Erin Banco
WASHINGTON, July 9 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday terminated the members of the Election Assistance Commission, the independent, federal commission that assists election administration officials nationwide, according to one person familiar with the decision and two other people briefed on the terminations.
The remaining three commissioners of the four-member bipartisan commission were forced out of the commission on Thursday in different ways. The one Republican appointee resigned and the other two Democratic appointees were notified of their termination via an email by the White House Presidential Personnel Office.
“On behalf of President Donald J. Trump, I am writing to inform you that your position as Commissioner of the Election Assistance Commission is terminated, effective immediately. Thank you for your service,” the email, seen by Reuters, said.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Election Assistance Commission serves as a “national clearinghouse of information on election administration,” accredits testing laboratories and certifies voting systems, and maintains the national mail voter registration form developed by the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, according to the commission’s website.
The terminations follow Trump and top administration officials’ advocacy to change vote-by-mail requirements and investigations into the 2020 election outcome, which Trump lost to Democrat Joe Biden.
“It is irresponsible and dangerous that this Administration remains dead set on causing chaos for our election officials across this country,” Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes said in a Thursday statement. “This move undermines the integrity of nonpartisan election administration.”
The 2002 law that established the commission, the Help America Vote Act, states the president can appoint replacements to the commission.
It is unclear how Trump will move ahead with the commission.
(Reporting by Bo Erickson; Editing by Stephen Coates)
