Trump removed members of the Election Assistance Commission

President Donald Trump expelled the remaining three members Election Assistance CommissionThere are less than four months left before the midterm elections, the White House confirmed on Friday.

Democrats criticized Trump’s dismantling of the EAC, the independent federal agency that helps manage election funds, as the latest example of Trump’s efforts to influence US elections.

Two Democratic commissioners – thomas hicks And Benjamin Hovland – fired by email on Thursday, according to votebeatWho first reported the eviction.

Christy McCormickWas allowed to resign, according to Votebeat, reporting of which was confirmed by a White House official in an email to CNBC.

Fourth Commissioner, Republican Donald Palmer, Voluntarily left the commission in April for a job at the Heritage Foundation.

Asked about the terminations, a White House official said in an email to CNBC, “The President and the heads of the executive branch reserve the right to remove individuals who cannot fully engage with the vital work of securing America’s elections and ensuring every legal vote is counted.”

“The Slaughter decision gives the president priority to do that,” the official said, referring to the Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision in late June that said Trump had the authority to fire Federal Trade Commissioner Lewis Slaughter.

The ruling gave Trump and future presidents the power to remove members of supposedly independent federal agencies that function under the executive branch of government.

The White House official said, “The administration has been working with all agencies and local partners to protect elections from fraud and abuse from the beginning, and is investing in a strong infrastructure to maintain that mission, especially in the midterm elections.”

But Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., in a post xSaid, “Firing every remaining member of the bipartisan Election Assistance Commission months before the midterms is a brazen attempt to seize control of our elections before a single vote is cast.”

“He is dismantling the independent agency that certifies voting systems and helps election officials run secure elections,” Schumer wrote.

Voting rights advocates and Democrats have raised concerns that Trump, who has repeatedly claimed the 2020 election was stolen from him, is attempting to undermine the November elections.

Trump continues to push a controversial elections bill, the Save America Act, which would impose strict voter identification requirements and mandate proof of citizenship to vote.

In the past year, he has attacked the practice of voting by mail and floated the idea that Republicans should “nationalize” elections.