Senate Gop Leader John Thune Says He Disagrees With Trump That Congress Should 'nationalize' Elections

WASHINGTON — Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said he was "not successful favor" of federalizing elections a time aft President Donald Trump said connected a podcast that Republicans "ought to nationalize nan voting.”

"I’m not successful favour of federalizing elections," Thune told a newsman who asked him astir Trump's remarks. "That’s a law issue," he added.

Elections for members of Congress are tally by nan states, successful accordance pinch nan Constitution's Article 1, which besides allows for Congress to walk national regulations. States tally elector registration, counting ballots and fraud prevention, among different predetermination responsibilities.

Thune, nan apical Republican successful nan Senate, emphasized that he is "a large believer successful decentralized and distributed power."

"It’s harder to hack 50 predetermination systems than it is to hack one," he added. "So it, successful my view, astatine least, that’s ever a strategy that’s worked beautiful well."

The White House did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.

Asked separately astir Trump's stance, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said that "it’s ever been nan work of nan states to administer elections and it’s a strategy that useful well, truthful agelong arsenic nan states make it a privilege to guarantee nan integrity of our elections. And we person existent concerns astir immoderate of nan bluish states, frankly, that person not been doing that well."

He said that Trump was "expressing that frustration" and added, "We're looking for solutions."

Johnson past touted nan Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which would require that states get impervious of citizenship during elector registration. It is already forbidden for non-citizens to vote. Election experts and advocates have said that elector ID laws can make it harder for citizens to formed ballots because not everyone has nan required documents arsenic accessible.

Trump said successful a Monday question and reply connected erstwhile Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino's podcast that his statement should push to nationalize elections. Trump's comments came successful nan mediate of an extended rant astir predetermination fraud. Trump has for years falsely claimed nan 2020 predetermination was rigged, though location is nary grounds of wide elector fraud successful nan U.S.

"The Republicans should say, 'We want to return over. We should return complete nan voting successful astatine slightest — many, 15 places,'" Trump said during nan interview. "The Republicans ought to nationalize nan voting."

Trump past repeated his mendacious declare that he won nan 2020 predetermination successful Georgia, referencing nan FBI hunt astatine a Fulton County predetermination agency past month.

“We person states that are truthful crooked, and they’re counting votes — we person states that I won that show I didn’t win. Now you’re going spot thing successful Georgia wherever they were capable to get pinch a tribunal order, nan ballots, you’re going to spot immoderate absorbing things,” he said.

The FBI told NBC News past period that it was “conducting court-authorized rule enforcement activity” astatine nan Fulton County Election Hub and Operation Center. The region said that nan FBI was looking for records related to nan 2020 election. Georgia and Fulton County specifically person been a attraction of Trump's since his 2020 loss.