Trump and Obama campaign as election disputes intensify before midterms

The week at a glance

President Donald Trump concentrated campaign appearances in Republican-leaning states as his party defended congressional majorities, while Barack Obama joined the closing campaign push. Al Jazeera reported that Trump and Obama traded attacks over the Iran war, tariffs and the White House ballroom at rallies in Georgia and Ohio. Other reports described Trump and his allies campaigning in Alaska, Kansas, Michigan, Mississippi and Texas, with a further Trump rally planned in South Carolina, as races previously considered safer for Republicans drew greater attention.

The campaign unfolded alongside disputes over election administration. The Justice Department sought to have California counties isolate ballots associated with about 20,000 people it alleged were likely noncitizens. In Alaska, it sued to prevent certification of the Senate result if the incumbent lost and votes for a namesake challenger would have changed the outcome under the state’s ranked-choice process. Colorado officials, meanwhile, prepared for federal monitors requested by the department in a closely contested congressional district.

Campaigning expands across Republican-leaning states

Trump’s itinerary illustrated how far the campaign had spread into states he had carried comfortably. KVIA, citing ABC News tracking as of Tuesday afternoon, reported that Trump had made 20 stops in states he won handily and six in battleground states since September 9. His schedule included repeated visits to Texas, where an early October ReconMR poll placed Democratic state Representative James Talarico and Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton within the poll’s margin of error.

Kansas also received attention from Republican leaders. KMUW reported that Vice President JD Vance appealed to undecided voters while campaigning for Republican Senator Roger Marshall, whose race against Democrat Adam Hamilton was described as close. Trump had also campaigned for Marshall and planned to return to Kansas. In Michigan, MLive reported that Trump backed Mike Rogers and John James while promising cash payments if Republicans prevailed in November.

In South Carolina, Live 5 News reported that Trump planned to hold a rally in Rock Hill on Thursday, which would be his second visit to the state in nine days, as the Senate contest drew national attention. Republican nominee Darline Graham faced Democrat Annie Andrews, while Representative Ralph Norman’s write-in campaign raised the possibility of Republican vote-splitting. Kirk Randazzo, a political science professor at the University of South Carolina, described the contest as a toss-up. Analysts cited in the report identified turnout and support for Norman as potentially important factors.

State legislative control enters the fight

The widening electoral map extended below the federal level. NBC15 described Wisconsin’s 51st Assembly District as one of a small number of toss-ups that could determine control of the State Assembly. Republicans held a 54-45 advantage, leaving Democrats needing five gains for a majority. Republican Representative Todd Novak, first elected in 2014, was facing Democratic challenger Ben Gruber in a district where voters supported Kamala Harris for president in 2024 while re-electing Novak.

Both candidates emphasized affordability and school finance, although they proposed different funding approaches. Novak called for a substantial rewrite of the formula and changes to protections for districts with falling enrollment. Gruber advocated funding indexed at least to inflation and keeping voucher money in rural communities. The district’s history of supporting Democratic presidential candidates while electing Novak placed split-ticket voters at the centre of the contest.

California ballot allegations face court scrutiny

In California, the Justice Department sent county registrars letters demanding that ballots associated with roughly 20,000 people alleged to be noncitizens be sequestered. According to an Associated Press report carried by KTAR, the letters requested sensitive information, including Social Security numbers, and imposed a 48-hour deadline. Federal prosecutor Bill Essayli warned that officials who knowingly processed a noncitizen’s ballot could face legal jeopardy. The report said noncitizen voting is illegal and rare.

California officials challenged the federal list’s accuracy. The state attorney general’s office said the letters contained errors, while a Los Angeles County court filing said a preliminary review of 200 names found that more than 40% had cancelled registrations, more than 70% had no voting history and nearly four in 10 were born in the United States. Napa County registrar John Tuteur said his office would continue administering the election, while other local officials awaited state guidance.

The dispute moved through federal court. ABC News reported that an appeals court held a rare Sunday hearing. On Monday, two judges on a three-member Ninth Circuit panel declined to rule on the request to sequester the ballots, saying the federal government had not given the district court adequate opportunity to consider it. The Justice Department had sought faster appellate action before a district court hearing scheduled for October 27.

Alaska and Colorado officials resist or limit federal involvement

The Justice Department’s Alaska lawsuit sought to stop certification if Republican Senator Dan S. Sullivan lost and if votes cast for namesake challenger Daniel J. Sullivan would have changed the result under the ranked-choice process. It also requested an investigation into whether voters who selected the challenger had intended to support the incumbent. Trump said he directed the department to bring the case. The incumbent’s campaign said it had no prior knowledge of the lawsuit, while Mary Peltola’s campaign accused the incumbent of designing it as a last effort to sway the result.

The Alaska Supreme Court had separately upheld Daniel J. Sullivan’s eligibility to appear on the ballot. CNN later reported that a New York Times story described efforts by Democrats to recruit the namesake candidate. Alaska Department of Law spokesperson Sam Curtis said that account confirmed election officials’ initial concerns but did not change the state’s opposition to the federal lawsuit. Curtis said ballot access was governed by state law and that the federal statute cited by the department did not authorize its requested remedy. Peltola’s campaign denied involvement in the namesake campaign.

Colorado officials were preparing for a different form of federal involvement. The Justice Department asked to send monitors to Adams County, citing language-access provisions of the Voting Rights Act and describing the observation as routine. Colorado’s secretary of state requested more information and said monitors would need authorization to enter non-public areas and comply with state rules. County clerks said they were preparing for high turnout, possible federal interference and the prospect that close races could take days to call.