The Al Franken Podcast 1: Ari Berman on Trump’s Plans to Steal the Midterms
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Mar 1, 2026 
Ari Berman, National Voting Rights Correspondent for Mother Jones and author covering U.S. elections, breaks down alarming tactics to interfere with the 2026 midterms. He discusses the Fulton County ballot seizure, the SAVE America Act's voter-document rules, redistricting shifts, and how enforcement tactics and legal moves could reshape turnout and control.
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Fulton County Raid Shows New Playbook For 2026
- The Fulton County ballot seizure signals escalation from 2020 tactics to active federal intervention in local elections.
- MAGA-aligned state actors pushed subpoenas and could use Georgia's new state election board to take over Fulton and restrict voting access.
State Board Takeover Could Enable Voter Purges
- If the state election board appoints its own manager in Fulton County it could sideline local Democrats and greenlight mass voter challenges.
- Georgia's 2021 law lets unlimited eligibility challenges and a MAGA majority could remove voters or close polling sites.
Section Two Ruling Could Remodeling Representation
- A forthcoming Supreme Court decision on Section 2 could eliminate majority-minority districts and shift 5–19 congressional seats.
- The case from Louisiana challenges Section 2's role in redistricting and timing could influence 2026 maps.