President Donald Trump spoke to reporters outside the White House on Friday before a trip to Texas, where he said he's never heard of a draft of an executive order pertaining to the midterm elections.
An earlier exclusive Friday from The Washington Post claimed that a 17-page document is circulating that would allege China hacked the 2020 election and that, as a result, he must declare a national emergency and have the federal government take over the 2026 midterm elections.
“President Donald Trump has repeatedly previewed a plan to mandate voter ID and ban mail ballots in November’s midterm elections, and the activists expect their draft will figure into Trump’s promised executive order on the issue," the Post reported.
Florida lawyer Peter Ticktin, who is advocating for the order, claimed, "We have a situation where the president is aware that there are foreign interests that are interfering in our election processes."
But when reporters asked Trump about it on Friday, he said he's never heard of it.
"Who told you that?" Trump asked.
"Are you looking at that or are you—" asked White House correspondent Liz Landers from PBS News Hour.
"No," Trump cut in, saying he had no idea about it.
I just asked President Trump about whether he is considering declaring a national emergency around the elections and the proposed executive order about this - he said no, he’s never heard about it. pic.twitter.com/hnxfWzlcXJ
— Liz Landers (@ElizLanders) February 27, 2026
