Donald Trump wants Republicans to nationalize elections and limit mail-in ballots, often citing debunked fraud claims. Here's what he's said

The BBC's Washington correspondent Daniel Bush explains why the US president's comments are causing a stir in a midterm election year.

City and county officials in Atlanta, Detroit and Philadelphia spoke out about Trump's criticizing their handling of elections and suggesting the federal government should step in.

On Tuesday, Trump, 79, doubled down on comments he made during a podcast interview with Dan Bongino, his former FBI deputy director, in which he argued that Republicans should “nationalize” elections by taking over the way ballots are cast and counted.

President Donald Trump says U.S. elections should be nationalized, shifting away from the model of state control that has lasted nearly 250 years.

Speaking at the Oval Office on Feb. 3, Trump suggested federal agents could count votes and run elections instead of state election officials.

Donald Trump said he will only accept the GOP losing control of Congress in this November’s midterms if he considers the elections to have been “honest.” Speaking to NBC’s Tom Llamas, the 79-year-old president was pressed on whether he would trust the midterm results after his suggestion that Republicans should “nationalize” election races across the country.

Secretary of State Bill Galvin told MassLive he's "extremely concerned" about what the president is planning for the 2026 midterms and beyond.

"The Republicans should say, ‘We want to take over.' The Republicans ought to nationalize the voting," Trump said on Friday.

State election officials’ growing suspicion of Trump’s motives has triggered concerns that distrust of even routine moves by the FBI could hinder cooperation.