Election Day isn't here, but the ballot battles are

What they're saying: "The types of challenges that we are seeing pre-election, this close to election day, are very unusual, and mostly because they are coming from the federal government," Jonathan Diaz of the Campaign Legal Center told Axios.

• "These lawsuits are frivolous," Diaz said, adding they could "create doubt in the minds of the public about the legitimacy of the election process."

"It shouldn't be allowed to happen, and it was done in conjunction with Schumer and everybody else. It's called VOTER FRAUD. It should not have been allowed to happen."

The other side: The White House referred Axios to comments President Trump made to the media.

• The Department of Justice did not respond to Axios' request for comment.

Here's some of the ways chaos and uncertainty have shaped the 2026 midterms:

California

In the Golden State, the Trump administration asked state election officials to set aside ballots from roughly 20,000 registered voters whom the DOJ suspects are noncitizens.

• A federal judge rejected that push Wednesday night, warning that the administration lacked sufficient evidence to justify potentially disenfranchising eligible voters.
• The judge noted that the DOJ had made similar claims in neighboring Nevada, where election officials determined that 185 voters the DOJ had flagged as noncitizens were actually U.S. citizens.
• Diaz told Axios that, from his perspective as a voting-rights advocate, the California battle is "not a real lawsuit. It's a political press release that they just happened to submit to the court."

The other side: The White House directed questions about the ruling to remarks Trump made Thursday, in which he said "California is very corrupt," and the state's elections are "extremely corrupt."

• He did not provide evidence for his claims.

Washington

On Monday, the two U.S. attorneys' offices in Washington state asked the state to set aside ballots from more than 400 people they allege were illegally registered to vote.

• The letter mirrors similar demands sent to California before the Trump administration sued.

Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs fired back Wednesday, tearing into the U.S. attorneys for making the request so close to Election Day and calling the timing "profoundly disappointing."

• Hobbs said a preliminary investigation confirmed that the federal list includes U.S. citizens and is unreliable. He asked prosecutors to provide individualized proof of ineligibility.

North Carolina

Nearly 4,000 mail-in ballots, or about 6%, processed in North Carolina through Oct. 24 have been flagged for problems that, if not fixed, could invalidate voters' choices.

• Time is running out for those voters to address the issues, and hundreds have yet to respond to notifications about their ballots.

The rejections appear to stem in part from new guidance issued by the GOP-controlled state Board of Elections requiring the inner ballot envelope to be sealed, even if the outer envelope is already sealed.

Alaska

In Alaska's Senate race, two men named Dan Sullivan are on the ballot, Sen. Dan S. Sullivan and retired teacher Dan J. Sullivan.

• New reporting from The New York Times on Wednesday alleged that aides to Democratic candidate Mary Peltola helped recruit the other Dan Sullivan in an apparent attempt to confuse voters and siphon votes away from the incumbent senator. Peltola's campaign denies any involvement.
• Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy ordered an investigation Wednesday for investigators to determine whether the alleged scheme violated Alaska law and whether criminal charges or civil action are warranted.
• The DOJ has separately sued to delay certification of the Senate election if the incumbent loses and votes for the other Sullivan could have changed the outcome.

Go deeper: Trump is pulling every lever to reshape U.S. elections