President Trump is pushing an aggressive campaign against alleged voter fraud ahead of the midterms, offering a substantial financial incentive to people who report suspected offenders.
In a Truth Social post Monday, Trump said he would pay $1 million to anyone whose information leads to a perpetrator’s arrest and conviction.
The president did not specify where the reward money would come from or identify the agency responsible for administering the payments.
Under federal law, certain election-fraud offenses—including fraudulent voting and paying another person to vote in a federal election—can carry sentences of up to five years in prison.
The announcement followed the administration’s launch of a separate $25 million whistleblower program focused on fraud. Officials have not said whether the two initiatives are linked.
The move comes as Trump has expressed growing concern that Republicans could lose congressional seats in next Tuesday’s midterm elections.
Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick announced the same $1 million reward after the 2020 election. The only person known to receive money was Eric Frank, a Democratic poll worker in Pennsylvania who reported a 72-year-old Republican for voting twice.
Patrick ultimately paid Frank $25,000—only a fraction of the promised $1 million.
“Anybody reporting Voter Fraud in the past Elections, or the upcoming 2026 Midterm Election, will be paid $1,000,000 upon the arrest and conviction of those that created the Fraud,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Monday afternoon.
Democrats and voting-rights organizations are preparing tens of thousands of election observers for the November midterms, while the Justice Department plans its largest-ever effort to monitor polling locations.
Earlier this month, the administration said more than 20,000 people it believed were noncitizens were registered in California and sought to set aside their mail ballots while eligibility checks were conducted.
More than 153 million ballots were cast in the 2024 election. A New York Times review of federal court records found that the Trump administration’s crackdown has so far resulted in charges against 131 people accused of illegally registering or voting as noncitizens.
The expansion of election monitoring comes as Democrats and voting-rights groups prepare to deploy tens of thousands of observers for the November midterms, while the Justice Department readies its largest-ever polling-place operation.
The Associated Press reported Monday that state Democratic parties have trained approximately 10,000 volunteers. Voting-rights organization Common Cause has trained an additional 16,000.
A coalition representing 300 organizations has prepared tens of thousands more observers.
Several Democratic-led states are also making plans to monitor the federal monitors.
Minnesota assigned about 40 state employees to track federal observers during its August primary, and state officials say they expect to continue the practice in November.
The preparations coincide with a Justice Department plan to send roughly 1,000 federal monitors to polling locations across the country.
The Republican National Committee is organizing a parallel effort, saying it has recruited nearly 22,000 poll workers and is arranging poll watchers in competitive districts.
Democrats have warned that the increased presence could contribute to voter intimidation. The administration says its observers are intended to ensure compliance with federal election laws.
The Justice Department announced in August that it planned to deploy a record 1,000 federal monitors to polling places across the country for the November 3 midterms, raising concerns among Democrats and some election officials about federal involvement in the voting process.
Democrats have been preparing their own response for months.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senator Alex Padilla launched an election-observer program in June, announcing on October 14 that more than 100 trained Democratic Senate staffers would be sent to polling sites and ballot-counting facilities across nine states to document potential interference and threats against election workers.
Minnesota deployed around 40 state employees to track federal observers during its August primary, and state officials say they expect to continue that effort in November
At the GOP’s convention in Dallas in September, Trump promised a $5,000 payment to every American adult if Republicans hold on to both chambers of Congress in November, urging voters to back his party
House Speaker Mike Johnson has acknowledged that Congress would need to authorize the payments, which could cost more than $1 trillion
Earlier this month, the administration claimed more than 20,000 people it believed were noncitizens were registered in California and sought to have their mail ballots set aside pending eligibility checks.
California officials challenged the federal government’s evidence and refused to comply with the demand as presented.
In July, Trump claimed his administration had found roughly 278,000 noncitizens registered to vote in federal elections, including about 250,000 across California, Nevada, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
State officials questioned the figures and the administration’s methodology.
This isn’t the first time Trump has dangled a cash incentive during the midterm campaign.
At the GOP’s convention in Dallas in September, he promised a $5,000 payment to every American adult if Republicans hold on to both chambers of Congress in November, urging voters to back his party.
The pledge immediately raised legal questions, with critics accusing Trump of effectively trying to buy votes.
However, election-law experts said the proposal was unlikely to violate federal law because the promised payments would go to all eligible adults, rather than being conditional on how any individual voted.
Trump has continued touting his $5,000 ‘Trump dividend’ ahead of the midterms, but the proposal remains unapproved.
House Speaker Mike Johnson has acknowledged that Congress would need to authorize the payments, which could cost more than $1 trillion.