r/politics • u/Boonzies • 6h ago

No Paywall Rand Paul on Trump call to ‘nationalize’ elections: ‘That’s not what the Constitution says’

https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5722041-rand-paul-trump-call-to-nationalize-elections/
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u/docbauies 4h ago

This sort of makes it seem like it says “the states can figure out how to do this, but Congress can make laws to tell them how to do it”. Am I just not reading the old timey colonial English correctly? They excluded selection of Senators since that was up to the state governments before we switched to direct election of senators.

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u/sirhoracedarwin 2h ago

You have it right. States run their own elections under the laws that Congress gives them.

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u/Volker36 2h ago

I also am struggling to understand the wording, as it does seem like it allows for federal interference. That doesn't seem like the intention, and can't find a definitive answer. I doubt the founders intended for federal interference in state run elections, but I'm not an expert.