New midterm battleground takes shape as parties build election armies
President Donald Trump has long argued that who is counting the votes can matter nearly as much as who is on the ballot — a view that has helped turn...
By Fox News · Fox News
President Donald Trump has long argued that who is counting the votes can matter nearly as much as who is on the ballot — a view that has helped turn the mechanics of elections into their own political battleground. That fight is becoming more organized, more expensive and more sophisticated ahead of the 2026 midterms . Tuesday marks National Poll Worker Recruitment Day , a once-obscure observance created in 2020 that has become a significant organizing marker for both parties. Republicans and Democrats are recruiting poll workers, observers, lawyers and voter-protection staff as they prepare for one of the most consequential midterm elections in history. "We have more poll workers in the 2026 cycle than we did in the 2024 cycle," Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters told Fox News Digital in a recent interview. "We're better prepared. We have staffers in 25 states. We are on the ground, ready to do battle." TRUMP WILL ‘DELIVER’: RNC CHAIR SIGNALS MIDTERMS CONFIDENCE DESPITE ‘DOOM AND GLOOM’ The RNC, in data shared exclusively with Fox News Digital, is 42% ahead of its 2024 pace, with 16,971 volunteer signups nationwide compared with 11,917 at the same point in the past presidential cycle. "The RNC has shattered our 2024 poll worker recruitment benchmarks, built the largest election integrity operation in Republican Party history, and mobilized thousands of volunteers to help secure the ballot box," Gruters added in a statement. "With less than 90 days until the midterms, we’re seeing record-breaking grassroots engagement, expanding our operation into new states, and building the infrastructure needed to defy history in 2026." That effort came from the top from Trump , post-2020, and has led to the RNC's election integrity unit buildout with its multimillion-dollar campaign. REPUBLICAN SAYS TRUMP'S TOP ELECTION PRIORITY 'DEAD' IN SENATE AS GOP FRACTURES AHEAD OF MIDTERMS And "parity" election laws regulating poll workers from both the national party appar…