President Extends Election Interference Emergency for Another Year

The President has extended for one further year the national emergency on foreign interference in or undermining public confidence in United States elections, keeping in force the sanctions and countermeasures authorized against foreign actors. The decision was taken by a notice dated August 31, 2026, signed at The White House, and published in the Federal Register of Wednesday, September 2, 2026 (Vol. 91, No. 169) as document FR Doc. 2026–18046.

The emergency was originally declared on September 12, 2018, by Executive Order 13848, issued under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.). The order responded to what the administration described as an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States posed by foreign interference in the country’s electoral processes.

Why the Emergency Continues

The notice explains that foreign powers have historically sought to exploit America’s free and open political system, and that the proliferation of digital devices and internet-based communications has magnified the scope and intensity of the threat. Persons located, in whole or in substantial part, outside the United States continue to pose a risk through:

• the unauthorized accessing of election and campaign infrastructure, and
• the covert distribution of propaganda and disinformation aimed at undermining public confidence in US elections.

Because that threat persists, the President determined that the national emergency declared on September 12, 2018, must remain in effect beyond September 12, 2026.

Legal Basis and Effect

The continuation is made in accordance with section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1622(d)), which requires the President to renew a declared national emergency annually if it is to remain in force. The extension keeps the sanctions regime and related countermeasures established under Executive Order 13848 operative for another twelve months.

The notice was transmitted to the Congress and published in the Federal Register, and was filed on September 1, 2026, at 11:15 am (billing code 3395–F4–P).

What It Means

For companies, financial institutions and individuals subject to US jurisdiction, the extension means the asset-blocking and other restrictive measures targeting foreign actors who interfere in US elections remain in force and must continue to be observed. The annual renewal underscores Washington’s assessment that foreign election interference remains a live national-security concern, keeping the sanctions framework a standing tool of US foreign policy.

Source: Federal Register, Vol. 91, No. 169, September 2, 2026, Presidential Documents (official reference: FR Doc. 2026–18046).