Inside the RNC's legal fight over "election integrity"

Less than two months before the midterms, Republicans are fighting roughly 200 legal battles to try to impact elections, including several cases in which the GOP isn't officially participating but is paying legal fees or advising on strategy.Driving the news: The Republican National Committee's vast roster of cases includes efforts to tighten voter ID rules in Montana, decrease ballot drop-off locations in Georgia, increase scrutiny of voter lists in New Jersey and Delaware, and boost access for election observers and challengers elsewhere.Five RNC officials described the scope of the party's nationwide "election integrity" effort to Axios. They said strict enforcement of voting laws and preventing noncitizens from registering and voting are top priorities — even as analysts say there's no evidence of any systemic or significant voter fraud.Separately, the Trump administration is pursuing criminal charges for any alleged voting law violations. Executive branch offices have told state election officials they're criminally liable for registering or allowing a noncitizen to vote. ICE also has been trying to obtain voter data to investigate cases."We think we have better candidates, and therefore, if the rule of law is followed, we'll win," an RNC official said. "We just are there to make sure that you know officials are following what the laws are."Zoom in: The GOP's legal effort is often opposed by Democratic Party committees and aligned law firms such as Marc Elias' Elias Law Group. One RNC official described being "ambushed" by the amount of litigation Elias' firm filed in a past election cycle.The Democratic National Committee and Elias' firm are arguing against Trump's executive order that called for restrictions on mail-in ballots, a voting method used by nearly one-third of U.S. voters.Elias' firm also is fighting the GOP's push to increase the requirements to verify voters' U.S. citizenship.Critics claim that Republicans' cases often are aimed at restricting access to voting. RNC officials counter that they just want voting rules followed. Elias' firm did not respond to a request for comment.What they're saying: After the 2020 election, Republicans "amped up their election law enforcement litigation," said Ken Cuccinelli, chair of the conservative Heritage Foundation's Election Transparency Initiative and a former deputy Homeland Security secretary in Trump's first term."They have not at all caught up to the Democrat side, but they have really closed the gap and made themselves a meaningful presence in the litigation space in a way they never have before," he added."Every single election cycle, both the Republicans and the Democrats are promoting how much litigation they're bringing, how many watchers they're recruiting," said David Becker, founder of the nonpartisan Center for Election Innovation & Research. "They might be stressing different things, of course, or focusing on different areas," but in modern elections, "this is very common,"