TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) – Voting rights advocates and some state election officials are concerned by President Donald Trump’s decision to have the U.S. Department of Homeland Security take over his voter fraud investigation.

Trump late Wednesday spiked a commission he had set up amid infighting and refusals by numerous states to cooperate.

But he transferred its mission to DHS. That concerns some election officials and experts who had been critical of the commission.

DHS could have broad legal authority to investigate Trump’s unfounded claims of widespread voter fraud. That’s because of a declaration at the end of President Barack Obama’s administration that election infrastructure is vital to national security.

Connecticut Secretary of the State Denise Merrill called the prospect of a DHS investigation “ominous.” Vermont Secretary of State Jim Condos said he’s concerned about DHS working in secret.

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