WASHINGTON — President Trump’s Justice Department is warning election officials in all 50 states to preserve voting records or face possible jail time. 

Days before Tuesday’s midterm elections, Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter sent formal letters nationwide telling state officials they must preserve election records for at least 22 months — or else risk criminal prosecution for failure to comply with federal law.

Violating Section 20701 — or willfully stealing, destroying, concealing, mutilating, or altering the records — is a federal crime punishable by up to one year in prison and a $1,000 fine.

McCotter said officials are merely ensuring all citizens’ votes count. He and other Justice Department officials, in a briefing with reporters on Thursday, said that a vote cast by a non-citizen cancels the vote of an actual citizen.

“Despite what some may say, cracking down on illegal voting, investigating these cases, this is not a threat to elections. It’s not a threat to democracy. It’s not a threat to election officials. Exactly the opposite,” he said. 

“We’re trying to ensure that every citizen who votes has their vote counted, and that it’s not canceled out in effect by someone voting who’s not allowed to.”

The records election officials must preserve include all documents related to determining the voting eligibility of the person casting the ballot, including registration forms, poll books, sign-in sheets, identification papers submitted, requests for mail-in ballots, and envelopes containing those ballots.

Strict enforcement of voting laws and the prevention of non-citizens from casting a ballot are President Trump’s top priorities for Election Day.

He and his team have launched a multi-prong approach to set the stage for legal challenges.

It’s all part of an army of poll monitors from both parties that will descend on voting places across the country on Election Day. Additionally, several hundred lawsuits have already been filed as both Republicans and Democrats prepare for a contentious midterm contest.

The federal government and Republican National Committee are running on parallel tracks to ensure the legality of every vote cast.

The Department of Justice will have 1,000 monitors spread across 50 states to watch for any legal issues, although their staff tend to focus on federal law, such as making sure ADA requirements are met and no one is trying to unduly influence voters. 

These monitors will not interfere with voting, department spokeswoman Kiersten Pels told The Post.

“Every monitor has the same role: observe for potential violations of federal law and report concerns to the Department, which the Department will review after Election Day and act where appropriate,” she said.

The Republican National Committee will also have election monitors on the ground and lawyers ready to file suit if any shenanigans are observed.

Monitors cannot speak with voters, interact with election equipment or otherwise interfere with the election  — they can merely observe and report to their superiors. 

The Trump administration argues these actions are about ensuring safe, free and fair elections. 

Trump has long claimed to be the victim of election fraud, falsely saying he won the 2020 presidential election. And when he was asked earlier this week if he’ll accept the election results, he responded: “I will, if they’re honest.”

On the other side of the aisle, Democrats are also making their preparations.

They — and their Democratically aligned outside voting groups — will have monitors around polling locations to watch for any interference.

“We have grown our voter protection program, with staff based in more than 35 states to train and support election observers all across the country. The DNC’s first-ever in-house litigation team is working tirelessly to defeat attacks on our voting rights,” a Democratic National Committee spokesperson told The Post.

Additionally, lawmakers, elected officials and legal experts have run table top scenarios of different situations — including ballots being seized by feds, Homeland Security agents questioning voters, allegations of foreign interference, and any AI fake propaganda.

Officials are deeply worried pranksters will cause chaos by posting online fake, AI-generated photos allegedly showing federal agents arresting voters. 

Democrats are deeply concerned the administration may target jurisdictions where voting materials are available in multiple languages.

But, despite Democratic fears, the Department of Homeland Security said its Immigration and Customs Enforcement staff will not be patrolling those areas.

“ICE is not planning operations targeting polling locations,” a spokesperson told The Post. “ICE conducts intelligence-driven targeted enforcement, and if an active public safety threat endangers a polling location, they may be arrested as a result of that targeted enforcement action.”

But any non-citizen who votes will face charges, the department warns.

“Our message to aliens who vote in American elections is clear: we will find you, arrest you, and you will face the consequences — including criminal charges and deportation,” the spokesperson said.

DHS has worked for months to gather state voter rolls in order to find any noncitizens who are illegally registered to vote.

At least 16 states have provided complete statewide voter registration lists, according to the Brennan Center. The federal government has sued 30 states and Washington, DC, for not complying but 27 of those lawsuits have been dismissed.

The Justice Department, over the past two months, has charged 154 foreign nationals across 23 states with unlawful voting, fraudulent voter registration and election-related offenses. North Carolina leads the list with 18 defendants while Minnesota is close behind with 11.

Trump is already questioning Tuesday’s outcome, warning election results may not be trusted in the Minnesota Senate race.

“Don’t allow them to play with the votes after the race is over,” he wrote on Truth Social this week. “The Federal Government will be watching closely.”

The state’s Democratic senator reacted strongly, charging the president with trying to steal the election. 

“He’s blatantly laying the groundwork to steal an election if his chosen candidate doesn’t win,” Sen. Tina Smith wrote in response on X. “Minnesota will not take kindly to thinly veiled threats from a guy we’ve rejected three times.”

Lawsuits are being wielded as a weapon, with both parties filing them in several states.

The DNC has its first-ever in-house litigation team for voting issues, alongside national and local law firms.

Elias Law Group, a large firm representing the Democratic Party, is already litigating 85 voting and election cases in 41 states.

Marc Elias, a top elections lawyer, told NPR that it’s a multistep process when it comes to protecting votes.

“It begins with voter registration, then you have people voting, then you have Election Day,” he said. “You have tabulation of ballots, you have local certification, and ultimately you have seating.”

And the Republican National Committee has 179 active election integrity cases in 37 states. The party’s main campaign arm has had an in-house election integrity team in place for a few election cycles — with a team of lawyers on hand to deal with any voting issue.

Alaska’s Senate race has become a hot spot after the New York Times dropped a bombshell article revealing Democratic efforts to recruit a candidate with the same name as the incumbent Republican senator. The Justice Department has filed a civil suit and may pursue criminal charges. The governor has ordered an investigation.

Trump pointed to the scheme as the reason why elections need to be monitored closely. He called it “voter fraud” and said those involved should be prosecuted.

“It was a plot by the Democrat Party, and frankly, they should be, I think they should be prosecuted. To me, that’s voter fraud at the highest level,” the president said.