The accreditation landscape is becoming overtly political: ten institutions have filed letters of intent with a newly formed Commission for Public Higher Education, part of a push by six Southern public university systems to create an alternative accreditor. The move follows an April executive order and federal regulatory shifts that loosened barriers to switching accreditors and barred some uses of diversity mandates. Observers say the formation of a regionally concentrated accreditor both rebuts accusations of partisanship and signals an institutional desire for models aligned with state priorities. The development complicates federal oversight because accreditors gatekeep institutional access to Title IV federal aid; a shift in accreditor recognition could reconfigure compliance expectations and peer-review norms. College and university leaders should weigh the operational costs and strategic implications of changing accreditation pathways—especially how new criteria might alter program review, faculty governance, and access to federal research funds. Clarification: Federal recognition of accreditors is necessary for institutions to maintain federal student-aid eligibility; new accreditors must meet U.S. Department of Education standards.