In 2020, Trump falsely claimed that Joe Biden had stolen the election, mounting legal challenges and pressuring election officials to reverse the result.
Accuse the Democrats of cheating Trump has made claims of cheating a central message of his recent campaign events, suggesting he will cry fraud if election night does not go his way.
Voters, election officials and even donors were added to the list by Trump.
“Please beware that this legal exposure extends to Lawyers, Political Operatives, Donors, Illegal Voters, & Corrupt Election Officials.
If Trump loses, however, he will not be in a position to pressure election officials in the way he did as president in 2020.
For a large portion of his presidential campaign, Donald Trump has sow doubts about the fairness of the electoral process, setting the stage for contesting the election’s outcome in the event that Kamala Harris wins.
In an effort to reverse the results four years ago, the former president and his supporters have increased their rhetoric in recent months and are already accusing the Democratic party of attempting to rig the election.
Trump falsely accused Joe Biden of stealing the election in 2020, launching legal challenges and putting pressure on election officials to overturn the outcome. On January 6, 2021, a group of violent supporters stormed the US Capitol in an attempt to stop the results from being certified, marking the culmination of his efforts.
Despite his disorganized 2020 loss response, Trump has this year devised a strategy to legally contest local, state, and federal outcomes. 230,000 volunteers are being sent by the Republican party to keep an eye on purported fraud in swing states. In addition, the party and its affiliated organizations have already brought dozens of lawsuits, many of which have been unsuccessful, claiming that there are illegal immigrants on the voter rolls.
What Trump might do in this year’s election is as follows.
Claim that the Democrats are dishonest.
Trump’s accusations of cheating have been a major theme of his recent campaign events, implying that if election night does not go his way, he will accuse others of fraud.
At a rally on Sunday in Pennsylvania, a swing state, Trump claimed that “demonic” Democrats were “fighting so hard to steal this damn thing.”. Additionally, he stated that since “we did so well,” he “shouldn’t have left” the White House after Biden won in 2020.
“The cheating is the only thing that can stop us. “It’s the only thing that can stop us,” Trump declared during a town hall in Glendale, Arizona, on Thursday that was hosted by Tucker Carlson, a conservative media personality. “We will have a huge victory if we can keep that cheating to a minimum. “.”.
During a rally in North Carolina on Saturday, Trump claimed that Democrats opposed voter ID laws because “they want to cheat.”. There isn’t another explanation. It is their desire to cheat. They also cheat. They are incredibly dishonest. “.”.
Like his billionaire backer Elon Musk, Trump has urged his supporters to report any instances of cheating they witness at the polls. Social media is still awash with conspiracy theories from supporters of the former president who deny his election.
Slow vote counts raise doubts about their accuracy.
Trump questioned how long it takes to count votes during his rally in Pennsylvania on Sunday, raising concerns that he might claim that slow tabulations are an indication of fraud on election night.
I’ve heard that it will take weeks for them to complete the ballot counting process. Can you imagine that after spending all this money on machines, they will say, “We may take an extra 12 days.” What do you think happens in those 12 days? These elections must be decided by Tuesday night at 9 p.m., 10 p.m., and 11 p.m.
In the early hours of the morning following election day, four years ago, Trump announced his victory before the race was even called. Because he was leading in some swing states, he also demanded that the counting of ballots be stopped, arguing that any additional tabulated votes would be fraudulent.
The former president could also take advantage of the “red mirage,” which occurs when a Republican leads before all the votes are counted. This occurs because results from in-person voting are reported faster than those from mail-in ballots, which are usually used more frequently by Democrats and cause a “blue shift.”.
Trump is expected to announce his victory on election night, regardless of the outcome, according to the Harris campaign. He wants to cast doubt on a loss that he believes is imminent. It won’t work, I’ll just say that,” a senior campaign official stated. His previous attempt at this failed. It will fail if he does it once more. “.”.
Consider Pennsylvania.
Pennsylvania, which has 19 electoral college votes and is the most important prize on election night, has seen intense campaigning by Trump and Harris.
During rallies and on social media, Trump has asserted that the state has already experienced electoral fraud. On October 29, he addressed supporters in Allentown, Pennsylvania, saying, “If you have a mail-in ballot, get that damn ballot in, please, immediately, because they’ve already started cheating in Lancaster.”. “They have cheated.”. With 2,600 votes, we achieved their goal. We have now caught them off guard. “”.
A day prior, he posted the same thing on his Truth Social platform: “WHAT IS GOING ON IN PENNSYLVANIA???”.
Approximately 2,500 suspicious voter registration applications—not ballots—are being examined by Lancaster election officials. The former president could expand on his assertions regarding the votes cast in Pennsylvania if he loses that state.
Trump’s allies, especially Musk, have been posting frequently on social media, which has helped him spread his election-related doubts. In a nearly 20 million-view X post on Sunday, the Tesla CEO declared that the Lancaster claims were “true.”.
In a post that has been viewed 21 million times, Musk also claimed on Sunday that “Pennsylvania is on track for a major Republican victory” on his social media platform X, which may cause Trump’s followers to doubt a defeat in the state.
Proceed to court.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to put anyone who “cheats” in the election in jail if he wins.
He wrote on Truth Social on September 7 that “WHEN I WIN, those who cheated will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, which will include long term prison sentences so that this Depravity of Justice does not happen again.”.
Trump expanded the list to include donors, election officials, and voters.
“Please be aware that corrupt election officials, lawyers, donors, political operatives, and illegal voters are all subject to this legal risk. The pursuit, apprehension, and prosecution of those engaged in dishonest behavior will reach previously unheard-of levels in our nation. “.”.
Late last month, he posted the same statement again.
However, Trump won’t be able to exert the same kind of pressure on election officials as he did in 2020 if he loses.
