Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump looks on during a campaign event at the Drexelbrook Catering Event Center in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, USA on October 29, 2024.
Brendan McDiarmid | Reuters
Former President Donald Trump baselessly claimed on Wednesday that Pennsylvania is “fraudulent” on a “massive level,” escalating a growing election fraud conspiracy in the crucial battleground state.
The Republican presidential candidate’s Truth Social posts in the final weeks of the campaign coincided with broader Republican efforts to sow doubts about the integrity of Pennsylvania’s elections.
The effort is similar to what President Trump and his allies advocated before the 2020 presidential election. Trump lost Pennsylvania to President Joe Biden by 81,000 votes.
With polls now showing a close race between Trump and Democratic candidate Kamala Harris in the Keystone State, Republicans appear to be preparing the ground to once again challenge the election results.
As in 2020, President Trump’s strategy in Pennsylvania includes exaggerating and mischaracterizing any irregularities in the state’s election to strengthen his claims of widespread fraud.
“Pennsylvania is experiencing fraud and arrests on an unprecedented scale. Please report fraud to authorities. Law enforcement must act now. !” Trump wrote in a Truth social post Wednesday morning.
Two days ago, Trump falsely claimed: lancaster county Officials were “arrested” with “fake ballots and forms,” even though they did not claim the potentially fraudulent materials were actually votes.
The county said it is reviewing up to 2,500 voter registration applications submitted around the state’s registration deadline. There are approximately 366,000 registered voter Located in Lancaster County.
In the same post, Trump also claimed that another part of the state, York County, “received thousands of potentially fraudulent voter registration forms and mail-in ballot applications from a third party group.”
“Really bad ‘stuff’. What’s going on in Pennsylvania? Law enforcement needs to do their job now, wow!!!” Trump wrote.
Philadelphia residents wait in line around City Hall to vote on the last day of early voting on October 29, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Matthew Hatcher | AFP | Getty Images
“It’s not unusual for us to receive a large number of voter registration requests or a large number of requests for mail-in ballots,” York County Commissioner Julie Wheeler was quoted as saying by local news outlets. fox 43 It was reported on Monday.
“It’s just that this was an oversubscription from one particular organization,” Wheeler said.
Election experts say instances of actual voter fraud are rare. Pennsylvania’s top elections official, Republican Secretary of State Al Schmitt, told CBS News on Sunday that the commonwealth had taken additional steps to strengthen security. election security In 2024.
But that hasn’t stopped President Trump and the Republican Party from raising concerns about how the state’s elections are run.
Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley claimed on Mondayvoter suppression From the left,” the tweet included a video of a woman who is said to be a Trump supporter. handcuffed Located in Delaware County.
The same day, RNC attorney Linda Kearns sent the following message: letter to schmidtThere have been a number of reports of what have been described as “widespread election administration problems,” including voters being told their “computers are down.”
On Tuesday, the Trump campaign, the RNC and groups affiliated with Republican Senate candidate Dave McCormick filed a lawsuit in Bucks County, accusing the county of “turning voters away.”
But Bucks County government disputed claims that voters in line to vote by mail were being rejected.
Trump furthered his claims regarding Lancaster County at a campaign rally in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on Tuesday night.
“So if you have a mail-in ballot, deliver that damn ballot right now, because they’ve already started cheating in Lancaster, they’ve cheated. We’ve got 2,600 We got them with the votes,” Trump said.
The former president has repeatedly called on law enforcement to take action. But Schmidt said in Tuesday’s election update that the investigation was already underway.
The federal Department of State has been in contact with York and Lancaster counties and will “provide guidance and continue to assist as needed as they conduct their investigations,” Republican officials said.
“Ultimately, it will be up to county elections offices and investigative law enforcement to determine whether criminal charges are warranted.”
Trump repeatedly promoted false fraud claims about Pennsylvania before the 2020 election.
In October 2020, he claimed that “thousands of ballots” with his name on them were thrown away in “trash cans” and “trash cans.”
In fact, officials at the time said: 9 votes Seven of the items were illegally discarded in Luzerne County and were marked as belonging to Trump.
Pennsylvania voters are bombarded with political ads and messages ahead of Election Day, creating an environment ripe for the spread of misinformation.
For example, a fake video recently circulated on social media showing a person tearing up a Pennsylvania ballot.
Federal authorities warned Friday that the video was “fabricated and amplified.” russian actor.
