Election officials push back on Trump’s ‘rigged’ allegations
ATLANTA — Election officials across the country are pushing back against Donald Trump’s assertions the presidential election may be rigged, arguing too many safeguards exist against engineered results nationally or in individual states.
Claims of “rigged” contests are “part of free speech,” Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, a Republican, said in an interview. “But I would tell voters not to overreact to some of the more spirited language.”
It’s clear, though, some supporters have taken Trump’s comments to heart. Trump told a town hall crowd in Columbus, Ohio, last month: “I’m afraid the election is going to be rigged; I have to be honest,” without elaborating.
In recent weeks, voters have linked the GOP nominee’s remarks to attacks on two states’ voter registration databases and questions surrounding the security of electronic voting machines.
A clear divide remains between Democrats and Republicans on the prevalence of in-person voting fraud, sharpened by recent court rulings against voter identification laws in several states, including North Carolina. Appeals court judges in the North Carolina suit said state officials didn’t provide evidence of in-person fraud they claim strict identification requirements will prevent. Researchers also have found few cases of fraud in years of study.
Asked in Dalton, Ga., about his views on voter fraud, Trump’s running mate, Mike Pence, told a woman that “skepticism is well-founded but the response ought to be action.”
He then segued into a defense of voter identification laws. The day before in Perry, Ga., Pence recommended a person with similar concerns about election results get involved as a local precinct poll worker.
Pence didn’t mention the “Trump Election Observer” registration system on the campaign’s official site, in which they call for volunteers to stop “Crooked Hillary,” as he calls his Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton, “from rigging this election.”
“I understand the anxiety that people feel, and we’ve seen instances of voter fraud in this country over the last 10 to 20 years,” Pence told the crowd.
Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp, a Republican, said he’s not concerned about results being effectively changed by Election Day shenanigans. But he remains supportive of the Southern state’s still-active law requiring identification at the polls, and says it will ensure no one can vote unless eligible.