Trump admits there's no evidence of election fraud
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Former President Trump speaks to the media in North Carolina on Oct. 21. Photo: Jim Watson / AFP via Getty Images
Former President Trump admitted Monday he has seen no evidence to suggest there has been any election fraud in 2024, but raised doubts about "the other side."
Why it matters: The Republican presidential nominee's admission stands in stark contrast to his typical rhetoric on election integrity that has seen him make baseless claims about "rigged" polling places since 2016.
- In echoes of the 2020 campaign, Trump has orchestrated a series of excuses to reject the results of the 2024 election in case he loses, in public remarks, on social media and in more than 100 preemptive lawsuits.
- Hours after Trump admitted there was no evidence of election fraud, he reverted to making unfounded claims about "cheating."
Zoom in: During a press conference on the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in North Carolina, Trump was asked by a reporter whether he's seen any evidence to suggest the 2024 election would not be fair.
- Trump responded, saying: "I haven't."
- He added: "Unfortunately, I know the other side, and they are not good. But I have not seen that."
- Trump then turned to Michael Whatley, chair of the Republican National Committee, and asked if he's seen anything suspicious while noting it's early in the voting process.
- Whatley said the party is working to make sure "the systems we want to have in place are in place" across all 50 states, and they're "very happy with the initials results."
Yes, but: Hours later, Trump said at a rally in Greenville, N.C, that Whatley was "gonna stop the cheating."
- He added: "Are they cheating, Michael? They're trying but they're not gonna get away with it, right? He said no ... They didn't get away with it in this state; they got away with it in plenty of places."
Zoom out: Trump's campaign and the RNC have said they built a network of about 175,000 volunteer poll watchers and poll workers to focus on "election integrity."
- The GOP presidential candidate has in the meantime expanded his range of baseless attacks on U.S. voting procedures in recent weeks and months, Axios' Zachary Basu writes.
- He's also accused Democrats of "cheating" by swapping out President Biden for Vice President Kamala Harris to top the ticket.
Go deeper: Trump "unfamiliar" with N.C. governor race despite Mark Robinson endorsement
