Trump declassifies documents on the 2020 elections – Accuses China of the largest breach of electoral data in US history
US President Donald Trump unleashed broadsides against the American electoral system, announcing from the White House the immediate release of documents from American intelligence agencies which, according to him, reveal serious weaknesses in the electoral process and extensive Chinese interference in the 2020 presidential elections. Speaking from the East Room of the White House, Trump began his speech by referring to the achievements of his presidency before turning his attention to the issue of electoral security. As he said, drastic interventions are immediately required to ensure that every vote is counted accurately, characterising the existing electoral system as "rife with shocking vulnerabilities".
The American President announced that the White House is releasing declassified intelligence documents which, according to him, prove that the American electoral system is extremely vulnerable to cyberattacks and foreign interference. "Every American deserves to know that when they vote, their vote will be counted accurately in a totally secure system. Unfortunately, the system we have today is far from that standard," he noted characteristically.
Accusations against China for 220 million voter records
A central point of the speech was the allegations against China. Trump claimed that Beijing carried out "the largest breach of electoral data in history", illegally obtaining approximately 220 million records of American voters during the 2020 election period. According to his claims, the data included names, addresses, phone numbers, political preferences, and other sensitive personal information related to registration on the electoral rolls. Indeed, he mentioned that information from American services shows that China had assigned a special data utilization unit to manage this material.
"This evidence shows that the electoral system we have dangerously exposes the country to hacker attacks, at levels we never thought possible," Trump argued, stating that election security in the US "lags catastrophically" while he sought to bolster support for the federal bill on electoral system reform, which remains pending.
New broadsides at the "deep state"
Trump also accused officials of the American intelligence agencies and the so-called "deep state" of attempting to conceal the extent of Chinese interference. As he stated, members of the intelligence services "worked actively to conceal and downplay information regarding the extent of China's election interference", depriving both himself and the American people of critical information on election security. Trump stated that information revealing "an unprecedented nightmare for election security" was disclosed neither to himself nor to Congress. He also argued that American intelligence agencies knew in 2020 that there were compromised voter registration records and chose to keep "the information secret and hidden".
The American President reinstated his well-known claims that the 2020 presidential elections "were stolen from him", arguing that the declassified documents reinforce his position. At the same time, he warned that future election contests also remain vulnerable to fraud if stricter security measures are not immediately adopted. In this context, he called on Congress to approve the Save America Act, which, according to him, will strengthen the integrity of the electoral process.
The 278,000 non-citizens
Trump stated that the Department of Homeland Security identified approximately 278,000 non-citizens registered on state electoral rolls. However, the data cross-referencing program he referred to is known to produce an inflated number of potential non-citizens, partly because many naturalized American citizens are incorrectly flagged as non-citizens. The American President claimed that an alleged electoral fraud scheme regarding voter registrations in Michigan in 2020 was covered up by federal officials and asked the FBI to conduct an investigation. Michigan's Secretary of State rejected the accusations as "baseless" and reiterated that elections in the state are secure.
"No to mail-in voting"
Simultaneously, he reiterated his position that mail-in voting is inherently vulnerable to fraud and called for its drastic restriction, while aligning himself in favor of the mandatory display of photo identification for all voters.
However, Trump's claims of widespread fraud in the 2020 elections continue to be disputed. More than 60 lawsuits filed by himself and his allies were rejected by US courts, while recounts, audits of election results, and the US Department of Justice itself did not identify evidence proving electoral fraud capable of overturning the result of the 2020 presidential elections. Furthermore, the documents cited by Trump had not been made available for independent review during his speech, a fact that made immediate verification of his claims impossible.
The Chinese embassy denied any interference by China in the American elections...
China has never attempted to influence the results of American elections, the Chinese embassy in Washington stated, according to CBS News. "China consistently adheres to the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries. Elections in the United States are an internal matter of the US. Their result is determined by the vote of the American people," the Chinese embassy stated, emphasizing that: "China has never interfered and is never going to interfere in the presidential elections of the United States."
Reactions from Democrats
Twenty-four Democratic state governors accused President Donald Trump of attempting to undermine the elections, stating they "are ready to react against the Trump administration and prevent any unlawful attack on the constitutional right to vote of every American citizen". "It is deeply disturbing that President Trump continues to try to undermine free and fair elections," the governors stated in a release issued in response to Trump's statements and published on the Democratic Governors Association website. "No amount of lies and conspiracy theories can change the fact that elections in our country have repeatedly proven secure and reliable," the statement continues. "These attacks aim at intimidating and silencing voters."
Among the governors who signed the statement are Kathy Hochul (New York), Josh Shapiro (Pennsylvania), Andy Beshear (Kentucky), and Tim Walz (Minnesota). Their statements come during a period in which states face increasing pressures from the Trump administration to adopt an extensive package of changes to the electoral system, which the president promotes. The Trump administration threatens to withhold federal funding of tens of millions of dollars for homeland security unless states proceed with specific changes. Among these are the phasing out of certain electronic voting systems and the transition to paper ballots filled out by hand by voters, as well as other reforms.
Minimal reference to Iran
Trump began his speech by projecting his administration's economic agenda and his policies on immigration. He referred to the latest report on inflation, promoted the Trump Accounts initiative and the TrumpRx prescribed drug website, while making minimal reference to the war with Iran.
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