Donald Trump has openly slammed the idea of voting by mail, arguing that it could lead to voter fraud without providing proof. Taking U-turn on his earlier criticism of the voting process, Palm Beach County records show that the president and the first lady Melania Trump are requesting mail-in ballots for Florida's primary election.
The Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections website records indicate that the ballots were mailed on Wednesday to Trump's permanent residence since last year, Mar-a-Lago Club. While criticizing the voting by mail process, Trump recently claimed that the voting system in Florida is secure.
Conveying his support via a tweet, Trump argued that Vote by Mail or Absentee Voting is the same thing, before noting that Florida's election system safe, secure, tried, and true as the Trump administration has cleaned it up despite Democrats attempts to stop it. He concluded the tweet urging Floridians to request a Ballot & Vote by Mail.
"The President supports absentee voting, not universal mail-in voting," White House deputy press secretary Judd Deere told CNN. Deere explained that Trump doesn't support universal mail-in voting which is integrated with multiple safeguards to prevent fraud.
Election experts, on the other hand, claim there is no difference between absentee voting and no-excuse mail voting, noting that the two are essentially the same thing. The ballot request was first reported by USA Today.
Mail-in voting has been in the prominent position recently in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic that has encouraged states to simplify the process so that residents can avoid visiting polling centers where the virus is likely to spread. Trump and his aides have criticized the option, claiming it will lead to voter fraud.
Moreover, Trump said he is against funding the USPS (United States Postal Service) because he doesn't want it to play a vital role in mail-in voting this Nov. The United States is not plagued with widespread voter fraud, and nonpartisan experts explain that neither parts get an edge over the other if states expand mail-in voting access.
As Trump continues to publicly criticize mail-in voting, his decision to support it in Florida and use for the impending election is likely to help Democrats and some Republicans come up with another argument as to why his opposition to the voting system is politic-centric. Justifying his support for mail-in voting in Florida earlier this month, the president said Republican-run states with existing mail-in-voting systems were up to the mark, while Democratic states that were expanding mail-in voting amid the pandemic were not up to par.