In a recent trip to North Carolina, President Trump was asked about voting by mail versus in-person voting. The President’s answer seemed to encourage people to try voting twice, just to make sure their vote counts.
Doing a press conference on the tarmac at the airport, Trump said:
“On your ballots, if you get the unsolicited ballots, send it in, and then go, make sure it counted, and if it doesn’t tabulate, you vote. Just vote. And then if they tabulate it very late, which they shouldn’t be doing, they’ll see you voted and so it won’t count. So, send it in early, and then go and vote. And if it’s not tabulated, you vote. And the vote is going to count.”
(Note that Trump uses “unsolicited ballots” to refer to mail-in ballots sent to voters.)
Later, in an interview with local news station WCET, Trump reiterated his advice:
“They will vote and then they are going to have to check their vote by going to the poll and voting that way because if it tabulates then they won’t be able to do that. So, let them send it in and let them go vote.”
After these comments were reported, numerous officials and news outlets noted that it is illegal to try to vote twice. Some officials, though, were more forceful in their reaction to the President’s statements.
First, there was the Attorney General of North Carolina:
Today, President Trump outrageously encouraged NCians to break the law in order to help him sow chaos in our election. Make sure you vote, but do NOT vote twice! I will do everything in my power to make sure the will of the people is upheld in November.
— Josh Stein (@JoshStein_) September 2, 2020
This was followed by the AGs of Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, and Michigan:
Please, folks, don't follow Trump's advice. It's a crime, and we will prosecute anyone who tries it — whomever they vote for. https://t.co/lyiMlculVL
— Brian Frosh, Former Attorney General of Maryland (@BrianFrosh) September 3, 2020
It is illegal to vote twice. It is also easy to get caught. That’s like paying your taxes with Monopoly money. Do not pass go. https://t.co/3ypYaZYRuA
— AG Maura Healey Archived (@AGHealeyArchive) September 3, 2020
Nope. Don’t do it. It’s illegal, and you’ll get prosecuted. #TrueStory https://t.co/i0Im87jTSK
— Aaron D. Ford (@AaronDFordNV) September 3, 2020
Hey folks. Attorney General Nessel here-top law enforcement official in Michigan, for those keeping track. Don’t try this at home. I will prosecute you.
Also, this might be a good time to remind people not to drink bleach. https://t.co/B7pgZVDi2R
— Dana Nessel (@dananessel) September 3, 2020
UPDATE: We contacted Kentucky AG Daniel Cameron’s office to ask if he had any comment on this, and received this one-sentence response: “The Attorney General does not plan to release a statement regarding this topic.”
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