Trump advocates for mail and early voting despite historically opposing both

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President Donald Trump said Americans should cast their ballot using “every appropriate tool,” in a pre-recorded video imploring Republicans to vote in the midterm elections, including using methods that he has historically opposed like early and mail voting .

“If your state has early voting, do not wait. Go out and vote,” Trump said in the video posted Saturday morning to his Truth Social account. “Vote early, vote by mail, or vote in person on Election Day.”

Trump’s message is notable because he has criticized mail-in voting for years and pushed to limit it since the start of his second term, though many of those efforts have been blocked by courts.

It comes as Trump’s midterm strategy has relied heavily on turning out his base , and less so on persuading undecided voters to support GOP candidates.

“It’s all a turnout game,” a GOP campaign official told CNN last month. “From day one, the campaign committees and the president’s political operation have been sharing data to make sure we’re hammering the exact people we need to turn out.”

The Supreme Court rejected sweeping restrictions last month that would have changed how mail ballots are sent to voters in advance of the midterm elections. The decision came after state election officials warned that they did not have enough time to enact the provisions that stemmed from a March executive order the president issued.

Trump issued a lengthy reaction on social media responding to the decision, labeling the country’s mail-in voting system a “‘disaster,’ which is a laughing stock all over the World, and where we are the only country that has to endure such a Nation Destroying SCAM.”

The president has also aggressively pushed Congress to enact restrictions on mail-in voting through the “SAVE America Act,” a federal elections overhaul bill that has met bipartisan opposition in the Senate.

Despite falsely claiming that mail-in voting has resulted in extensive fraud, Trump has continued to vote by mail himself , including in a Florida state House special election in March.

It’s not the first time the president has contradicted his own comments about voting methods in the lead up to an election. In 2024, Trump’s campaign launched “Swamp The Vote USA” to promote absentee, mail-in and early voting. He referred to the program in his video message Saturday.

CNN has reached out to the White House for comment on the video and whether it marks a shift in the president’s views on early and mail voting.

But the president’s advisers also privately acknowledge a major problem with that strategy: Trump isn’t just an incredible driver of enthusiasm for his own supporters; he’s also a strong driver of Democratic turnout.

With one month before the midterms, over one million ballots have already been cast. In several states with key Senate or governor races this fall, Democrats make up a larger share of voters requesting ballots so far than they did at this point in 2024.

In several states with key Senate or governor races this fall, Democrats make up a larger share of voters requesting ballots so far than they did at this point in 2024.

In recent years, Democrats have been much more likely to vote prior to Election Day.

CNN’s Kristen Holmes and Alayna Treene contributed to this report.

吉姆·沃森/法新社/盖蒂图片社

唐纳德·特朗普总统在一段预先录制的视频中恳请共和党人在中期选举中投票，并表示美国人应该使用“一切合适的工具”进行投票，包括使用他过去一直反对的提前投票和邮寄投票等方式。

“如果你的州有提前投票，不要等。赶紧去投票，”特朗普在周六早上发布到他“真相社交”账号上的视频中说道。“提前投票、邮寄投票，或者在选举日当天亲自投票。”

特朗普的这番言论引人注目，因为他多年来一直批评邮寄投票，并从第二个任期开始就推动限制邮寄投票，尽管其中许多努力都被法院阻止了。

特朗普的中期选举策略主要依赖于动员他的基本盘，而较少致力于说服尚未决定投票意向的选民支持共和党候选人。

“这完全是一场投票率游戏，”一位共和党竞选官员上个月告诉CNN。“从一开始，竞选委员会和总统的政治运作团队就一直在共享数据，以确保我们能够精准地动员我们需要争取投票的人群。”

最高法院上个月驳回了旨在改变中期选举前邮寄选票方式的全面限制措施。此前，各州选举官员警告称，他们没有足够的时间来落实总统3月份签署的行政命令中的相关规定。

特朗普在社交媒体上发表了长篇评论，回应了这一决定，称该国的邮寄投票系统是“一场灾难”，是“全世界的笑柄，我们是唯一一个不得不忍受这种摧毁国家的骗局的国家”。

总统还积极推动国会通过“拯救美国法案”来限制邮寄投票，这是一项联邦选举改革法案，在参议院遭到两党反对。

尽管特朗普错误地声称邮寄投票导致了广泛的舞弊，但他本人仍然继续通过邮寄方式投票，包括在今年 3 月佛罗里达州众议院的特别选举中。

这并非总统首次在选举前夕就投票方式发表自相矛盾的言论。2024年，特朗普竞选团队发起了一项名为“淹没美国选票”（Swamp The Vote USA）的活动，旨在推广缺席投票、邮寄投票和提前投票。他在周六的视频讲话中提到了这项活动。

CNN已联系白宫，就该视频以及它是否标志着总统对提前投票和邮寄投票的看法发生了转变，寻求置评。

但总统的顾问们私下里也承认，这一策略存在一个重大问题：特朗普不仅能极大地激发自己支持者的热情，还能极大地提高民主党的投票率。

距离中期选举还有一个月，已有超过一百万张选票投出。在今年秋季将举行关键参议院或州长选举的几个州，民主党选民在目前为止的投票申请中所占比例，比2024年同期要高。

在今年秋季即将举行关键参议院或州长选举的几个州，民主党选民目前申请投票的比例比 2024 年同期要高。

近年来，民主党人更有可能在选举日之前投票。

CNN的克里斯汀·霍姆斯和阿莱娜·特里恩对本报道亦有贡献。