Trump requests absentee ballot after attacking mail-in voting
President Trump and the first lady requested an absentee ballot for the upcoming Florida primary
President Donald Trump is an outspoken critic against mail-in voting for the public but will be utilizing the practice for himself as he just requested an absentee ballot.
Trump recently put in a request for himself and first lady Melania Trump to vote remotely in the upcoming Florida primary using the U.S. postal service, The Palm Beach Post reports. Official records from the Beach County website showed that the request was made Wednesday.
Read More: Postal Service removing mail sorting machines as election nears
The White House confirmed the Trump’s sought an absentee ballot to vote in Palm Beach County.
“The President supports absentee voting, not universal mail-in voting, which contain several safeguards that prevent fraud and abuse,” White House Deputy Press Secretary Judd Deere said by email to NBC News.
This is now the second time that the Trump’s have needed the accommodation of mail-in ballots as they consider their Palm Beach residence, Mar-a-Lago, their home away from the White House. In March, a similar provision was made.
However, critics were quick to note that Trump has spent the past few months attacking the integrity of mail-in voting but would make use of it. Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, highlighted that point on social media.
“Voting by mail is safe and secure. And don’t take my word for it: Take it from the President, who just requested his mail-in ballot for the Florida primary on Tuesday,” Biden tweeted.
Read More: Voting concerns shift from hacking to mailing
As theGrio previously reported, the president reiterated his reluctance to fund the cash strapped U.S. Postal Service during an interview with Fox on Thursday.
Mail-in voting has become an alternative for those who are concerned about the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and do not want to stand in crowded lines. Nonetheless, the president has not been persuaded to change his mind.
He lamented that any money to the agency would “turn out to be fraudulent, that’s election money basically.”
He continued, “Now they need that money in order to have the post office work so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots.”
Trump further claimed that the option of citizens to vote using mail-in voting would amount to “the greatest fraud in history.”
The postal service is now warning that it may not be able to meet the necessary deadlines for the upcoming presidential election due to recent cost-cutting measures. Votes may not arrive in sufficient enough time to be counted by states.
“The letters advised election officials to be mindful of the potential inconsistencies between the Postal Service’s delivery standards, which have been in place for a number of years and have not changed, and the provisions of state law,” Martha Johnson, a spokesperson for the Postal Service, said in a statement.
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