Trump Revives California Fraud Claims Over 1 Los Angeles Runoff as Fall Strategy
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jun 8
Trump Revives California Fraud Claims Over 1 Los Angeles Runoff as Fall Strategy
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jun 8
Summary
Trump used Spencer Pratt’s loss of a Los Angeles mayoral runoff spot to Nithya Raman to signal how he may answer Republican setbacks in November, again alleging fraud without evidence.
Late-arriving mail ballots shifted the race after Pratt’s early lead, a common counting pattern known as the “red mirage” because Democratic votes are often tallied later.
Trump cast that slow count as proof of theft on social media, extending his long-running effort to undermine confidence in election results he or his allies dislike.
Control of Congress is at stake this fall, and Trump has already urged Republicans to tighten voter ID rules and crack down on mail voting, which he portrays as inherently suspect.