President Donald Trump made a series of false claims about California elections in the days before the state’s Tuesday primaries. The comments came up during a Fox News interview that aired Saturday, where he made several assertions about how the state runs its voting.
The President claimed, “Their elections are a fraud; their mail-in votes are a fraud.” He also said, “You know, they don’t have voting booths. Everything’s by mail.” These statements are not backed by facts. While California does send mail-in ballots to all active registered voters, it is wrong to suggest that in-person voting is not available.
According to CNN, residents can choose to ignore their mail-in ballot and go to a polling place to vote instead. Official sources, including the state’s elections office and individual counties, explain how this works for the public. These resources lay out the options available to every registered voter.
The office of California’s elections chief states on its website, “Any registered voter in California can decide whether to vote at a polling place or vote by mail.” Individual counties, such as Santa Clara County, also confirm this policy.
They note that even though every voter gets a ballot by mail under the Voter’s Choice Act, they still have the option to use a vote center. If a voter chooses to go in person, their mail ballot becomes void, and the system makes sure only one...
By JAMELLE BOUIE Donald Trump knew as well as anyone that he had lost the 2020 presidential election fair and square. He knew there was no conspiracy to commit voter fraud — no mysterious mail bal...