Trump is already claiming election fraud

Donald Trump has a long history of claiming fraud at the polls. He did it in 2016 — when he won the Electoral College but lost the popular vote. He did it again in 2020, making false claims of victory when he lost on both counts. And he's doing it again in 2024.

With a week left to go before Election Day, Trump has "claimed two Pennsylvania counties are experiencing voter fraud," said CNN. In a social media post, Trump said York County "received THOUSANDS of potentially FRUADULENT Voter Registration Forms and Mail-In Ballot Applications." Pennsylvania officials acknowledge they're investigating 2,500 voter registration forms from what they called a "large-scale canvassing operation," but also said they've taken steps to protect the integrity of the vote. The Keystone State "will have a free and fair, safe, and secure election," said Gov. Josh Shapiro.

In a close election, "it doesn't take much encouragement to inflame partisan tensions," said The New York Times. But Pennsylvania officials say the fact they caught the potentially problematic registrations is a sign of the system's resilience. "The system worked," said Alice Yoder, a Lancaster County commissioner. She urged partisans to avoid using the incident for political advantage — that "really sows doubt in our election," Yoder said. But Trump's history suggests more fraud claims are on the way.

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'Republican Party War Rooms' ready for 2024

Trump is putting his money where his mouth is. The former president in April announced an effort to "combat voter fraud" by deploying "100,000 attorneys and volunteers" in swing states, Reuters said. GOP officials will staff "Republican Party War Rooms" and launch "Election Integrity Hotline" to answer calls from voters about possible irregularities. Similar efforts were made by Republicans during the 2022 midterm elections, but the latest program is a "significant step up in terms of its scope and ambition."

The former president is also pushing Republicans in Congress to get on board. Earlier this fall, Trump urged GOP members of the House "pursue a government shutdown" unless they can pass a "hard-line voting bill" as part of the funding resolution to keep the government open, said CNBC. The bill, called the SAVE Act, would have required voters to "show proof of citizenship at the ballot box" — a demand founded on Trump's unproven social media claims that "DEMOCRATS ARE TRYING TO 'STUFF' VOTER REGISTRATIONS WITH ILLEGAL ALIENS." The funding resolution ultimately passed without the SAVE Act attached.

More lawsuits on the way

The legal battle has already begun. Republicans have "filed more than 100 lawsuits" challenging election procedures ahead of the 2024 election, said Axios. More lawsuits are on the way. "Pre-election litigation has been pretty heavy," said Benjamin Ginsberg, a GOP lawyer. A Republican National Committee spokesperson said the party will continue efforts to make sure the election is "fair, transparent, legal and accurate."

All of this is "setting the stage" to challenge another election loss and "throw the electoral system into chaos again," said NBC News. At his rallies, Trump is more frequently raising the specter of Democratic fraud. But his campaign "has not been able to identify evidence that the 2024 election would not be free and fair," said NBC. Said Trump: "We're very early in the process."