White House press secretary refuses to say it's illegal to vote twice in an election


President Trump repeatedly told his supporters in North Carolina on Wednesday that they should vote twice in the presidential election, first by mail and then in person. But as is often the White House's attempt at clearing up Trump's missteps, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany essentially insisted that everyone who watched Trump heard him wrong.
A reporter on Thursday asked McEnany point blank if it's illegal to vote twice in the same election, but she refused to answer. McEnany instead insisted "the president does not condone unlawful voting," and said the reporter was "missing a very crucial line from the president's remarks." Trump had suggested testing if a local election bureau had recorded a person's vote by mail, suggesting they wouldn't be allowed to vote in person if it had and that their vote would later be canceled if it hadn't.
But as the reporter noted, not every state counts absentee votes before Election Day, meaning a prior vote may not have been in the books by the time someone came around a second time. It also doesn't seem healthy for democracy if Trump is explicitly asking his supporters to test an electoral system's limits, especially since it's widely known that America's election systems don't always function as well as they should.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
McEnany made a similar statement Thursday morning on Fox News, saying "the president is not suggesting anyone do anything unlawful." To be clear, it's against the law to intentionally vote twice anywhere in the U.S. And in North Carolina, where Trump encouraged the crime, it's a felony.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.
-
Why did Americans stop using beef tallow and why is it back?
The Explainer A national turn away from saturated animal fats led to a big change in food preparation
By David Faris Published
-
Dark energy may not doom the universe, data suggests
Speed Read The dark energy pushing the universe apart appears to be weakening
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The history of Guantanamo Bay detention camp
The Explainer Trump wants to use the Cuban outpost as a deportation way station
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Trump pauses $175M for Penn over trans athlete
Speed Read The president is withholding federal funds from the University of Pennsylvania because it once allowed a transgender swimmer to compete
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump purports to 'void' Biden pardons
Speed Read Joe Biden's pardons of Jan. 6 committee members are not valid because they were done by autopen, says Trump
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
White House ignores judicial deportation blocks
Speed Read The Trump administration deports alleged Venezuelan gang members under a wartime law, defying a court order
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Schumer: Democrats will help pass spending bill
Speed Read The Democrats end the threat of government shutdown
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump pulls nomination of anti-vax CDC pick
Speed Read Former Florida congressmen Dr. Dave Weldon was nominated to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Judges tell Trump to rehire fired federal workers
Speed Read Trump and Elon Musk's DOGE team face a big setback in their efforts to shrink the federal workforce
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump trade war heats up as Canada, EU retaliate
Speed Read The president imposes 25% steel and aluminum tariffs in an effort to revive US manufacturing, though it may drive up prices for Americans instead
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump hawks Teslas, slashes more federal jobs
Speed Read The Education Department cut its workforce in half ahead of an expected Trump order to shutter the agency
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published