President Trump on Thursday evening falsely claimed that there is widespread voter fraud taking place across the United States, asserting that "if you count the legal votes, I easily win."
Trump delivered his address from the White House, with Vice President Mike Pence notably absent. He said, with no evidence, that Democrats are depending on "illegal votes" and trying to "steal the election from us." He also accused election workers of not being "honest," and said there was no way there could be so many mail-in ballots for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.
Many states sent out more mail-in ballots because of the coronavirus pandemic. Ahead of the election, Trump encouraged his supporters to not use mail-in ballots, saying they needed to vote in person at the polls. Analysts said on election night, as results from in-person voting were reported first, it would likely show Trump ahead in many states, but once mail-in ballot results started coming in, Biden would start chipping away at Trump's lead. This is what has happened in many states, including must-win Pennsylvania and Georgia.
Trump ended the press conference by saying he believes "we will win the election very easily," but there will be "a lot of litigation. We have so much evidence, so much proof." He added that cases might be brought before "the highest court in the land," and then left the stage without taking any questions from reporters.