California leaders denounce Trump’s election claims. ‘Ramblings of a mad king’
California leaders quickly denounced President Donald Trump’s sweeping and misleading claims Thursday night that outlined major problems with American voting systems.
“Tonight, America watched the ramblings of a mad king,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom on X. “Donald Trump’s address was not about the last election — it was THIS one. Before a single vote has been cast, he’s already laying the groundwork to rig this election and convince YOU not to trust the results if they don’t go his way.”
Trump, in a Thursday night address, alleged multiple claims to say American elections are significantly vulnerable to being “rigged and stolen” while claiming his statements were backed by newly disclosed documents released by the CIA. The New York Times reported Thursday that the documents released by the White House did not back up his claims.
Trump and his allies have made such false statements for years, particularly that the 2020 election was stolen from him. Nearly all of these claims have been debunked through investigations and audits. Nonpartisan research consistently finds that instances of noncitizen registration and voting are extremely rare.
“It’s been more than half a decade, with numerous audits, recounts, and more than 60 court cases, each finding no evidence of widespread voter fraud,” said U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif. “Clearly, this is no longer about an election Donald Trump lost six years ago. It’s about him laying the groundwork to try to ‘take over the voting’ in the upcoming midterm elections.”
Among other statements, Trump alleged on Thursday that, beginning during the 2020 election cycle, China “carried out what is believed to be the largest compromise of election data in history.” He also claimed that the Chinese government tried to influence U.S. business leaders and journalists to turn against him. Many of these findings were known and covered up by “members of the deep state,” he said.
“Put together, these disclosures reveal an election system so broken and so vulnerable that no one can possibly defend it,” Trump said. “It is not defensible.”
His speech mentioned California twice, once for the recent mayoral race in Los Angeles and the second to bash mail-in-ballots as “inherently corrupt.” Multiple news outlets reported Thursday that the Department of Homeland Security had drafted a press release saying the agency found nearly 200,000 noncitizens on voter rolls in California, though the agency did not explain how it reached the finding or if those people voted.
“It’s as predictable as it is dangerous,” said Democratic governor candidate Xavier Becerra in a written statement following the speech. “No amount of lies and conspiracy theories can change what’s been proven time and again: our elections are safe, secure, and accurate. The president’s speech tonight was designed to intimidate and silence voters, tearing at the very fabric of our democracy.”
As expected, Trump used parts of his speech to push lawmakers to pass the SAVE America Act. The bill would mandate voter identification and registration requirements though disfranchise millions of voters, according to many experts. The legislation has stalled in Congress for months.
“The SAVE Act is voter suppression,” said former Vice President Kamala Harris Thursday night on X. “It is part of a larger agenda of conservatives trying to steal power from the people.”
Prior to Trump’s address, multiple California elected officials said they expected the president to repeat his past false claims of massive fraud.
“He’s made a bunch of absurd claims about California elections,” said U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., on CNN. “Always, he’s done this going back several years now. Made false claims of massive fraud of millions of undocumented people voting. All nonsense.”
Earlier Thursday, Padilla also convened faith leaders and political figures in a roundtable discussion to defend voting rights and remember the legacy of civil rights hero John Lewis. Trump’s prime-time address was a theme of the roundtable.
“These next elections will determine which direction our nation goes as we approach the crossroads of democracy and authoritarianism,” said Rabbi David Saperstein, director emeritus of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism.
