Republicans need to bank votes right now. Trump made that harder.

With the midterms weeks away and Democrats showing more energy, Republicans need their most loyal supporters to vote early. President Donald Trump has made that harder by spending years convincing them that mail ballots can't be trusted. Over the weekend he reversed course on Truth Social, urging backers to vote by mail or in person on November 3rd. Banking ballots from dependable voters lets campaign field staff concentrate scarce resources on those who are less certain, though it cannot close an enthusiasm gap by itself, according to MS NOW.

Research published in PNAS shows the two parties saw mail voting about the same until spring 2020, when Trump's doubts opened a lasting split. Seventy percent of Republicans now say it involves at least a good amount of fraud, against 18% of Democrats, per an NPR/PBS News/Marist survey. NBC News found Republicans less inclined to use it this year: 16% versus 23% for Democrats. Yet mail ballots made up 30. 3% of 2024 turnout, according to the U. S. Election Assistance Commission.

In March, Trump signed an executive order creating a citizenship database that the Postal Service would check before delivering ballots.

Summarized by PolitiKool from MS NOW’s reporting. Read the full story at MS NOW →