- Trump denounces California’s redistricting election as “rigged” and “unconstitutional.”
- Threatens legal and criminal review of all mail-in ballots in the state.
- Proposition 50 could reshape California’s congressional districts, giving Democrats more seats.
- Executive order directs federal action against states counting ballots received after Election Day.
- Trump has long argued mail-in voting fosters fraud and election corruption.
President Trump on Tuesday escalated his criticism of California’s ongoing redistricting election, threatening legal action and calling the state’s mail-in ballot process a “GIANT SCAM.”
“The Unconstitutional Redistricting Vote in California is a GIANT SCAM in that the entire process, in particular the Voting itself, is RIGGED,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “All ‘Mail-In’ Ballots, where the Republicans in that State are ‘Shut Out,’ is under very serious legal and criminal review. STAY TUNED!”
The comments come as Californians vote on Proposition 50, a measure that would allow the state to redraw its congressional maps. Polls suggest the initiative is likely to pass, a move that could give Democrats, who already hold a commanding majority in the state, up to five additional House seats.
Should the measure fail, California’s congressional districts would remain unchanged until after the 2030 census.
Trump’s remarks renew his long-standing battle against mail-in voting, a process he claims undermines election integrity. During his 2020 campaign, he alleged — without evidence — that expanded mail-in voting during the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to his defeat.
In March, upon returning to the White House, Trump signed an executive order directing Attorney General Pam Bondi to pursue states that count absentee or mail-in ballots received after Election Day. The order warned that states failing to comply could face loss of federal funding. Most states, however, continue to count ballots postmarked by Election Day as valid.
Trump also hinted in August that he may issue another executive order to eliminate mail-in voting and what he described as “seriously controversial” voting machines.
His criticism extended beyond California. In September, Trump suggested that his decision to relocate the Space Command headquarters from Colorado Springs, Colorado, to Huntsville, Alabama, was influenced by what he called “crooked” election systems tied to mail-in voting.
“The problem I have with Colorado, one of the big problems, they do mail-in voting. They do all mail-in voting. So they have automatically crooked elections,” Trump said. “And we can’t have that. When a state is for mail-in voting, that means they want dishonest elections, because that’s what that means.”
He concluded by claiming Colorado has “a very corrupt voting system.”
Trump’s renewed push against mail-in ballots and his call for “legal and criminal review” mark another escalation in the broader national debate over election security, state voting laws, and federal oversight.
