US President Donald Trump has questioned the integrity of last week's midterm elections, which resulted in Democrats securing control of both houses of Congress, raising concerns about early voting results, polling discrepancies, and the role of voting machines.
"Does anybody really believe that this 'Election' was honest. How could the Polls be so wrong???" Trump said on Truth Social on Monday.
He also raised concerns about what he described as unusually large early-voting ballot "dumps," arguing that some batches were so substantial that they made it impossible to overcome the resulting vote totals.
"It’s all about the machines, which are far more important than the voter!" Trump added.
Trump's remarks came after Democrats won control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate in last Tuesday's midterm elections, as well as numerous governorships, state legislatures, and various other posts.
The results will give Democrats control of the congressional agenda and oversight while Trump remains in the White House, potentially creating new challenges for the administration's legislative priorities.
Most polls before the elections had predicted a "blue wave" of Democratic victories, leading Republicans to deploy additional resources to protect seats seen as previously safe.
Deportation policies
The accusations marked a sharp reversal from Trump's initial acceptance of the results. "I am absolutely willing to accept those results," he told The New York Times on election night.
The president has repeatedly made claims of election fraud, most notably following his defeat by Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election.
On Sunday, Trump conceded that his hardline deportation policies during his first term were "too tough," acknowledging that the approach ultimately hurt his party’s performance in the midterm elections.
In an interview with CBS’ 60 Minutes, Trump said his administration’s immigration crackdown may have gone too far and admitted that it had negatively affected him politically.
"It was too tough. I think it might be too tough, yeah," he said.
"Ultimately, that hurt me."
