Trump on Thursday opposed the vote by mail, saying he opposed major funding for the U.S. Postal Service as part of an effort to discourage Americans from voting by mail in November.
The president has repeatedly demonized votes for mail-in as administrators across the country sought to expand it amid the coronavirus pandemic, but has previously stated that some specimens, including his, are allowed.
“If you are president of the United States and if you vote in Florida, and you can not be there, you should be able to send a vote,” Trump said in May.
The Sun Sentinel reported last week that Floridians were on course to break records for voting for post-in during the state’s Democratic and Republican primary. As of August 5, more than 1.2 million of the state’s residents had voted by mail, a number that is expected to exceed the 1.35 million who voted in 2018 by mail.
Despite false claims that postal voting leads to increased voter fraud, Trump has previously voted in favor of postal voting in Florida, calling the state’s electoral system “safe and secure” in a tweet earlier this month.
“Florida’s voting system has been cleaned up (we defeated Democrats’ attempts at change), so in Florida I encourage everyone to request a Ballot & Vote by Mail!”, Trump said.
Trump became a registered voter in Florida, after moving his residence to the state from New York in October 2019.
