Trump encourages GOP to ‘fight hard’ for ballot boxes California deemed illegal
President Donald Trump on Wednesday tweeted support for California Republicans who have installed unofficial ballot drop boxes.
“Fight hard Republicans,” Trump tweeted in response to a post about the state GOP being ordered to remove the boxes. “They have been taking advantage of the system for years!”
California officials on Monday ordered state Republican Party officials to remove their unauthorized ballot collection boxes set up at locations including churches, gas stations and gun stores, The Sacramento Bee reported. The boxes aren’t permitted under state law, which only allows ballot boxes set up and managed by election officials, Secretary of State Alex Padilla said.
“Let me be clear: unofficial, unauthorized ballot drop boxes are not permitted by state law,” Padilla said, according to The Sacramento Bee.
But the Republican Party disagrees and says it won’t be removing the boxes.
Hector Barajas, a spokesperson for the California GOP, said in a statement to The Sacramento Bee that the boxes are legal under California’s ballot-collection laws.
In California, voters unable to hand in their ballot can designate someone else to do it for them.
Padilla and Attorney General Xavier Becerra, however, say the boxes set up by the GOP are misleading, threaten ballot security and don’t fall under the law, according to The Sacramento Bee.
Some of the boxes were reportedly labeled “official,” and Barajas said the party would consider nixing the word from its boxes, The Sacramento Bee reports.
The president posted a similar tweet Tuesday night, again encouraging Republicans to “fight hard.”
“You mean only Democrats are allowed to do this? But haven’t the Dems been doing this for years? See you in court,” he tweeted. “Fight hard Republicans!”
Becerra pushed back against the president’s Tuesday tweet.
“When it comes to handling ballots, obey the law — not politicians,” Becerra tweeted. “The last person who should be providing legal advice is the guy who has lost to California in court over and over.”
Trump’s tweets come as he has made repeated claims — without evidence — that increased mail-in voting during the coronavirus pandemic will be a recipe for fraud.
He also seemingly encouraged North Carolina voters to cast two ballots — a violation of the state’s election laws, The News & Observer previously reported.
This story was originally published October 14, 2020 at 2:19 PM with the headline "Trump encourages GOP to ‘fight hard’ for ballot boxes California deemed illegal."
