Decision 2024

Donald Trump claims, without evidence, that Pa. is cheating, sues Bucks County

On Wednesday, former president and GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump claimed Pa. is 'cheating, and getting caught,' as his campaign brought a lawsuit against Bucks Co. over lines for mail-in ballots

NBC Universal, Inc.

Votes in the presidential election cannot yet be counted -- or even opened -- by officials in Pennsylvania.

But former president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is already claiming that, in some undisclosed way, Pennsylvania is "cheating."

On his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump posted on Wednesday morning that "Pennsylvania is cheating, and getting caught, at large scale levels rarely seen before."

In the post, Trump doesn't identify what, specifically, he's accusing the state of cheating at.

His campaign is suing Bucks County over claims of voter intimidation and long lines as voters gathered to get mail-in ballots on the last day they were able to request them on Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024.

Léelo en español aquí.

At a rally in Allentown on Tuesday, Michael Whatley, chair of the Republican National Committee, told a gathered crowd that he was "proud to announce" that the lawsuit had been brought forward.

"I'm proud tonight to tell you that the Trump-Vance campaign has just filed a huge lawsuit against Bucks County for turning away our voters," he said.

His campaign filed these documents in Bucks County:

The Trump-Vance campaign did not initially identify any specific incident in which voters were turned away or prevented from obtaining mail-in ballots -- though Bucks County officials noted that they were aware of some stories on social media claiming people had issues obtaining mail-in ballots before Tuesday's 5 p.m. deadline.

In a statement released Wednesday morning, Trump's campaign claimed voters waiting in line in Pennsylvania were turned away "as early as 2:30 p.m."

Trump's campaign also shared a video from James Blair, political director of the campaign, that showed voters in line outside the government building in Doylestown, in Bucks County, and claimed that election officials were pushing people out of line as they waited for mail-in ballots.

NBC10's Deanna Durante was in Doylestown as voters lined up to request mail-in ballots on Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024.

While there, she said that she did not witness anyone be pushed out of line.

"Nobody was told to leave the line," she said.

Pennsylvania does not have early in-person voting.

The county had to permit voters to be able to request mail-in ballots by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024.

Those requests were taken, Durante said.

Durante said that at about 2:30 p.m., voters in line were told they could be sent a ballot at home or they could return the next day to pick up their mail-in ballot.

Though, Durante said some voters in Doylestown on Tuesday were requesting mail-in ballots, filling them out there and immediately turning them back in.

Also, Bucks Co. officials posted on social media that voters who encountered issues Tuesday would still obtain mail-in ballots.

Officials in Bucks County claimed on Tuesday that "due to a miscommunication, individuals in line to apply for an on-demand mail-in ballot were briefly told they could not be accommodated. In fact, these voters were given the opportunity to submit mail-in ballot applications today."

Contacted Wednesday morning, officials in Bucks County told NBC10 that they were aware of the lawsuit, but had no further comment on any pending legal case.

In Lehigh County, due to traffic closures and delays caused by Trump's visit to Allentown on Tuesday, election officials have extended over-the-counter mail-in balloting until 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024.

In a response on social media, Pa. Gov. Josh Shapiro, reacted to Trump's claims, noting that the former president has attacked election integrity in the past, as well.

Officials with the state's election office did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Trump's unspecified claims.

This is a breaking news story. It will be updated as new information becomes available.

Contact Us