WASHINGTON, United States, July 17, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - US President Donald 
Trump on Thursday revived sweeping and unsupported claims of voter fraud and 
Chinese meddling -- firing a clear warning shot ahead of midterm elections 
that many expect him to dispute.

In a primetime White House address, Trump portrayed the US electoral system 
as dangerously exposed and urged lawmakers to adopt new restrictions on 
voting, despite scant appetite for the measures even within his own 
Republican Party.

"We can never watch a stolen election again," Trump said, referring to his 
2020 defeat by Democrat Joe Biden.

Trump said he was declassifying intelligence that showed, among other things, 
that China had illicitly acquired 220 million US voter files.

"Over a period of years, starting during the 2020 election cycle, the 
People's Republic of China carried out what is believed to be the largest 
compromise of election data in history," he said from the White House.

Beijing denied Trump's claims and urged the Washington "to do more to benefit 
China-US relations."

"The relevant claims made by the US side are pure fabrications and malicious 
smears that have long since been proven to be groundless statements," Chinese 
foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told a news conference on Friday.

Trump also claimed that more than 250,000 non-US citizens were registered to 
vote in four states.

He then attacked US broadcasters that refused to interrupt programming to 
carry his speech live, naming ABC and NBC, and baselessly implying they were 
involved in election-rigging attempts.

"They and others in the media are part of a plot," Trump said. "Fraud like 
this should mean a revocation of their licenses."

Trump's claim that the 2020 election was "rigged" has never been 
substantiated. More than 60 lawsuits produced no ruling establishing fraud 
capable of changing the outcome, while recounts, audits and his own Justice 
Department found none.

- 'Unsupported' claims -

Trump had promised "big news" on election security, but analysts said much of 
the address repackaged old or unsupported material.

Rick Hasen, an election law expert at UCLA in California, called it the "same 
old unsupported, and surprisingly weak, claims of American election 
vulnerabilities."

"It was a tired speech with recycled and debunked claims," Hasen said. "I 
don't think it changes anything with how American elections will be run."

Trump devoted little time to issues voters appear more focused on, including 
the Iran war and the economy.

Democrats accused Trump of trying to undermine confidence ahead of November's 
midterms, in which Republicans fear his unpopularity could cost them control 
of Congress.

Senate Democrat Dick Durbin called the speech "a dangerous attempt to 
resurrect disproven lies to undermine future elections before a single vote 
is cast."

Former Trump White House lawyer Ty Cobb said the speech appeared intended to 
build a case for declaring an election emergency.

"I think tonight's speech is intended to add to the predicate that he needs 
to declare an emergency at or about the time of the elections," Cobb told 
PBS, adding that he believed immigration officers at polling places were a 
"virtual certainty."

Trump has been pushing lawmakers to pass the SAVE America Act ahead of the 
midterms, but the measure has little appetite even in his own party.

The bill would require proof of citizenship to register to vote -- already 
required under existing law in federal and state elections -- and photo 
identification at polling places, while imposing new limits on mail-in 
ballots.

Trump has never accepted his 2020 defeat. Months after the election, he urged 
supporters to Washington before a mob stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 
2021.

Trump could face a third impeachment trial if Democrats seize control of the 
House of Representatives. He was impeached twice in his first term, including 
for alleged incitement of the January 6 attack.

His last major televised address to the nation came on April 1, when he gave 
his first full public justification of the Iran war more than a month after 
the US-Israeli military campaign began.