Scaring other people about meant election fraud isn’t a really perfect technique for motivating them to vote, as Donald Trump and his allies found out after Democrats flipped the state of Georgia blue within the 2020 presidential election after which went directly to win a couple of Senate runoff elections there.
Trump’s repeated lies about voter fraud if truth be told dampened turnout in Republican spaces of Georgia, GOP officers stated, serving to to price his birthday party now not best the White Space however keep an eye on of the U.S. Senate.
Now, some Republican Senate contenders are in search of to steer clear of that calamity of their races by means of absurdly claiming that best city Democratic spaces revel in voter fraud, while rural GOP counties are completely secure from it.
“Our worry is Milwaukee. …That is this type of large Democrat strongholds that simply can’t appear to get their votes counted till they know precisely what number of votes they want,” Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) mentioned right through a tele-town corridor on Wednesday. “Whether or not anything else’s taking place or now not, this simply appears to be like suspicious.”
Kevin Dietsch by the use of Getty Pictures
The Wisconsin Republican, who’s up for reelection this yr, then praised election directors in rural spaces of the state, together with in his place of birth of Oshkosh, in keeping with Heartland Sign.
Milwaukee is essentially the most numerous town in Wisconsin, and white electorate are within the minority there. It’s additionally been a widespread goal of Trump and his allies, who’ve sown mistrust in elections with their lies about voter fraud. Trump himself nonetheless falsely maintains he received Wisconsin in 2020.
In Nevada, GOP Senate hopeful Adam Laxalt, who not too long ago served because the state’s lawyer basic, is operating the similar playbook.
All over occasions at the marketing campaign path, Laxalt has sought to reassure supporters that their votes will rely this yr whilst he has railed about election lack of confidence and made bogus claims of voter fraud.
“The votes are being counted in Elko County. Those elections listed below are legit,” Laxalt mentioned at an tournament in Republican-heavy Elko County not too long ago, in keeping with audio bought by means of NBC Information.
“Clark County? We were given primary issues down there. And we’ve were given to struggle that,” he added, relating to the state’s maximum populous and closely Democratic county, which contains Las Vegas.
“I do assume votes rely right here. I do assume votes rely in a minimum of 15 counties,” Laxalt mentioned at any other tournament, in keeping with the audiotape. “Washoe County could be a little squirrelly.”
Ethan Miller by the use of Getty Pictures
The Twitter account of Washoe County, the second-most populous house of the state, answered: “We’re operating our tails off and now we have our squirrels in a row to run an out there, truthful, clear election. Each and every vote counts.”
The Nevada Democratic Celebration, in the meantime, denounced Laxalt’s remarks in a observation, calling him “Trump’s best lackey” in Nevada and announcing “there’s in reality no backside for this cynical, failed baby-kisser.”