Experts warn Trump ‘inventing fraud’ in California as president ramps up baseless claims

Trump steps off Air Force One in Wisconsin on Friday. Photograph: Samuel Corum/Getty Images View image in fullscreen Trump steps off Air Force One in Wisconsin on Friday. Photograph: Samuel Corum/Getty Images Experts warn Trump ‘inventing fraud’ in California as president ramps up baseless claims Critics say president using well-worn playbook – with loyalists in key positions ready to amplify his message Donald Trump is “inventing fraud” in California’s primary elections, and likely to ramp up unfounded allegations when more races go against him, pro-democracy experts have warned. While the US president has used this playbook for years – from his loss at the Emmys as a reality TV star to his defeat in the 2020 presidential election – election integrity campaigners fear this time could be different. “California’s election is not the problem here,” said Omar Noureldin, senior vice-president of policy and litigation at Common Cause, a pro-democracy watchdog group. “The problem is that we have a president in the Oval Office who continues to lie and sow doubt over elections instead of facing accountability from voters.” Trump lost his cool after a journalist pushed back on his latest attempt to sow doubt in election results, storming out of a Meet the Press interview which aired this weekend. The outburst showcased a feature of Trump’s approach if results don’t go his way: he quickly declares them rigged, rallying his supporters and rightwing media to spread similar messages. California is the latest – and largest – test of this technique in this election cycle. This year’s midterms will serve as an example of how the president will wield the federal government’s power at cities and states in a crusade to ensure his party maintains power. In contrast to 2020, when his false claims of voting fraud helped set the stage for an insurrection inside the Capitol in the wake of Joe Biden’s presidential election victory, Trump now has an administration stocked with loyalists – and election deniers – who may not stand up to an attempt to undermine election results. View image in fullscreen Trump supporters storm the US Capitol on 6 January 2021. Photograph: Leah Millis/Reuters He has few vocal detractors left among the Republicans in Congress to speak out against these efforts. He has a rightwing media ecosystem poised to advance his talking points. “The president keeps inventing fraud in elections he loses,” said Edgar Lin, Protect Democracy’s deputy impact director. “Now he’s aiming federal power at California’s locally run vote. This is the same playbook he always reaches for, only this time he has the muscle and federal tools to act on it.” Trump has repeatedly called the California results into question as ballot-counting continued in the country’s most populous state. In the governor’s race, Democrat Xavier Becerra is projected to advance to the general election, and Republican Steve Hilton is poised to advance over Democrat Tom Steyer. View image in full