USAupdated 1h ago2 min read
Archive photo · 2 June 2025Trump Questions 2026 US Midterm Results, Citing Early Voting and Voting Machines
4 West Asian4 Western Mainstream2 Asian2 Other source typesPhoto: Daniel Torok / US federal government, Public domain · Cropped for layout
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Trump questioned midterm legitimacy citing early voting and voting machines. He had previously accepted results but now questioned them.
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12 outlets in this story. Read their headlines below.
Trump reverses acceptance
President Donald Trump questioned the legitimacy of the 2026 midterm election results in a Truth Social post, writing, "Does anybody really believe that this 'Election' was honest. How could the Polls be so wrong?"
“Does anybody really believe that this 'Election' was honest. How could the Polls be so wrong?”
Trump’s new doubts came days after he told the New York Times on election night that he was "absolutely willing" to accept the results.
Trump’s post also alleged that early voting "dumps" were so large that it was impossible to win, and he said "It’s all about the machines, which are far more important than the voter!"
State and local officials across the US said voting had been mostly problem-free, while some key races, including Senate contests in Alaska and Mississippi, have yet to be called.
Democrats retook both chambers of Congress, with Democrats winning 54 US Senate seats and 254 US House seats in the midterms even as counting continued in some races.
Claims cite machines
Trump’s challenge to the midterm outcome focused on early voting and voting machines, and the BBC said he made vague claims about polling, voting "dumps", and "machines" without providing specific evidence of error or wrongdoing. The New York Times said Trump wrote, "Some early voting 'dumps' were so large that it was impossible to win, no matter how many people went to vote," and it added that he said it was "all about the machines, which are far more important than the voter!" Trump had previously attempted to cast doubts on the integrity of elections he had lost, even though he himself was not on the ballot in the midterms.
CBS News published a 60 Minutes transcript in which Trump said, "I was not on the ballot," and he argued that if he had been, "it would've been a much different situation". In the same CBS transcript, Trump said he did not disagree with JD Vance’s analysis that "The reason we lost is the war," meaning Iran, and he said, "I don't disagree with it."
Political stakes and next steps
Election law experts, state officials, and local elections offices told the BBC they had spent months preparing for a scenario in which the White House or election sceptics questioned the votes' legitimacy. Top state and local election officials reported a mostly smooth process so far for the 2026 midterms, even as extreme weather forced some location closures and some administrative or technical issues slowed the process in some local jurisdictions. In the CBS News transcript, Trump said he was "absolutely willing" to accept results earlier, and he told Ross Douthat that he wanted to "see things happen" rather than "just sitting there for two years vetoing everything."
Democrats have comfortable majorities in both chambers of Congress, with 54 US Senate seats and 254 US House seats, even as counting continues in some races. Trump’s stance marked a return to claims of rigged elections, after he had initially said he was willing to accept the results, and it quoted his Monday post asking, "Does anybody really believe that this 'Election' was honest".