US President Donald Trump has accused China of repeatedly attempting to influence the outcome of elections in the United States. He made this statement in a speech broadcast on the evening of 16 July, Washington time.
According to Trump, China attempted to influence the 2018 mid-term congressional elections and the 2020 presidential election, seeking to ensure the defeat of the 45th and 47th presidents in the polls.
Trump also claimed that China had gained access to the data of 220 million US voters. He described this as “the largest data breach in history” involving voters.
Beijing rejected Trump’s accusations. A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington stated: “China has never interfered and will never interfere in US presidential elections.”
Trump claimed to have evidence that certain US intelligence officials had concealed information about foreign interference in the election from the US leadership. He accused representatives of the so-called ‘deep state’ of withholding this information from the President and the American people. Trump is demanding an investigation into this matter.
The US President also announced that intelligence reports revealing “shocking vulnerabilities” in the US electoral system would be declassified immediately.
Reuters notes that US intelligence had previously found no evidence of Beijing’s influence on US elections, including the 2020 presidential election. According to Reuters, Donald Trump is using his speech to try to push Republicans in Congress to pass a bill to reform the electoral system – the Save America Act. If passed, this bill would introduce new, stricter requirements for verifying voters’ identities and citizenship. So far, the bill has stalled in the Senate due to opposition from the Democrats.
The Democrats have accused the president of attempting to discredit the upcoming elections. Mid-term elections for Congress will take place in the US in November, with the entire House of Representatives and a third of the Senate up for re-election.