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Claim: Election will see 'fraud like we’ve never seen.' Fact check: False

Donald Trump on election integrity: 'This is going to be a fraud like you've never seen'

During the first presidential debate on Tuesday night, President Trump made multiple claims about fraudulent activity associated with the 2020 election. He claimed that there were "unsolicited ballots" being sent to voters. "You're soliciting, you're asking, they send it back, you send it back. I did that. They're sending millions of ballots all over the country. There's fraud," Trump said. In some states like Oregon and Colorado, if you're registered to vote, state election officials will automatically send your ballot through the mail to be returned via mail or in-person drop-off. In other states, voters have to request an absentee ballot be sent to them.

Trump claimed ballots were being discarded in rivers and creeks. "They found them in creeks. They found some with the name 'Trump,' just happened to have the name 'Trump,' just the other day, in a wastepaper basket," Trump said. There is no evidence of ballots being thrown into any body of water. Trump is referencing nine military ballots that were improperly thrown out in Pennsylvania by a temporary election worker who was later fired. Seven of the nine ballots were for Trump.


The president also accused mail carriers of selling ballots. "Take a look at West Virginia. Mailmen are selling the ballots. They're being sold," Trump said. One mail carrier in West Virginia pleaded guilty to one count of election fraud and one count of injury to the mail for tampering with eight primary ballot request forms. He changed the party affiliation from Democrat to Republican. There is no evidence any postal workers sold any ballots.

Trump also made it seem as though in some states ballots can be sent in after Election Day. "Can you imagine where they say you have to have your ballot in by November 10th? November 10th. That means, that is seven days after the election, in theory should have been announced," Trump said. But that is now what states have planned. Some states allow ballots to arrive after Election Day as long as they are postmarked by Nov. 3. Others permit election officials to keep counting ballots after Election Day, given the anticipate record number of voters using the mail this year. In Pennsylvania, for example, Nov. 10 is the last day for county boards of elections to receive military and overseas absentee ballots (submitted for delivery no later than 11:59 P.M. on November 2).

Trump claimed that voters in a "Democrat area" got two ballots. Although there can be mishaps with mail-in voting, there is no evidence of widespread fraud.

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Just the Facts: Impact of the Big Beautiful Bill on Health Care

U.S. President Donald Trump takes the stage during a reception for Republican members of the House of Representatives in the East Room of the White House on July 22, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump thanked GOP lawmakers for passing the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

Getty Images, Chip Somodevilla

Just the Facts: Impact of the Big Beautiful Bill on Health Care

The Fulcrum strives to approach news stories with an open mind and skepticism, striving to present our readers with a broad spectrum of viewpoints through diligent research and critical thinking. As best we can, we remove personal bias from our reporting and seek a variety of perspectives in both our news gathering and selection of opinion pieces. However, before our readers can analyze varying viewpoints, they must have the facts.

What are the new Medicaid work requirements, and are they more lenient or more restrictive than what previously existed?

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The Crux of the Schism: What defines being American?
U.S.A. flag
Photo by Lucas Sankey on Unsplash

The Crux of the Schism: What defines being American?

Undeniably, the U.S. body politic is in crisis today and has likely been unraveling for more than a decade. The rancorous polarization best exemplified by the demonization of MAGA on one side, and the elite establishment on the other, has become a daily preoccupation in many circles. True, there is undoubtedly a large group of Americans in a broadly defined center whose voices get drowned out by the extremes who scream the loudest. Yet despite this caveat, we are arguably witnessing the most ominous threat we’ve faced since the Civil War tore us asunder more than 150 years ago.

Much scrutiny focuses on the political, economic, and social aspects of the schism, all of which are important and in play. However, I would venture to guess that at its core, the disunion lies in the clashing concepts of what being an American signifies, and further, how these concepts have collided over the course of three centuries. While often not debated forthrightly, the battle can be distilled down to two conflicting views on the fundamental question of what constitutes being an American.

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Hey Bro! Do You Think Trump Has Your Back?

man wearing a red baseball cap, yelling

AI generated

Hey Bro! Do You Think Trump Has Your Back?

This is an open letter to all bros. You're angry. You're disillusioned. And you have every right to be. The question is, what do you do about it? How do you do something that's going to improve your life, your future?

Does the answer lie in a political party? Both Republicans and Democrats certainly want your vote. However, you don't feel that you can look to the Democratic Party for help. They seem to be particularly interested in women, people of color, and immigrants. They haven't spoken to you or done anything for you.

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