U.S. Election Officials Condemn Trump's Threat To Get To The Restrictions If He Wins The Presidential Election

Donald Trump. (Wikimedia Commons/Department of State)

JAKARTA - The United States Election Authority and the campaign team for Democratic Party presidential candidate Kamala Harris condemned the threat of Donald Trump, a Republican presidential candidate, who wanted to imprison "corrupt" election officials if they won the Presidential Election on November 5, accusing him of intimidation and inciting potential violence.

The condemnation was in response to Trump's social media posts on Saturday, in which he threatened a number of people with lawsuits if they were involved in election fraud in the 2024 election. Various studies have found that election fraud in the US is very rare.

Trump wrote: "We cannot allow our country to slump into a Third World Country, AND WE WILL NOT! Please be careful that this legal exposure extends to Lawyers, Political Operators, Donors, Illegal Voters, & Corrupt Election Officials. Those involved in immoral behavior will be sought, arrested, and prosecuted at a level that, unfortunately, has never been seen before in our country," as reported by Reuters on September 10.

Trump also repeated his baseless claim that his defeat in the 2020 general election to Joe Biden was caused by fraud.

Adrian Fontes, Democratic politician and Arizona State foreign minister who became the battlefield, described Trump's post on his Truth Social account as "irone", saying the post could potentially trigger political violence.

"Unfortunately, security is now one of the main considerations in holding elections," Fontes, a top election official in Arizona, told Reuters.

"Trump's comments have the potential to make criminals consider it an invitation to act. We need to protect our election officials and TPS officers. We need to be prepared for anything," he continued.

Meanwhile, Seth Bluestein, a Republican Republican from the Philadelphia State Election Council, Pennsylvania State said: "Every election official I know will focus on their work well, which unfortunately includes preparing for the threat of violence."

Separately, Krypto Leavitt, the national press secretary of Trump's campaign, said in a written statement to Reuters: "President Trump believes anyone who violates the law should be prosecuted severely, including criminals involved in election fraud. Without free and fair elections, you cannot have a country."

Amman Moussa, a spokesman for Harris, called Trump's comments "extreme and out of control."

"Donald Trump further increases his dangerous threat of revenge and retaliation," he said.

Trump and Harris are competing closely ahead of the upcoming presidential election, with polls assessing too tightly to predict.

Harris successfully removed Trump's lead over Biden before the incumbent canceled his candidacy again in July, with Harris then replacing him.

Since his 2020 defeat, Trump has regularly made false claims about election officials tricking him into winning. Many receive threats.

In reaction to Trump's post on Saturday, Jocelyn Benson, Secretary of the State of Michigan and a Democrat, posted on X: "My job - and the task of every election officer in the country - is to address noise and continue to ensure our elections are fair, safe, accessible, and the results are accurate. There are no lies,tors, or threats that will distract us from that goal."

In Surry County, North Carolina, local election director Michella Huff said he was worried Trump's comments would prevent people from becoming election officials.

"What will happen is to make great volunteers not excited," said Huff, a former Republican member who became independent.