Results of a Heartland/Rasmussen poll in late 2023 found more than one-in-four mail-in voters admitted to casting illegal ballots in the 2020 presidential election
Deeper analysis of the poll results showed that if only a fraction of self-admitted fraud occurred, Trump likely beats Biden in multiple swing states, wins 2020 Electoral College vote
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, IL (September 9, 2024) – Former President Donald Trump on Sunday afternoon published a post on his Truth Social account noting an interview Heartland Institute Senior Fellow Justin Haskins did in April on “Tucker Carlson Uncensored” on X. Haskins was asked on the program to talk about the results of a Heartland Institute/Rasmussen Reports poll from December showing that one-in-five mail-in voters in the 2020 election admitted to submitting an illegal ballot.
Trump posted on Truth Social Sunday: “An interview by Tucker Carlson of an election expert indicates that 20% of the Mail-In Ballots in Pennsylvania are fraudulent. Here we go again! Where is the U.S. Attorney General and FBI to INVESTIGATE? Where is the Pennsylvania Republican Party? We will WIN Pennsylvania by a lot, unless Dems are allowed to CHEAT. THE RNC MUST ACTIVATE, NOW!!!”
Trump’s Truth Social post set off a flurry of activity on other social media platforms – notably X – and stories at Mediaite, MSNBC, and many other outlets pushing back on Heartland’s poll results and a follow-up analysis of the poll results that showed the acceptance of illegally cast mail-in ballots likely changed the outcome of the 2020 election.
The stunning results of Heartland’s nationwide poll in December of those who mailed in ballots:
- 21% of mail-in voters admitted that in 2020 they voted in a state where they are “no longer a permanent resident.”
- 21% of mail-in voters admitted that they filled out a ballot for a friend or family member.
- 17% of mail-in voters said they signed a ballot for a friend or family member “with or without his or her permission.”
- 19% of mail-in voters said that a friend or family member filled out their ballot, in part or in full, on their behalf.
As for Trump’s claim about Pennsylvania, Heartland’s analysis of the polling data showed that 562,785 mail-in ballots cast for Biden were fraudulent, with 167,942 cast for Trump also being fraudulent. After subtracting these ballots from vote totals, Trump handily wins the Keystone State and its 20 electoral votes in the 2020 election (3,210,321 for Trump; 2,897,138 for Biden).
READ THE FULL ANALYSIS: “WHO REALLY WON THE 2020 ELECTION?” AT THIS LINK.
The following statements from experts at The Heartland Institute – a free-market think tank – may be used for attribution. For more comments, refer to the contact information below. To book a Heartland guest on your program, please contact Director of Communications Jim Lakely at [email protected] and (cell) 312/731-9364.
“Since the controversial 2020 election, The Heartland Institute has conducted several polls showing that Americans committed election fraud at an alarming rate in 2020 and plan to do so again in 2024. Former President Trump is right to highlight these results as we head into another highly anticipated election season.
“Although some states, namely Florida and Georgia, passed laws to reduce the potential for voter fraud in 2024 and beyond, many more did nothing to ensure election integrity. With less than two months before Election Day and early voting already underway, every state should make sure that their voter rolls are as accurate as possible while encouraging citizens to vote in-person, preferably as close to Election Day as possible, rather than via absentee ballots, unreliable mass mail-in voting, ballot harvesting, and other shady tactics.”
Chris Talgo
Editorial Director
The Heartland Institute
[email protected]
“Donald Trump is right on the money raising the issue of potential voter fraud in the upcoming election. Our polling and independent research has repeatedly shown how unreliable and susceptible to fraud mail-in balloting can be, especially in a tight election. Action must be taken to ensure security in our election if we are ever going to rebuild trust in our voting systems in the eyes of the American public.”
Donald Kendal
Director, Socialism Research Center
The Heartland Institute
[email protected]
The Heartland Institute is a national nonprofit organization founded in 1984 and headquartered in Arlington Heights, Illinois. Its mission is to discover, develop, and promote free-market solutions to social and economic problems. For more information, visit our website or call 312/377-4000.
PHOTO: Gage Skidmore/Flickr
Chris Talgo is senior editor at The Heartland Institute and a research fellow for Heartland’s Socialism Research Center.
Donald Kendal is Director of The Heartland Institute’s Socialism Research Center. Kendal is also the host of Heartland’s In the Tank Podcast.
