In a sudden shift, former President Donald Trump is pushing for emergency changes to the voting system in North Carolina following the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene. Trump’s campaign is advocating for expanded voter access measures in western North Carolina, an unexpected move given his long-standing opposition to similar expansions.
As reported by Politico’s Meredith McGraw, the Trump campaign is calling for several modifications, including countywide early voting, expanded vote-by-mail procedures, longer early in-person voting hours, Sunday voting options, and waiving residency requirements for poll workers. These changes aim to increase accessibility for voters in the hurricane-affected areas.
Some emergency voting expansions have already been approved in 13 impacted counties. However, Republican Party leaders, including Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump, are pressing for even more access and have threatened to file lawsuits to secure these additional measures.
This approach marks a significant departure from Trump and the GOP’s previous stance. For years, they have criticized and opposed emergency voting access expansions, especially mail-in voting, which they claimed was illegal and an attempt to rig elections. These allegations continue to impact the GOP’s efforts to encourage more mail-in voting among their own supporters.
At a recent rally in North Carolina, Trump’s running mate, Senator J.D. Vance (R-OH), highlighted the importance of utilizing all available voting methods. “We have got three ways to vote now: Early voting, voting by mail, and voting on Election Day,” he stated. “And look, I am a firm believer that we ought to have Election Day in this country and not election season, but we are where we are. So we’ve got to take advantage of all these pathways to vote.”
One possible reason for the Trump campaign’s push for expanded voter access is the political landscape of western North Carolina. While Asheville, the region’s largest city, is a Democratic stronghold, many of the surrounding areas are heavily pro-Trump. By expanding voting access, the campaign likely hopes to mobilize Republican voters in these supportive regions.
In addition to calling for voting changes, Trump has also made baseless accusations against the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). He claims that FEMA has withheld resources from Republican-leaning areas during hurricane relief efforts and alleges that the Biden administration has misused FEMA funds to pay for shelter for migrants. These accusations, part of Trump’s broader criticism of the Biden administration, add another layer of controversy to the ongoing debate over hurricane recovery and voter access in the state.