Trump targets mail-in ballots as New Jersey voter fraud cases come under renewed scrutiny
Paterson, NJ— President Donald Trump said he will lead a nationwide push to eliminate mail-in ballots and electronic voting machines by 2026, calling them “highly inaccurate” and “very expensive” in a post shared Sunday night. The statement immediately reignited debate over election integrity, particularly in states like New Jersey where mail-in voting is widely used.
In his post, Trump criticized mail-in ballots and voting machines as unreliable and wasteful, proposing a return to what he described as “accurate and sophisticated watermark paper” ballots. “We are now the only country in the world that uses mail-in voting,” he claimed. “All others gave it up because of the massive voter fraud encountered.”
Trump’s declaration arrives as New Jersey continues to defend its vote-by-mail system despite isolated incidents of documented voter fraud, mostly in local elections. While New Jersey ranks among the states with the highest rates of mail-in ballot usage, numerous academic studies and bipartisan reviews have consistently concluded that widespread voter fraud remains rare, with most confirmed cases involving small-scale tampering.
Since 2000, at least a dozen election fraud cases in New Jersey have resulted in charges or convictions, many of which stemmed from misuse of absentee ballots. Notable cases include:
- A 2020 Paterson city council race that was overturned after more than 800 ballots were rejected and four individuals, including two councilmen, were charged with fraud.
- In 2019, former Atlantic City Councilman MD Hossain Morshed was charged with voter registration fraud and mail-in ballot manipulation.
- Craig Callaway, a longtime political operative in Atlantic City, was charged in 2024 with coordinating a mail-in ballot fraud operation.
- Former Republican candidate Frederick Gattuso pleaded guilty to double voting in the 2020 presidential election.
- In Plainfield, a former mayoral candidate was indicted in 2024 for submitting nearly 1,000 fake voter registrations.
Despite these incidents, state and federal reviews consistently find no evidence of widespread or systemic fraud capable of altering statewide or federal election outcomes. Many cases result in pre-trial interventions, probation, or fines, rather than prison sentences, due to their localized and isolated nature.
Trump’s latest comments echo themes he has emphasized since 2020, as legal and legislative challenges to mail-in voting continue in several Republican-led states. New Jersey Democrats have expanded the system in recent years, citing higher voter participation and pandemic-era accessibility improvements.
Whether Trump’s proposed action leads to policy change in time for the election remains to be seen, but his remarks suggest a renewed focus on election law heading into the 2026 midterm cycle—one that could test the balance between ballot access and election security in battleground states like New Jersey.
Key Points
- Trump says he will lead a national effort to eliminate mail-in voting and voting machines by 2026.
- New Jersey, a heavy user of mail-in ballots, has seen several localized voter fraud cases since 2000.
- Experts and official reviews continue to find no evidence of widespread fraud affecting major election outcomes.
Trump vows to pull the plug on mail-in ballots as New Jersey’s election system comes under fire again.