Did China Steal Data On 220 Million US Voters? Trump Makes Explosive New Claim

President Donald Trump has claimed that China hacked data linked to around 220 million US voters and attempted to influence the outcome of the 2020 presidential election. Speaking from the White House on Thursday, Trump unveiled what he described as newly declassified intelligence, alleging that US election data had been exposed to hacking, exploitation and foreign interference on an unprecedented scale.

He also claimed officials within the intelligence community withheld key information from him while he was president, including allegations that China attempted to manufacture illegal ballots for Joe Biden. Trump said the information had not been shared with him or, to the best of his knowledge, with Congress.

The address also served as an opportunity for Trump to promote his proposed Save America Act, while questions over the evidence supporting his claims quickly emerged during a White House press briefing earlier in the day.

Declassified Intelligence Claims

Trump told the nation that newly declassified intelligence showed China had sought to interfere in both the 2018 midterm elections and the 2020 presidential election.

He claimed election data had been 'exposed to levels never thought possible to hacking, exploitation, and foreign interference', adding that officials responsible for raising concerns chose not to inform him while he was serving as president.

'Yet those responsible for sounding the alarm instead kept the information hidden,' Trump said.

'They did not disclose it to me as president, and to the best of our knowledge, they did not inform Congress.'

Trump also alleged that China 'attempted to manufacture illegal ballots for Joe Biden' during the 2020 election, although he did not present supporting evidence in the address.

According to the president, Beijing also carried out an influence campaign aimed at damaging his public image ahead of the election.

He claimed China identified journalists who could be paid 'large sums of money' to continue publishing negative coverage about him.

'The reason they wanted me to lose is because they knew I was wise to them and charged them billions and billions of dollars worth of tariffs,' Trump said.

During the speech, Trump also promoted his Save America Act, describing it as legislation intended to strengthen election integrity and voter security.

He said a Department of Homeland Security review found that 278,000 non-citizens were registered to vote in elections. Trump argued the true figure could be higher because, according to him, 'Democrat states refused to share voter files'.

White House Faces Questions Over Evidence

Trump's claims came under immediate scrutiny before the address during a White House press briefing, where Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt was questioned by journalist Kaitlan Collins.

Collins noted that Trump had been back in office for more than 540 days and asked why no criminal charges had been brought if evidence supporting the allegations already existed.

'If what he says tonight is backed up by evidence, why hasn't anyone been charged?' Collins asked.

Leavitt responded by saying Trump had not yet revealed or declassified the material.

'He hasn't revealed it yet. He hasn't declassified the documents yet, and you will see what he says tonight, and then we'll move forward appropriately from there,' she said.

When Collins followed up by asking whether the Justice Department could pursue charges after Trump's announcement, Leavitt declined to comment on behalf of the department.

'I don't speak on behalf of the Justice Department, Kaitlan, you know that,' she replied.

After Collins pressed the issue again, Leavitt said: 'You'll have to ask the Justice Department. I don't charge people. I speak on behalf of the president.'

Thursday's briefing marked Leavitt's return to the White House press room following her maternity leave, which began in late April.

China rejected Trump's allegations. A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington said Beijing 'has never and will never interfere in the presidential elections of the US'.

The claims also contrast with an unclassified US intelligence community assessment published in 2021. The assessment found no indication that any foreign actor attempted or succeeded in altering 'any technical aspect' of the 2020 presidential election, including voter registrations, ballots, vote tabulations or the final results.

The assessment was conducted under John Ratcliffe, who served as Trump's director of national intelligence at the time and is now his CIA director.