If the 2020 election taught the Republican National Committee anything, it was that in the new world of mailboxes and ballot harvesting, we needed to rethink how we played the game.
And if the 2024 election proved anything, it's that a focus on election integrity and working with third-party groups to get the results of the vote paid off.
Since 2020, nearly two-thirds of Republican and Trump voters said they have little faith that their votes will be counted accurately. According to a public opinion poll. That year, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, many election laws were changed and others were completely ignored in key battleground states. Thanks to Democratic super-lawyer Marc Elias, voters can now vote in states like Pennsylvania, Michigan and Arizona using ballot drop boxes, mail-in voting and early voting.
When Lara Trump and Michael Whatley took over the RNC in March, their mission was clear. The party was committed to ensuring the integrity of elections.
“When we came on board, we said, okay, this is what we're going to spend almost all of our time doing. “If you try to do everything for everyone all the time, you're really going to miss the big picture,” the RNC told the Daily Caller.
The RNC's new leaders believed that strengthening the election integrity division would, in turn, help in the ground war. Recent FEC rule changes allow the party to work with grassroots organizations across the country. The ground campaign of the 2024 election campaign was non-traditional and focused primarily on targeting low-propensity voters.
Additionally, Americans who believe their votes will be counted accurately are more likely to actually vote.
Trump told Caller that it's important that these low-propensity voters know about the work of the Election Integrity Division, which will give them confidence to vote and drive them to the polls. I explained.
“I have met with election integrity lawyers and have told them that I would like to pursue this matter publicly,” Trump told the Caller. “BBecause that's the key to motivating them and giving them confidence in everything. ”
From there, the RNC's election integrity efforts grew.
“We're organizing what we're calling the 'Save the Vote Tour,' where Lara and I, along with Pam Bondi and Matt Whitaker, will travel to 20 different locations around the country to raise awareness of election integrity programs. We've done 30 different events around the state. Please volunteer,” Whatley told the caller. Tours could assist with registration 230,000 volunteers will be involved as poll watchers and workers, as well as 6,500 grassroots lawyers.
Legal victory in Pennsylvania:
Center County officials had planned to halt vote counting overnight in violation of state law.
We threatened to sue, but that was enough. Officials agreed to continue the count if necessary.
Our lawyers continue to fight…
— Michael Whatley (@ChairmanWhatley) November 6, 2024
In the run-up to the election, its “Protecting the Vote Tour” taught hundreds of thousands of poll watchers how to identify suspicious objects at polling places. Pollsters were then directed to contact RNC lawyers or the Office of Election Integrity to have the issue addressed immediately.
Trump told the Caller that pollsters had identified about 20,000 tips, some of which were reported via Twitter. If Mr. Trump or Mr. Whatley were involved in some heinous incident on election night, they would immediately send poll watchers to the scene to investigate.
In many cases, the system worked on election night.
“In Milwaukee, we had observers in the room and noticed that one of the tabulators, who had already counted 30,000 votes, didn't have security protocols in place. We flagged that issue and made sure those votes were counted. We removed the forms, put security protocols in place and were able to rerun all ballots,” Whatley explained to the caller.
🚨🚨🚨 Throughout the day, we watched slow vote-counting operations in Milwaukee.
This time, our legal team learned that the count took place under unsafe conditions, forcing the city to start over and significantly extending the count schedule.
This is unacceptable…
— Lara Trump (@LaraLeaTrump) November 5, 2024
Victories were won across the United States, including in key battleground states. Voting locations were set up in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. is missing As for the ballot, the RNC provided more information. Across Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, Republican poll watchers were being denied access to polling places. The RNC identified the problem, took legal action, and put poll watchers in the room.
Some of the legal victories extended beyond Election Day and helped secure the Republican Senate majority.
News outlets decided the Pennsylvania Senate race to Republican Dave McCormick, but Democratic Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey began calling for a recount. Bucks County Commissioners Diane Ellis Marseglia and Robert Harvey then decided to allow undated or incorrectly dated ballots to be counted amid the Casey fight. (Related: 'To the fullest extent of the law': RNC seeks criminal charges against election officials who blatantly violate state law)
new: @Chairman Whatley say @dailycaller The RNC is considering whether Democratic committee member Diane Ellis Marseglia could face criminal charges for publicly admitting to fraudulently counting votes in the Casey and McCormick races. It is said that there is
“We will pursue this thoroughly… https://t.co/KUiqULM0Kk
— Reagan Reese (@reaganreese_) November 18, 2024
RNC soon submitted The lawsuit sues all 67 county election boards in the state to prevent them from counting undated or incorrectly dated ballots. Shortly after, the state Supreme Court responded, ruling on November 5 that the votes “cannot be counted for the purpose of the election to be held,” giving the RNC another victory.
As the president-elect announces dozens of candidates each week, the news cycle has shifted from election integrity to Trump's transition. But that doesn't mean the unit doesn't have any instructions or work to do.
One lawsuit filed by the party is still stalled and could have a significant impact on how elections are conducted for years to come. In Mississippi, absentee ballots received after Election Day can be counted. almost half The country allows it. The RNC filed the lawsuit in January and now expects the case to reach the Supreme Court.
“It could take a year, it could take two years, but this is an RNC case that we could have filed, and if the Supreme Court decides to vote on ballots that are sent after Election Day. “If we rule that they cannot, it could literally forever change the way elections are run in this country,” an RNC official told the caller.
“We will be fixing serious flaws in the American system for decades to come,” the official added.
President Trump told the Caller that the department is expected to shrink slightly in size heading into a non-election year, but will strengthen again in the lead up to the midterm elections. And she has been floated as a possible replacement for Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who has stepped back from his role with the Republican National Committee but told the Caller he plans to run for re-election in November. Mr. Whatley has Mr. Trump's support to remain in office. (Related: Exclusive: Moms in the Senate? Lara Trump's unique pitch for Rubio's seat)
To prepare for the next election cycle, Whatley spoke to the Caller about meeting with the House and Senate leadership teams to discuss how their initiatives can continue to blossom.
“Our work is not done yet. We will use next year to go back to the state Legislature and really formalize some of the things we are trying to do in terms of election integrity. We want to get things done by talking to Congress and the Senate about legislation that will give us the road rules in more states that we need,” Whatley told callers.
“I intend to continue this program and further develop it,” he added.
