Former President Trump's campaign has hinted at election day transportation options for people affected by Hurricanes Helen and Milton in the southeastern United States.
“As President Trump said when we were surveying the damage on the ground in Georgia, may I add that he went to Georgia before Kamala Harris and Joe Biden. Trump. The president said what we care about most is lives, and we save lives, and people's livelihoods. Their businesses were destroyed, their homes were destroyed.” Trump campaign national spokeswoman Caroline Levitt said Monday on Fox News' “Fox & Friends First.”
“That said, it is extremely important that voters are not disenfranchised, and our election leaders have sent a letter to local state and local officials in North Carolina saying, “As much as possible locally, We need to provide many accessible voting locations.” “Our campaign is looking at how we can provide transportation for voters who need to get to the polls and ensure they have access to the ballot box,'' Levitt added. “They're facing this destruction through no fault of their own. And this is Trump country. This is western North Carolina. These are our people. We're going to take care of them and make sure they vote.” “We are focused on ensuring equal rights” in the wake of this disaster. ”
FOX News Digital has reached out to the Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee (RNC) for more information. The Washington Examiner reported last week that there are nearly 1.3 million registered voters in 25 counties in western North Carolina, which was declared a federal disaster area in the wake of Hurricane Helen. Trump won North Carolina by just 75,000 votes in the 2020 election.
Harris campaign dispatches Bill Clinton to key states within 22 days of election day
Debris is seen in front of a home with a Trump 2024 campaign sign in Lake Lure, North Carolina, on October 2, 2024, after Hurricane Helen passes. (Alison Joyce/AFP via Getty Images)
During an appearance on Fox News' “The Ingraham Angle” last week, RNC co-chair Lara Trump said the committee had sent a memo to Democratic North Carolina Governor Roy with 10 recommendations on ensuring voter access.・He said he had sent it to Cooper and the North Carolina State Legislature. After the disaster.
“I don't want people who have already lost so much, who have gone through a terrible tragedy like the hurricane, to lose the ability to vote in this election,” Lara Trump said.
House Republican Conference Chair Rep. Elise Stefanik, Rep. Hogan Guidry, Rep. Kash Patel, Rep. Chad Wolf, Rep. Abel Maldonado, and Rep. Brooke Rollins in Charlotte, North Carolina, October 10, 2024. The view from the Team Trump bus tour. (Peter Zai/Anadolu via Getty Images)
North Carolina State Board of Elections officials said 75 of 80 planned early voting sites in 25 counties in western North Carolina that are in a federal disaster area will be closed on Thursday, when early voting begins in the Tar Heel State. announced it would reopen on Thursday.
'We can't wait until the last moment': North Carolina congressman warns of voter access in Helen-hit areas
“Given the devastation and destruction that Helen left behind, county election boards in western North Carolina are It's absolutely amazing that we were able to pull it off.” . “Thanks to the hard work of county election officials and dedicated state commission staff across the state, western North Carolina is ready.”
State election officials are using the North Carolina State of Emergency to secure portable toilets, generators, trailers and other supplies for 540 polling places in 25 affected counties ahead of Election Day on Nov. 5. We are continuing to coordinate with the Administration and FEMA.
People walk past a church destroyed in the aftermath of Hurricane Helen's flooding on October 6, 2024 in Swannanoa, North Carolina. (Tama Mario/Getty Images)
The state Legislature approved $5 million in emergency funding to the State Board of Elections to deal with the effects of the storm, and the state Legislature also approved an election administration system that allows counties to change early voting dates and locations. Expanded the emergency measures introduced by the Commission.
On Friday, the Buncombe County Board of Elections approved new times and locations for early voting.
Rep. Chuck Edwards (RN.C.) sounded the alarm about voter access in an interview with FOX News Digital last week, noting that his district was one of the districts hardest hit by Hurricane Helen. expressed concern.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“People are still in the process of rebuilding their lives, desperately trying to get power back, trying to contact loved ones, digging through the rubble, but they don't realize we're so close to an election here. “It wasn't like that for about three weeks,” Edwards said.
Fox News' Elizabeth Elkind and Matteo Cina contributed to this report.
