U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at the Pennsylvania Defense and Innovation Summit held at the Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on July 15, 2026.
Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images
President Donald Trump will focus on alleged threats against the integrity of the U.S. election in a prime-time address to the nation scheduled for Thursday at 9 p.m. ET.
It wouldn’t be the first time he’d done that. Since losing to former President Joe Biden nearly six years ago, Trump has maintained that he was the victim of a “fraudulent” and “stolen” election, and has made similar claims about recent elections in which Republicans lost.
They argue that President Trump’s decision to spotlight the election is consistent with a multi-layered effort by the president and his allies to reshape U.S. elections ahead of November’s midterm elections. Opinion polls show that Democrats have the advantage to take back the House of Representatives as President Trump’s popularity declines.
President Trump is expected to repeat false claims about the results of the 2020 presidential election, alleging that foreign adversaries, including China, are involved in election influence operations, administration officials told MS NOW.
White House press secretary Caroline Levitt said Thursday that news outlets were “misrepresenting” the content of President Trump’s speech. But she hinted that President Trump would make claims about the security of the U.S. election.
“The president is going to make some very important announcements regarding the integrity of our elections,” he told reporters at the White House.
“We should have the safest and most secure election in the history of the world, and what the president is going to say tonight will tell you that that’s probably not the case and that we need to make some adjustments going forward,” she said.
Mr. Levitt noted that Trump may also address a variety of other topics, including Iran and the economy.
President Trump has remained silent on details about his speech, his first public address since early April, when he claimed the ongoing war with Iran was nearly over.
But he has repeatedly indicated that his remarks Thursday night will focus on his dissatisfaction with the U.S. election and his plans to change it.
Asked about the speech at the White House on Tuesday, President Trump said: “This is really, really big news. Our country has to get ready.” “Without free and fair elections, there is no country.”
Asked to preview his speech during an interview on Newsmax Monday night, Trump cited last month’s Los Angeles mayoral race as an example of a “rigged” election.
Even before his favorite candidate, former reality TV star Spencer Pratt, was officially defeated, Trump had made baseless claims of massive voter fraud in the race.
“Our election is skewed, and we have to fix it,” Trump told Newsmax.
The way to do that, President Trump argues, is for Congress to pass the SAVE America Act. The bill is a controversial bill aimed at cracking down on noncitizens who interfere in U.S. elections, by requiring people to show photo ID to vote and proof of citizenship to register. Opponents say the bill would disenfranchise voters, especially low-income people and people of color.
Federal law already requires citizenship to vote in U.S. elections, and data shows very few noncitizens vote.
But President Trump has made election legislation a top priority for the next election. He even refused to sign any other legislation until the SAVE America Act reached his desk. And his allies in the House are delaying other measures from reaching the president as they rush to pass an election bill that doesn’t have the votes to pass Congress.
President Trump’s Republican Party faces major challenges as it seeks to maintain its majorities in the House and Senate beyond the midterm elections. The party that controls the White House has historically underperformed in midterm elections, and Democrats are aiming to take advantage of polls showing Americans’ negative views about the economy, the Iran war and Trump himself.
President Trump’s campaign
People vote during the primary election at the Brooklyn Museum on June 23, 2026 in New York, USA.
Eduardo Munoz | Reuters
Mr. Trump has sought to use every means at his disposal to contest the election results he opposes.
After losing the 2020 election, Trump and his allies filed dozens of lawsuits challenging state counts, but none of them overturned the results or presented any credible evidence of fraud to overturn the election.
Efforts to overturn the 2020 results culminated in the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021. A mob of Trump supporters stormed the heart of the U.S. government, forcing lawmakers to temporarily evacuate their chambers for safety. President Trump has since pardoned or commuted the sentences of virtually all defendants involved in the riot.
In late January, the FBI searched election offices in Georgia, the top target of President Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election, seeking records related to the 2020 election. Trump’s then-Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, was also seen at the scene of the attack.
After Gabbard announced her resignation in May, Trump nominated Bill Pelt, the head of federal housing regulation, to replace her.
MS NOW previously reported that Pulte, who has earned a reputation as Trump’s loyal attack dog, was expected to take part in the president’s speech.
Meanwhile, the Justice Department has filed lawsuits in numerous states seeking access to detailed voter registration data. The Justice Department argued it needed the information to ensure compliance with federal election laws. More than a dozen such lawsuits have been dismissed by federal judges.
