US President Donald Trump used a primetime address from the White House on Thursday to allege that China carried out a sweeping compromise of American election data beginning in 2020.
He told the nation, "Starting during the 2020 election cycle, China carried out what is believed to be the largest compromise of election data in history."
Trump said Beijing had obtained voter data from 18 states through illicit means, telling viewers, "Tens of millions of voters' data in 18 states have been bought, stolen, or hacked by China."
He went further, alleging a motive tied to his first-term trade policy. "The Chinese government wanted me to lose the 2020 election because I charged them tariffs and I built the strongest military in the world."
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"In mid-2018, China was working to influence the results of the US midterm elections and, later, the results of the 2020 presidential election," he added.
According to a White House official, Trump alleged that 220 million voter registration files were compromised by China between 2020 and 2023, with the files containing voters' names, addresses, voting history, party affiliation, military status and phone numbers.
He described the disclosure as part of a set of documents showing that "the People's Republic of China carried out what is believed to be the largest compromise of election data in history."
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The speech comes as Trump presses Congress to pass the SAVE America Act, which would require proof of citizenship to register to vote.
Some Republican lawmakers have privately expressed reservations about revisiting the 2020 election so close to the November midterms, according to reports ahead of the address.
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