Donald Trump is focusing on Pennsylvania as a key battleground for his preemptive claims of election rigging.

In Bucks County, a critical suburb near Philadelphia, voters encountered long lines and early cutoffs while attempting to request and cast mail-in ballots in person. In response, Trump’s team not only secured a legal victory to extend the voting period but also used the situation to highlight claims of voter suppression and intimidation.

Meanwhile, when Lancaster County announced it was reviewing voter registration applications for potential fraud, Trump inaccurately stated that there were thousands of “fake ballots.” York County similarly reported reviewing thousands of voter materials, which Trump labeled as “THOUSANDS of potentially FRAUDULENT applications.”

Should Trump lose Pennsylvania, these incidents could serve as the basis for efforts to contest the outcome. On social media, Trump claimed without evidence that Pennsylvania was involved in large-scale election fraud and demanded immediate action, insisting that corruption is rampant.

Although Democratic and Republican election officials in Pennsylvania have assured the public that the voting process is safe and secure, Trump and his allies are amplifying every issue—whether significant, minor, real, or imagined—as evidence of a rigged election. In these final days before Election Day, they are escalating administrative mistakes and claims of wrongdoing into serious allegations. This approach goes beyond raising legitimate concerns, portraying the issues as proof of a conspiracy against Trump.

Karoline Leavitt, a Trump campaign spokesperson, stated that their election integrity team has documented genuine instances of voter fraud and suppression, asserting that these allegations are taken seriously despite being labeled as conspiracy theories by the media. The Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee are committed to ensuring a secure election for all voters.

The barrage of allegations in Pennsylvania continues a long-standing pattern of undermining trust in the electoral process. After the 2020 election, Trump and his supporters spread misinformation about Pennsylvania’s results, sought Supreme Court intervention, and coordinated a plan involving fake electors, even when some original electors objected. This turmoil led to harassment and threats against local election officials, with some in Philadelphia requiring police protection. Two armed men were arrested near the city’s vote counting site after traveling from Virginia.

Pennsylvania Secretary of State Al Schmidt, a Republican, described the rhetoric as an attempt to “manufacture outrage” and highlighted the significant amount of misinformation surrounding voting. Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro emphasized that the state had a fair and secure election in 2020 and would uphold the people’s will again, dismissing Trump’s actions as a repeat of his 2020 tactics.

Trump’s campaign has pointed to routine election administration practices as evidence of being targeted. One area of contention involves early voting. Unlike other states, Pennsylvania does not have traditional in-person early voting, a system shaped by compromises among Republican legislators. However, counties do permit voters to request and submit mail-in ballots in one visit to local election offices.