Donald Trump stated he issued the executive order on mail-in ballots to stop illegal voting by non-U.S. citizens.
Posted by Up First from NPR, Checked
- Sources
- 3 support2 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 70%
Up First from NPRAug 25, 2026
Sources consistently report that Trump publicly framed his March 2026 executive order on mail ballots and citizenship lists as a safeguard against non-citizen voting, so the attributed statement is supported. The claim is about what he said, not whether non-citizen voting is widespread, which the sources describe as extremely rare.
What was said
… Had Trump ordered the Postal Service to do? Trump basically called for the Postal Service to deliver mail ballots only to people on lists of mail-in voters that states would have to turn over to USPS. And Trump has said he issued this order to stop illegal voting by non-U s. Citizens, which many studies and audits have found to be extremely rare. And by the way, Trump himself has voted by mail in Florida. And what did the Supreme Court actually say? …
Up First from NPR · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. The AP report on the appeals court ruling says Trump touted the order as a way to keep non-U.S. citizens from voting, and that the order covers mail ballots and state citizenship lists.[1]
Supports. CBS News reports the president touted the changes as safeguards to keep non-U.S. citizens from voting, and quotes him saying 'The cheating on mail-in voting is legendary' before signing the order.[3]
Supports. Houston Public Media (AP photo caption) reports the order 'takes aim at' both illegal voting by noncitizens and mail-ballot fraud, and that Trump told reporters the order was legally 'foolproof'.[4]
Context. The BBC reports Trump has claimed non-citizen voting is widespread, while evidence suggests such voter fraud is extremely rare; this bears on the truth of his stated motive but not on whether he stated it.[5]
Context. The White House fact sheet on the order describes its aims as citizenship verification and securing mail-in ballot procedures, consistent with the stated rationale of stopping non-citizen voting.[2]
Sources
5 sources: 1 fact-checker, 1 primary, 1 tier 2, 1 not rated, 1 tier 1
- 1US appeals court upholds halt to Trump's executive order ...apnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 2Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Ensures Citizenship ...whitehouse.gov · primary source · cited for: context
- 3Federal appeals court upholds ruling blocking Trump's ...cbsnews.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 4Trump signs a new executive order on voting. Experts say ...houstonpublicmedia.org · not rated · cited for: supports
- 5Trump says US voter fraud is 'rampant' - evidence suggests it is extremely rarebbc.com · tier 1 · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- Donald Trump issued an executive order to deliver mail ballots only to people on lists of mail-in voters that states must turn over to the USPS.True
- Donald Trump's executive order prioritized federal prosecution of state election officials who send or receive ballots to non-citizens or others ineligible to vote.True
- Donald Trump claims that non-U.S. citizens are registered to vote and use postal votes to cast ballots in elections.True
- Donald Trump signed an executive order in March that directed the Post Office and other government departments to create a plan to secure mail-in balloting.True
- President Trump signed an executive order in March regarding mail-in voting.True