FACT CHECK: Trump’s Unsubstantiated Voter Fraud Claims About Minnesota During State of the Union Address

President Donald Trump drew criticism from election officials and fact-checkers following his State of the Union address Tuesday night when he made unsubstantiated claims about voter fraud in Minnesota.

During his speech before Congress, Trump alleged that undocumented immigrants were voting in Minnesota elections, specifically claiming that the state allows immigrants to vote even if they lack legal status.

“In Minnesota and other states, the Democrat Party has embraced a radical immigration agenda: giving illegal aliens welfare, free healthcare, and even the right to vote,” Trump said.

Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon promptly refuted the president’s claim, stating unequivocally that non-citizens cannot legally vote in Minnesota elections. “Minnesota does not allow non-citizens to vote. Period,” Simon said in a statement released Wednesday morning.

Simon further explained that Minnesota’s voter registration process includes multiple safeguards designed to prevent non-citizens from participating in elections. When registering to vote, Minnesotans must attest under penalty of perjury that they are U.S. citizens. The state also conducts regular database checks against various government records to verify voter eligibility.

Election integrity experts note that voter fraud is exceedingly rare in the United States. The Brennan Center for Justice, which has extensively studied voter fraud, consistently finds that instances of non-citizens voting happen at rates of less than 0.0001 percent.

David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election Innovation and Research, explained that the claim about widespread non-citizen voting “has been thoroughly debunked by numerous studies and investigations.” He added that states have robust systems in place to ensure only eligible citizens cast ballots.

Minnesota has long been considered a model for election administration, with consistently high voter turnout and strong verification protocols. In the 2018 midterm elections, Minnesota led the nation with 64.3 percent voter turnout, well above the national average of 49.3 percent.

The president’s claim comes at a time when election security and voter fraud have become increasingly politicized topics. Several Republican-led states have implemented stricter voter ID laws and other measures citing concerns about election integrity, while Democrats and voting rights advocates argue these restrictions disproportionately affect minority voters and solve a problem that data suggests is virtually non-existent.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz also responded to the president’s claim, calling it “divisive rhetoric that undermines public confidence in our election system without any factual basis.”

“Our election system in Minnesota is secure, transparent, and has earned the trust of voters across the political spectrum,” Walz said. “These kinds of baseless allegations do nothing but erode that trust.”

Trump’s statement about Minnesota was part of a broader critique of Democratic immigration policies during his address. Immigration has remained a central focus of his presidency and is expected to be a key issue in his 2020 reelection campaign.

Political analysts suggest the president’s comments about Minnesota may be strategically significant as his campaign has identified the state as a potential pickup opportunity in November. Hillary Clinton won Minnesota by just 1.5 percentage points in 2016, the smallest margin for a Democratic presidential candidate there since 1984.

The Minnesota Republican Party declined to directly address the accuracy of Trump’s claim but issued a statement supporting “efforts to ensure election integrity” and the president’s broader message on immigration.

Experts caution that false claims about election fraud can have lasting consequences on voter confidence. A 2019 survey by the Democracy Fund found that approximately 40 percent of Americans already express doubts about the fairness and accuracy of election results, a figure that has risen steadily over the past decade.

The White House did not provide evidence to support the president’s claim when asked by reporters for clarification following the State of the Union address.