Trump campaign now encouraging ballot harvesting

Ahead of a rally in Las Vegas on Thursday, former President Donald Trump’s campaign encouraged supporters to bring their completed mail ballots to be transferred to a polling site, signaling a shift in Republican get-out-the-vote messaging.

A recent text message sent out to voters from the Trump campaign read, “NEVADA: Ballots have been sent across the Silver State! Join Pres. Trump in Las Vegas on Thur. and BRING your completed ballot to ensure your voice is heard this election!”

The strategy is a flip from previous election cycles where Republicans have strongly voiced opposition to “ballot harvesting,” or the collecting of mail ballots by third parties to be transferred on behalf of the voter. Trump and leaders of the state GOP pointed to the collection of ballots and the universal mail ballot system as the culprits for unfounded claims of a stolen election in 2020.

Nevada Republican Party Chairman Michael McDonald, who is also a senior adviser to the Trump campaign, said the messaging is part of a new strategy Republicans have implemented this election cycle to vote with any method available.

After a Democratic legislature made ballot collection legal in Nevada, many Republicans felt uncomfortable, said McDonald, who has long claimed the 2020 election was stolen. But after the 2020 election, the Republican Party reassessed its strategy, he said.

“The rules were changed,” he said. “We might not like the rules, but we have to play by the rules. We’re ballot harvesting, and we’re getting out the vote early.”

Ballot harvesting was made legal during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Legislature made it permanent in 2021. It has served as a tool to help rural communities, such as tribal reservations, that might have less access to a voting booth return their ballots.

McDonald began to educate Republican voters and make them feel comfortable about methods of voting they were previously uncomfortable with, early voting and voting by mail.

The RNC also adopted the “swamp the vote” and “protect the vote” campaigns to encourage supporters to vote early and by mail. Committee Chairman Michael Whatley had said he was “absolutely” embracing mail ballots, which were at the center of Nevada Republicans’ unfounded claims of a stolen election in 2020.

According to a Team Trump spokesperson, the ballots that are collected at the rally at the Thomas & Mack Center are then taken to the elections department to be turned in.

The secretary of state’s office does not recommend the use of third-party organizations to return mail ballots, even if it is legal, according to its Election FAQ.

“These organizations may be well intentioned, but they are not your county elections officials,” the secretary of state’s office wrote. “Instead, we recommend you either return your ballot by mail or bring it to a secure drop-off location.”

Jennifer McGrath, a volunteer for the Trump campaign, collected people’s ballots at a table under a tent outside of the center. She said the ballots go almost immediately to a nearby voting center.

“Voters can feel very secure and very safe,” McGrath said. “They’re obviously treated with extreme care. We have an obligation to get them over to one of the vote centers to turn in.”

McGrath said she also gave people receipts with a URL so they can check and make sure their ballot has been received.

The Las Vegas resident said she likes this get-out-the-vote strategy. She thinks it is secure, and it’s a way for people to vote in case an issue arises with someone’s original voting plans, such as if they get sick or if the lines are too long, she said.

“I think it’s a good plan to urge people to take advantage of the early voting opportunities,” McGrath said.

Nevada State Democratic Party spokesperson Carlos Perez said in a statement that Republicans have spent years eroding trust in our election system in part by spreading lies about ballot collection.

“Now Republicans are participating in the same legal process they’ve been telling lies about for years,” Perez said in the statement. “As we’ve said all along, this election will be close and Nevada Democrats will continue to use every tool at our disposal to ensure we elect Democrats up and down the ballot.”

Contact Jessica Hill at jehill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @jess_hillyeah on X.