Former President Donald Trump has reignited the national debate over mail-in voting, making bold claims about its prevalence and security in the United States as the country moves toward the 2026 midterm elections. In a series of public statements and social media posts in mid-August 2025, Trump asserted that mail-in voting is unique to the United States and inherently vulnerable to fraud, pledging to take executive action to abolish the practice. But a closer look at the facts, polling data, and expert analysis reveals a different—and far more nuanced—picture.
On August 18, 2025, Trump took to Truth Social, declaring, “We are now the only Country in the World that uses Mail-In Voting.” This statement echoed grievances he had aired just days earlier in an interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, which followed his high-profile meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska. During that interview, Trump relayed Putin’s supposed opinion that mail-in voting made the 2020 U.S. presidential election “rigged.” Trump added, “not a country in the world uses it.”
Trump’s rhetoric quickly drew scrutiny from election experts, journalists, and fact-checkers. According to a 2024 report by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, at least 34 countries or territories allow some form of mail-in—or “postal”—voting. Of these, 12 allow all voters to vote by mail, while another 22 permit certain groups, such as those living abroad or with disabilities, to use this method. Countries like Australia have had postal voting for over a century, and in Canada, every eligible voter has been able to cast a mail-in ballot since 1993. “Voting by mail has long been a vital component of the democratic process in Canada,” York University’s Cary Wu told PolitiFact, emphasizing the global reach of the practice.
Despite these facts, Trump doubled down during a White House meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy later that same day, saying, “And do you know that we’re the only country in the world—I believe, I may be wrong—but just about the only country in the world that uses [mail-in voting] because of what’s happened, massive fraud all over the place.” While Trump softened his language slightly, the implication remained clear: he sees mail-in voting as a uniquely American, deeply problematic system.
But the data tells another story. CNN’s chief data analyst Harry Enten, appearing on CNN on August 19, 2025, said Americans aren’t buying Trump’s renewed attacks on mail-in voting. “They feel that Donald Trump is full of it. Full of BS,” Enten said, referencing recent polling. He pointed to Pew Research Center findings from 2024 showing that 60% of Americans—including 37% of Republicans—believe people should be allowed to vote early or absentee without needing an excuse. In a separate poll from December 2024, 63% of voters (including 37% of Trump voters) considered Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory legitimate, a 3% increase compared to December 2020.
Confidence in the mail-in voting process has also grown. According to Pew, 75% of voters in 2024 said they were confident their mail-in ballots were counted as intended—a significant jump from 59% in 2020. Among Republican voters, confidence soared from just 19% in 2020 to 72% in 2024. “I just think that this whole idea that Donald Trump is trying to push really just doesn’t stay with the American people,” Enten said. “He should move on to other issues and shouldn’t be taking political advice from Vladimir Putin, who I can’t remember the last time he won a democratic election.”
Yet Trump has vowed to “lead a movement” to abolish mail-in voting and voting machines, even suggesting he would sign an executive order to that effect before the 2026 midterms. However, the U.S. Constitution grants states—not the federal government—the authority to regulate elections. UCLA election law professor Rick Hasen wrote that Trump’s suggestion that states are merely agents of the federal government in counting votes is “wrong and dangerous.” Hasen explained, “The Constitution does not give the President any control over federal elections.” David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election Innovation & Research, echoed this, stating, “The President plays literally no role in elections, and that’s by design of the founders.”
Despite his repeated criticism of mail-in voting, Trump himself has occasionally cast mail ballots. In 2024, he even encouraged Republicans to vote by mail, a notable shift from his earlier stance. When asked for details about the proposed executive order, White House spokesperson Harrison Fields did not specify whether it would seek to ban mail-in voting entirely but said Trump wants to require voter ID and prevent “cheating through lax and incompetent voting laws in states like California and New York.” There is currently no evidence of widespread cheating in those states, and most states already require some form of voter ID, although the rules vary.
Comparing the U.S. to other countries, the differences in mail-in voting systems are real but not as stark as Trump suggests. Annika Silva-Leander of the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance explained that while the U.S. often allows states to set their own rules, many other countries have a single, nationwide system for postal voting. Additionally, features like ballot tracking and ballot curing—allowing voters to fix mistakes after submitting their ballot—are common in the U.S. but rare elsewhere. In most countries, mail-in voting supplements in-person voting, while a handful of U.S. states, such as Washington, conduct most elections by mail.
Historically, the U.S. has used voting by mail since the Civil War. Other nations, like Australia and the United Kingdom, have also adopted and expanded postal voting over the years, often to increase turnout or accommodate voters with special needs. In Britain, for example, the expansion of postal voting in the early 2000s was part of broader electoral modernization efforts, and it remains a popular option for older voters and people with disabilities.
Fact-checkers have repeatedly debunked Trump’s claim that the U.S. is alone in using mail-in voting. PolitiFact, part of the Poynter Institute, rated Trump’s statement as “False,” citing the widespread use of postal voting around the world. Election officials and researchers agree that while mail-in voting can present opportunities for fraud, such instances are rare, and robust safeguards are in place to protect the integrity of the process.
As the political season heats up, Trump’s campaign against mail-in voting appears out of step not only with global practices but also with the views of most Americans. The debate, however, is far from over. With the 2026 midterms on the horizon and voting methods once again in the spotlight, the battle over how Americans cast their ballots—and who gets to decide the rules—shows no sign of fading.
For now, the facts remain clear: mail-in voting is neither uniquely American nor inherently corrupt, and most voters are growing more confident in the process, regardless of the noise from the campaign trail.
