Oct. 26 (UPI) — President Donald Trump announced a $1 million reward for reporting voter fraud that leads to an arrest and conviction on Monday, eight days before the Nov. 3 midterm elections.
“Anybody reporting Voter Fraud in the past Elections, or the upcoming 2026 Midterm Election, will be paid $1,000,000 upon the arrest and conviction of those that created the Fraud!” Trump said in the social media statement.
Trump did not specify where the money would come from, which agency would administer the rewards, under what legal authority the rewards would be offered or how someone would qualify or apply.
Rep. Abe Hamadeh, R-Ariz., welcomed the reward as “the right move.”
“Every illegal vote dilutes a legal one,” he said online. “We need more accountability, not less, to restore trust in our elections.”
The announcement comes as Trump has been increasingly focused on the midterm elections amid growing concerns that his Republican Party may lose its narrow House majority and potentially control of the Senate.
He has warned Republicans that losing control of the House could expose him to another impeachment effort and congressional investigations into his administration.
In an effort to bolster Republican support, the party held its first-ever midterm convention, dubbed “Trumpapalooza,” in Dallas last month. During the event, Trump promised $5,000 to every adult U.S. citizen if Republicans retain control of both chambers of Congress.
Trump has also held campaign rallies for Republican candidates across the country, pledged to campaign in roughly 35 battleground races and pushed Republican-led states to redraw congressional districts to favor GOP candidates.
Despite a lack of evidence supporting the claim of widespread voter fraud, Trump, who has repeatedly and falsely claimed that the 2020 election was stolen from him, has also pushed Congress to pass legislation known as the SAVE America Act, which his administration frames as an effort to curb voter fraud but that Democrats and critics say is intended to disenfranchise voters, particularly voters of color.